Inflation and Hard Times

Utter desititution is not an attractive quality, however it has led to the suspension of my cell phone service (thanks T-mobile!) and given me the pleasure of using one of these:



I haven't used a payphone since high school (and then only to return messages sent to my pager, which was oh so cool at the time, and coincidentally made me look like a drug dealer) and I was shocked and appalled by the fact that it now costs 50 cents. Okay, I know gas prices have gone up, groceries are more expensive, and the real estate market is disasterous, but pay phones? I have to draw the line here, America, it seems unfair to ask myself, and a good deal of phoneless and most likely broke citizens to spend quality liquor money on phone calls. Because let's face it, if you can't afford a phone, you probably need to drink away your sorrows.

Oh, and if you plan to charge me 50 cents, at least ensure the phone doesn't smell like pee. I like to think my fees include maintenance.