We’ve all seen them: The cell phone towers disguised to blend into the surroundings after complaints of the unsightly, high-frequency transmitters dotting the landscape. Below are a few of the more original cell phone towers in disguise that I have come across.
One Saturday morning during my first holiday season as Phoenix resident I was out running a few errands. Being new to the area, a lot of things on the radio caught my attention, like the promo for a car dealership that was hosting a radio station for a live remote on this particular day.
I wasn’t in the market for a car, but something about the announcer drew me in as she rattled off a few today only specials then invited us listeners to “come on out and see ’em for yourselves” at one of two locations.
When she gave the first location I could visualize it on a map in my mind. It was the second location – the “surprise location on Bell Road” – that confused me.
“Hello!” I thought to myself. “It’s not a surprise if you give the location.”
I couldn’t believe my ears as I played back the for-sure radio blooper in my head. “What a fool,” I remember thinking. “She totally blew the surprise and gave out the location. She’ll be lucky if she’s not fired on the spot.”
About fifteen minutes later I realized the fool was me. I mentioned the DJ’s blunder to a convenience store clerk, who very politely wondered aloud “Could she have been talking about a location in the town of Surprise?”
Doh! Imagine my surprise.
True story: I went out for a walk this morning well before the sun came up in our suburban Phoenix neighborhood. There is nobody out at this time of day, so I was a little suspicious when I saw someone standing completely still about 8 feet off the path, lurking in the shadows.
At first I thought the person was waiting for his dog to do its business, but alas – no dog. I got closer and closer and he didn’t so much as move a finger. “Does this guy think he’s a ninja?” I began to wonder. “Should I get ready to defend myself?”
It wasn’t until I was about 15 feet away, that I realized the alleged perpetrator was a cactus, standing just as it had for the past several years. As you were…
Paul Fiarkoski 