Upper age-limit for owning a cell-phone?

People are weird. Just as easy as that, people are weird.

For those of you who doesn't know yet, I currently work in a call-centre for a Norwegian phone-company, one day more interesting than the next. This was the most interesting customer of the day: 

Today I got a customer who was born in the 1920ies. Yes, truth. And this woman, she spoke to some other dude before, let's call him Alexander. The five first minutes of the conversation she really wanted to speak to this Alexander, I explained her no, but she kept on asking. Eventually I got to know her problem, so that I could help her. Ready?

Alexander had promised her an easy deal, he would order the phone for her, and it would come in the mail. She's an old woman, she wants everything served on a silver plate. Nothing more complicated than that. So he got her a phone, promising it would be easy for her, and she called in again cause it turned out it wasn't easy at all. This was her problems. "I got papers in the mail, there are so many, what do I do. There are codes on them, do I need to enter the code every time I turn on the phone?". (Warning: If you don't want to see the selfish side of me, then please skip the next lines. Thank you!). I came in a position where I had  think hard, really hard, on what was easiest to explain. Was it a smart move to try to explain her that she could change the settings on her phone, so that she did no longer have to enter PIN, or would it be better if I... twisted the truth, and told her it's best that way, best with pin-codes. Her (lack of) technical abilities will shine later in this blog-post.

Problem number two "I got a small.. thing... I don't know where to put it.". This thing turned out to be a sim-card, ladies and gentlemen. Now, as I tried to go through the whole process together with her, it turns out she doesn't understand my dialect. She informs me of this first after I gave her the whole instruction. I talk slowly, and try again. But it's like she doesn't wanna understand.

I fastly find out how impossible it is to tell her how to do it. Impossible. I bet she didn't even know what's up or down on the phone, and don't even get me started on front vs back. So (without backthoughts, I promise, I promise!!) I explain her very slowly, and very clearly that she should take it to an electronic store, so they could show her.


I didn't get anywhere with this woman., to be honest. Eventually she just hung up, no matter how many times I tried to explain her (in an easy and understandable way) what to do, and how to do it. My condolences to who gets her next time. And good luck!

Upper age-limit for owning a cell-phone? Would make my job hellofalot easier, at least!