Freddie and phones

I like my devices old, cracked, and bruised. I find these imperfections charming, like of badges of honor: an old phone has lived up to its task, and it has done well. Also: old devices don't attract attention. I can leave them on the table, untouched by any competent thief who has appraised their value—close to nothing.

I've had no real desire to get a new phone, until Manong asked me if I had a phone to spare. He plans to use the phone in Sweden where he will live and study for the next few years. I figured I could easily get a new phone with my postpaid plan, and I'd hand over my old phone to him. 

I got myself a new phone today—an iPhone 16, the basic variant—to replace my trusted five-year old iPhone 11. I've long since lost count of the iPhone variants in the market, but I remember starting with an iPhone 5, then 6, and transitioned from a prepaid TU-200 promo by Sun Cellular (the "in" thing at the Philippine General Hospital during my years of training) to a postpaid plan. 

My visit at the mall was unceremonious, like getting my driver's license renewed. I had to do it out of duty. I picked the phone that was the most available and that would fit best in my pocket. I left the store with the new phone in my bag, without buying so much as a case and a screen protector. The walk from the mall to the parking area felt strange; the silence was palpable. 

Then I remembered Freddie, my dear friend and medical oncology colleague and father of my goddaughter, who insisted to pay for my screen protector and case after he accompanied me to get my unit at at Robinson's Manila. It was in December 2019. He was more excited than me. 

"Please, Lance, have mercy on your new device. Put a screen protector," he said. 

This is the same Freddie who, until now, inches towards stores that sell all sorts of phone cases, sometimes preferring the transparent plastic to the faux-leather cases with covers that can hold one's credit cards—like the ones old people use in Hong Kong. This is pretty much the same Freddie who changes phones every few months; I get alerts in Viber that he has a new number, and therefore, almost always a new device. 

I remember that, after buying my iPhone 11, we headed home, taking the train from LRT Pedro Gil Station up to MRT Boni (my stop) and MRT Shaw (his). This was the era when the trains would break down mid-trip and sweaty, harassed passengers would be forced walk along the train tracks. The video footage would then be shown in TV Patrol, when people still watched TV.