The Kitchen Phone Cord Was Our Privacy Setting

The phone was in the kitchen, on the wall, with a cord long enough to stretch — if you were creative — all the way into the pantry.

That cord was our privacy setting. You’d pull it as far as it would go, shut the pantry door as much as you could, and whisper into the receiver like you were sharing state secrets. Everybody in the house could still hear you, but at least you were trying.

There was no caller ID, no voicemail, no texting back later. If somebody called and you weren’t home, they just called back. If you were on the phone too long, somebody would pick up the other extension and yell at you to get off.

And somehow, we survived all of it.

Did you have a kitchen phone with a long cord, or was your phone in a hallway where everybody could hear everything?