DEAR SUN SPOTS: When my husband is home he keeps his cell phone on the charger all the time even when it shows that it is fully charged. He says that it will last longer if he keeps it plugged in beyond the point that it is fully charged. I tell him if its 100 percent charged it won’t charge beyond that. Will this continuous charging do anything to the cell phone battery? Am I crazy or is he obsessed? — Anonymous, No Town

ANSWER: Sun Spots talked to Matthew, a technician at Verizon Wireless in Auburn, and he said that once the phone is charged to 100 percent, the charger is smart enough to reduce it to a trickle charge, so overcharging the battery, which is bad, is not an issue.

In addition, Matthew explained that the lithium batteries used in cell phones have a life of about 400 charge cycles. Every time you take your phone off the charger, then put it back on, that’s another cycle. So if you’re not using your phone, leaving it on the charger isn’t a bad way to go — with one caveat. Your phone should be turned off while charging. Matthew said it’s important to turn your phone off regularly for the sake of the software that runs it. Otherwise, Matthew said, the short-term memory “gets full and acts funky.”

DEAR SUN SPOTS: With regard to the recent question about dog agility, I train with Carl Russell of Animal Behavior Consultants in Windham. He has been the dog trainer for my German shepherds for the past 14 years. We train in obedience, agility and scent tracking. When the weather is nice, we go on field trips to uncommon areas like a local high school or a state park to socialize the dogs in new sights and sounds with unfamiliar surroundings.

It’s great fun not only for the dogs but for the owners as well. He truly is Maine’s “dog whisperer.” They have all classes ranging from beginners, intermediate and advanced. Please call Linda Rowe at 892-2001 to get more information about upcoming class schedules. — Katherine Ledger, Auburn

DEAR SUN SPOTS: Could you please find the address of the main branch of the McDonald’s Corp. chain of restaurants? I have an idea of a proposal that might interest their sales department. In other words, I want to write to an important executive in their organization. — No Name, Lewiston 

ANSWER: The address for the corporate headquarters is McDonald’s Corp.,
2111 McDonald’s Dr.,
Oak Brook, IL 60523, and Mary Dillon is the executive vice president and global chief marketing officer. But you might want to save your ink and paper, as the following statement also appears on the Web site:

“Thank you for your interest to share an idea for a product or service that you believe would be beneficial to McDonald’s. Please know, however, that it is McDonald’s company’s policy not to consider unsolicited ideas from anyone other than our corporate employees, franchise owners and dedicated suppliers.

“It’s not that great ideas cannot come from our valued customers. Each year, however, McDonald’s receives thousands of unsolicited ideas and proposals for products and services. Due to the mass volume of these unsolicited ideas and the business challenge of determining what is truly a “new” idea versus a concept that is already in development, being tested, or previously considered, we must adhere to a strict policy not to accept or review any unsolicited ideas that come from outside the McDonald’s system of our corporate employees, franchise owners and suppliers.

“As a result, we must decline your invitation to review your idea, and hope you can understand and appreciate our business reasons for making this company decision. We do, however, greatly appreciate your interest in McDonald’s.”

This column is for you, our readers. It is for your questions and comments. There are only two rules: You must write to the column and sign your name (we won’t use it if you ask us not to). Please include your phone number. Letters will not be returned or answered by mail, and telephone calls will not be accepted. Your letters will appear as quickly as space allows. Address them to Sun Spots, P.O. Box 4400, Lewiston, ME 04243-4400. Inquiries can also be e-mailed to sunspots@sunjournal.com.

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