AT&T has a billboard campaign running that claims they cover 97% of all Americans. I wanted to start a website called ‘ImInThe3Percent.com’ for fellow Americans that aren’t covered. Guess I won’t now.

And I know that it’s really not Verizon’s tower. In the old days, each cellular company had its own towers, often leading to two towers being built side-by-side. Now all the towers are owned by cellular tower leasing companies (wholly owned subsidiaries of the telco monopolies) and the telcos just lease space on them, effectively passing dollars to each other.

In looking around, I can get a Wilson 50dB amplifier to boost the cellular signal inside the house, for $300-$400. I don’t know if it’s worth it.

AT&T also has a microcell that plugs into your broadband Internet that hands the call over to their internet service. Interesting, but I’d just use skype if I wanted to go over the Inernet.

The trouble with having cellular service in Suches is that most of the high ground is owned by the National Forest Service. The private property is generally down in the valleys. For instance, the National Forest starts about 8′ behind one corner of our house. It’s like a 65,000 acre back yard. That’s where the bears hide.

So if you are driving by in the evening and see me standing on my front porch, holding my iPhone in my outstretched arm, you’ll know I’m trying to get one more bar so I can listen to your voicemail.