[mass55th]

Oh my, that is a funny story about the hum and the cat peeing on the connector in the mornings. One of my sisters worked for Rochester Telephone in Rochester, NY. We always had the new phones when they came out. It was part of the benefit of her working for the phone company. She retired in 1992 at the age of 50, having worked there for 32 years. She got her monthly phone service for free until the day she died in 2011.

[Myrddin]

I worked for Pacific Telephone starting in 1980. It morphed into Pacific Telesis as the deregulation activities proceeded. Initially I was a Toll Central Office Equipment Engineer. It was a good starting place, but not a job with much mobility. I moved to supporting the internal computer systems. Lots of room for professional and salary advancement. New management moved in toward 1988. Hatchet management. Cut costs in return for big financial rewards. My department had 5000 people when I started. They were hacked down to around 500 as I made my exit for my current employer. Almost 34 years has elapsed. It was a good move.