(An anonymous record of a true event.)
See the family walk out to the car: they are giddy with anticipation! See them settle into their respective seats inside the car. This family outing was to be comprised of a string of errands. As they plan their itinerary, they find need of a quick call on the ever-present cell phone. Such convenience!

But alas, the fruit of their diligent dialing only garners them a recorded message on yet another and distant cell phone. After a brief consultation with the “Mr.” of the family, it is decided to commence again the dialing, but this time to a stationery land line of which he dryly observed, “It would be a miracle if anyone answered.” The rest of the family unanimously and heartily concurred.

But alas, upon reflection, the family realized that among them all, none could remember the needed number to dial. It must be recorded here that the youngest member of the family, a certain “Miss M.”, after several moments of intense concentration, did blurt out said number. The whole family had heard her rememberings: audibly constructing and reconstructing the series of numerals, until she had recalled both prefix and number. Almost before the words were quite out of her mouth, the passenger in the front seat who is prone to – “ahem” – quick judgments, exclaimed, “That’s not it!” Whereupon the “Mr.” of the family told the passenger in the front seat to retrace her way to the front door of the house, gain entry and retrieve the needed number. (Of course, this regress was what the family was hoping to avoid all along.)

Nevertheless, the deed was carried forward and in a few moments the passenger in the front seat was reinstalled in the car with the required and desired number in her possession; it was the same number blurted out previously by the young passenger from the back seat.

It should be here stated that upon the regress of the front seat passenger to the family dwelling, the younger “Miss M.” had burst from the back seat of the car to gain the front door of the house at the same moment as said front seat passenger. Her mission was to retrieve a certain piece of personal baggage. She afterward returned to the car without said baggage and though she was disappointed, there was no pall cast upon the general gaiety of the occasion.

Now armed with the correct phone number, the cell phone with all it’s “ever-present” convenience was again dialed – and again the fruit of all the family’s efforts was but another recorded message. So, dutifully a message was left and the family considered the options before them.

A third possible number presented itself for consideration. But alas, it was in storage in yet another “ever convenient” cell phone – back inside the family home. At this point, the “Mr.” of the family completed his regress to the home, followed in the same manner as before by the young “Miss M.”. As the “Mr.” of the family retrieved the “ever convenient” cell phone, his cell phone, “Miss M.” became more frantic and agitated in her search for that elusive bit of personal baggage. Both parties returned to the car, the one successful, the other with a brooding dark cloud over her head. This cloud which threatened to break into a royal downpour was presently dispatched with some encouraging communications from the front seat passenger.

After the family was again seated in the car, the “Mr.” of the family perused the “contacts” catalog of his “ever convenient” cell phone. Suddenly he announced that said cell phone was about to expire for want of internal energy. Luckily, the “Mr.” quickly recited the needed number just before the expected demise of the “ever convenient” cell phone. The front seat passenger, in a well-orchestrated catch, encoded the desired number into her “ever convenient” cell phone. The transaction had been successful; the family was ready to dial again. And this time, with wonder, astonishment and relief, they listened with joy as a person, and not a machine, answered the call.

The conclusion of the matter was that certain important papers were not required in the round of errands. So, with a certain hilarious glee, the front seat passenger again retraced her steps to the house to deposit said papers into a safe place. Again – that is, for the third time – the young “Miss M.” bolted from the car to gain entrance to the house, where – for this third and final time – she sought to locate the strongly-desired piece of personal baggage. I am happy to report that her search was successful; I know – I was there.