Comments on: A Downside to Our Rural Life

By: KG

KG — Fri, 22 May 2009 20:00:52 +0000

Alas, urban life is not devoid of this same phone/rain problem. My parents live in a large city of 700,000+ people and they’ve had the problem you describe for the 20 years they’ve lived there. I know they have reported the problem many times, but I guess finding a solution is not a top priority for the phone company.

By: Kate

Kate — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 23:37:44 +0000

I’ve lived in cities most of my life, but two years ago bought a tiny cabin in a very rural area of Vermont. The utilities are a regular problem, with the weather and trees. When bought the property, I immediately reported a problem just like you described — crackling in the line that was so bad I couldn’t hear the person on the other end. It was fixed a couple days later and hasn’t happened again. They found the source a few miles away.

One caveat I want to give about dsl internet service, which is in some rural areas also. I have dsl service in my city place, where it is supposed to work best (very close to the control center), but I frequently have problems with the provider, Verizon, that have not been fixed and probably won’t ever be. I have to report it to the Attorney General.

By: Kelly

Kelly — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 19:52:19 +0000

I can relate to the backroads, northern New England living as well. As I’m sure you know, it’s mud season. The other day on my way to work where I need to look professional (I was wearing a business suit/skirt) I was lost in my thoughts and got myself stuck in the mud on our dirt (now mud) back road. Thankfully, I wasn’t too far away from my house, so I grabbed my mud boots, which were in my back seat, and hiked the half mile back to my house for help. When I was standing in the doorway, mudboots and skirt, my partner laughed at me and came down to check out the situation. When he had gone back up to the house to get his truck, one of his workers came down the road and thankfully had a chain and pulled me out of the mud. When I called into work about 20 minutes later (once I was in cell phone service again) my coworker and I had a good laugh…

By: Shannon

Shannon — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 13:34:11 +0000

We have the same problem with our phone in wet weather! It crackles and pops!

We have satellite for our internet. Otherwise we could never get on in the Spring! lol!

I’ll take living in the country any day. :D

Hugs!

By: cricket

cricket — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 23:42:44 +0000

Well at least they dident tell you that its in your head like they did me!!!!! so now my main phone is the cell and von/cable phone. they need to replace the lines to fix the problem.

By: Jo

Jo — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 00:45:31 +0000

Dear Shirley,

I can relate to your frustration. I don’t know how long I have dreamed of having all utility lines either buried or inside sectional pipe that can be easily accessed by utility workers. It would cost a bundle for the switch from pole mounted lines but it would pay for itself over time.

And the trees would love it!