i received three phone calls today on my cell phone while i was at Steve's family for the holiday. This has led me to finally engage in a much dreamed of rant against people's obsession with cellphone usage.
People are not available for anyone and everyone 24/7. That i have a cellphone does not oblige me to turn it on, answer it or check my messages. a cellular phone is supposed to be a convenience for the person paying the bill for said apparatus. hence, please call me at my HOME first. This is aimed directly at Lisa, but i also know since i mentioned this problem once before she has taken to calling me at home first as per my request - thank you. Steve also suffers from this problem. Unless you have reason to believe i am out, call home first. i do not screen my calls. i do however, very frequently, just let my cell phone ring because i am too tired to go answer it. half the time it is a wrong number, and another third of the time, i am going to tell the person i am busy (hence why i am not at home) and i will call them back at a later time/date.
My biggest issues with cell phones have to do with the messages people leave and the inappropriateness of answering them sometimes. Some people (i.e. Steve and my father) feel that my voicemail box is a place to rant about how if i am not going to answer the phone, why do i keep it. this refers to the above - a convenience for the payer of the biller, not the rest of the world comment. when leaving a message on someone's cell phone, if the message is day/time specific, pls let the person know when you are calling. "hi, it's me, give me a call" doesn't let me know if you called within the last hour since i last spoke to you, or this is a message from BEFORE you called me at home. Since i don't know what these messages mean they always get erased.
Lastly, when in a deep conversation, eating, or engaging in other bodily functions (showers, shaving, sex...) do not answer the phone. the person will call back if it is important. they will leave a message. nothing makes you feel worse than being put on hold. if i receive a second call in a five minute span, i answer the second one assuming the worst has happened (i.e. someone is in the hospital or needs my help immediately). if it isn't important enough for them to call back...it wasn't important enough to put another person on hold.
I think this need for our friends and family to be constantly available is a sign of some deep sense of insecurity about ourselves. if we aren't plugged in all the time, will the person stop caring? of course not. and obviously i am willing to be pretty technologically savvy and post much of my personal life into cyberspace for the entire world to see.
So, if you're wondering why i don't answer your phone call: i only turn my phone's ringer on when i am expecting a call. otherwise, i only use it for outgoing calls. if the plan is for you to call me at a certain time, i am available. otherwise, leave a message. i might be taking a nap.
On a different note: New Years Eve was okay. I still say it's a stupid holiday. What the hell are we celebrating exactly? Spent some time with Steve's cousin again. Steve was seriously ill from mixing bloody caesars and red wine. he probably gave himself a concussion from hitting the floor three times in a span of ten minutes. he was very apologetic. i know these things happen - it was more the mess he room was in before he was sick all over the place that bothered me. i had to clean that up too of course, to get at the mess. oh well. working tomorrow all day...tuesday too. am going to bed soon. i have a cuddly cat. that rocks.
