Being married to a cellphone or I'm just a luddite

[shootingstar]

Only in part jest.

Some people really use their cellphone as a crutch for all sorts of things.
A few co-workers were busy on their cellphone one-quarter of the time at a annual Christmas restaurant lunch.

None of them have jobs which require that they be on call.
I thought it was rude. Thankfully yaaked happily with 2 other colleagues (1 in her late 20's, other closer to my age, who didn't pull out their cellphones at all.).

[zoom-zoom]

A few Christmases ago my MIL was newly dating her fiancee. She sat at the table reading and sending texts and giggling during the entire meal and the rest of the day (and for about the first year they were dating she would do this regardless of the setting, even in restaurants). It was unbecoming behavior for a woman in her 60s (were she my child I would have taken the phone away). It was around that time that she told us that she liked to text while driving and was getting really good at it. It was obvious that she thought we would find this to be funny...we didn't. And we told her that is we EVER caught wind of her doing that with our son in the car that we would never again allow him in her vehicle.

[shootingstar]

Wow, zoom zoom. Good thing you said what needed to be said about driving and texting.

Just flippin' scary...and she's not getting younger as a driver.

[Bike Chick]

We have a friend who will sit and text and piddle with their cellphone while we are having dinner in a restaurant or at our house then get upset if they are left out of a decision or important conversation. My tongue has bled many times. It is so rude. You wouldn't have a separate conversation at dinner with another person at the table so why would you converse with someone using a cell phone? If it's that important, excuse yourself from the table. I've often wanted to text this person myself when this is happening just to point out how rude it is but I haven't. I really think people get so wrapped up in their electronic devices, they don't think about how impolite it is. DH has even picked up his cell phone and checked messages when I am talking to him! I don't let that one slide.

[Crankin]

My phone stays in my bag, unless it is ringing. If I need to call someone or text (which is usually only for work), I excuse myself. Honestly, I would have to start searching the web or go on TE, to be holding my phone in my hand all of the time and looking at it. My friends also do not feel the need to be in contact all of the time, like this. I have one friend, who is kind of, well, not entirely OK both emotionally and cognitively. She started texting me all of the time a couple of years ago, when I never even turned on my cell phone. I was getting charged for all of these texts, so I had to tell her to stop. She also posts really dumb stuff on Facebook (like the fact she's away on vacation) and brags about her college aged son. She likes/makes a comment about anything I put on there, which is usually only things about my rides or other outdoor stuff, and she has no knowledge of any of these things. Then, she will call what I do "cute" or "sweet," which to me is what you say about a little kid. It really annoys me, to the point that I don't hardly put anything on FB.

[pll]

I have progressed towards being a luddite... When the first Treo appeared, I was the first in line to get one. I thought it was a time sink. And a money pitt: $70 per month in service, over $2500 over the contract period plus the cost of the device. Such amounts of money are better spent elsewhere: a new bike, a new bed, traveling.

Anyway, when I go out with friends, I often turn the cell phone off when I arrive at the meeting place. After all, I am there to meet with my friends.

I think tinkering with phones is a very bad habit. Doing it over a meal with friends or family is downright obnoxious. Don't get me started on people texting and walking like drunks on the street...

Crankin: FB has a great function to avoid seeing annoying/lame updates from acquaintances -- you can unsubscribe from their feeds. Either click and hold on their names to see the "subscribe" button; click on that button to limit what you see.. or go to their pages and click on "subscribe". I have one acquaintance who believes Sarah Palin walks on water, another who continually posts comments that imply complaints about everything, and some cousins that refused to be educated and to mature beyond 12 years of age... Not seeing their feeds when I log in is so much better!

[spindizzy]

People always seem to want to be where they're not. I personally find this behaviour appalling. My family hears my observations about this all of the time.

I once saw a couple going for walk. They both had their phones out, texting to ?. Not interacting with one another. I see parents in playgrounds, texting and talking on their phones, not interacting with their children. So many people are hunched over their electronic devices that I'm sure evolution will alter our upright posture to a hunched over one. It's like using the handicapped push button to open doors...people not using their arms in a full range of motion we'll be like T-Rex in a few millennia, teeny little useless arms...I digress- I'll stop the rant...

[Crankin]

OK, this is getting off topic. Pll, I know about that Facebook feature. It's actually not her original posts that bother me so much, but her reaction to my posts. When she comments on my rides, I'd like to say "why do you care, you told me you can't do what I do." This is a person who recently had knee surgery and went throughout her rehab all summer. She plays tennis and skis. Right before she had the surgery, she got some bug in her ear that she was going to walk her dog (all she ever does) while riding a bike. Instead of asking us for help, when another friend mentioned how helpful my DH had been to her when she bought a road bike, this person got angry and proceeded to get help from a neighbor who "just bought a bike off of Craig's list." Well, she did buy a Trek FX, which I told her was a good choice, but then I was shot down again when I told her I would be glad to help her learn the rules of the road, teach her to shift, etc. She again said, she would never do what I do, and she would only ride on the 2 streets in her neighborhood, after I said I would take her to the bike trail. So after her mean response to all my offers of help, I told her it was dangerous for her to walk her dog with a leash attached to her bike, especially, by her own admission, she had no bike skills, and had never ridden a bike with hand brakes or gears.
The bike is sitting in her garage.
She's a person that is constantly on her phone, texting, and posting stuff on FB, because she has nothing else to do.

[Irulan]

RE phone. We have a simple rule. No phones at the table, at home or when out.

[emily_in_nc]

OK, this is getting off topic. Pll, I know about that Facebook feature. It's actually not her original posts that bother me so much, but her reaction to my posts.

I recently read an article online about how you could set Facebook to not allow certain friends to comment on your posts. The Comment section just won't appear on their feed. Unfortunately, I can't recall how to do it, but if you google, you might be able to find it. That's one way to shut 'em up!

Back to the original topic of cell phones, wanna hear Luddite? We don't even have 'em here in Belize! We may eventually, for emergencies mostly, but for now, we're enjoying the freedom from the constant presence of the phone. We do have a land line in our condo.

[pll]

Crankin: your texting friend sounds like a nuisance. I think FB allows you to prevent certain people from commenting or even seeing your posts. It takes some work, but nobody should come into your virtual home and annoy you.

[Irulan]

Crankin: your texting friend sounds like a nuisance. I think FB allows you to prevent certain people from commenting or even seeing your posts. It takes some work, but nobody should come into your virtual home and annoy you.

There are some very good sites out there devoted to FB privacy and how to best use what they give you.
Facecrooks is one I refer to diligently.

[indysteel]

What I don't get--and this is only partly related to cell phones--is how many personal phone calls some people make and receive during the workday. When did it become the norm for everybody and their brother to chat throughout the day? Several people I work with spend half the day on the phone with their spouse, friends, children, etc. I very rarely make or receive personal calls during the day. It just seems like a lot of things can and should be discussed at home after work. To me, it's just another example of how self involved people have become.

[OakLeaf]

@Crankin, I don't think there's anything weird about her liking your posts even though she doesn't enjoy the activities herself. I "like" all kinds of things my FB friends post that are outside my personal experience. Photos of their paintings, links to reviews of their productions, descriptions of their quilting get-togethers, even though I neither paint nor act nor sew, e.g. I "like" that they're having fun, creating something, living the life they want.

[Becky]

There have always been self-involved, impulsive, rude people. Cell phones (and technology in general) are just another way to accomplish that behavior. Blame the person, not the item...