OK, so here is the tech thing!.
The signal from Orange to our place ain't very good. It functions but could be better so I got Orange to check the line out and they said, yes, there is a problem. If it is our fault i.e. it is outside of you property we will fix it for nowt, but if it is on your land we'll charge you €69 just for coming to look.
So I wanted to get them to come and have a look but they insisted on a Frog mobile number, landline was not an option.
Normally I would give the number of a long since unused mobile but this was a bit more serious, I didn't want to get charged cos they couldn't contact me.
So I decided to take my old Frog mobile into toon and get a new SIM card. I presented the phone to the blokey, he got a new SIM card out put it in the phone and although all the lights etc came on he couldn't get it to work. We had both noticed, when he opened the phone that there was rust inside it, which I couldn't account for as it had never been out in the rain, or anything like.
So.... Need new phone. Opted for the cheapest poopiest phone they had, i.e. a more modern version of the old one. €39. and a new SIM card €10 and a minimum charge up on it €5.
Went through all the paperwork you have to do including him looking at my passport and noting numbers etc. He highlighted the new phone's number on the receipt for the SIM card. We then had to go over to the till for me to pay for all this. He gave me a bag with the box for the phone containing the charger etc and I headed out to the car, explained to W what had happened and off we went to complete the shopping and stuff.
Back home I searched online for a replacement suction mount for my TomTom, turns out they are as rare as rocking horse poop. But eventually found one, on Brit Ebay, so went for it. Had to fill in all the delivery details and as usual I had to give a Frog mobile number.
No sweat thinks I, I have one of those now!
Hmm!
Turns out that the piece of paper constituting the receipt for the SIM card, with the number on it highlighted by the sales guy is nowhere to be found. Maybe my fault. I had so many stoopid bits of stuff to pick up before leaving the shop.
After searching high and low for it and not finding it I thort well all I have to do is send a text from my new phone to any of our mobiles and the number will be there.
Said new mobile is as user-unfriendly as it is possible to be, but finally managed to put my other Brit mobile in as a "contact" and attempted to ring it. "this number you cannot ring" says it. Presumably cos it is a Brit number.
By now I am steaming. So I go to the one and only SMS on the phone and it is from Orange sort of welcoming me to this piece of poop but it tells me the number of it!
So I can the use it to order the thing I am trying to order off eBay!
Wot a total pain in the rear. But now I can ask Orange to come and check our line.
So I now have 4 mobiles, two French, two Brit, all of which work except for the old Frog one which still does a lot of stuff, but not apparently behving like a phone. How the flip is this possible?
Will now contact Orange to get them to come and sort out the line.
Grrrrrrrrr!