Cellphone Addiction?

So, this topic came up among my imaginary friends. I think they have a point since I have noticed cell phone usage skyrocket among my friends, their children and just Jane and Joe Public. Whether it is talking on the phone, using the camera or video capabilities of the phones, texting, using the now easily downloadable apps, surfing the internet or just messing with the darn things. There are few things worse than viewing grandchildren with people who have no idea how to compose a photograph. Let alone those that need their owners manual to figure out how to share the pictures stored on their cells. Brownie cameras with fingers over the lens were better than many I have had the pleasure of looking at.

Other peoples’ cell phones are talking to them out loud. I find myself sometimes answering these requests. Even worse is the really repugnant feature on my old flip phone that starts demanding that I “Please wait.” if I inadvertently pass my finger near the special button. This usually happens when I am putting the phone in my pocket. The phone wants me immediately to “Please say a command.” That grating voice gets very impatient and bossy if I don’t say something immediately and easily understandable. If there is a lot of background noise or wind blowing into the window it becomes quite urgent. And, the legislators think that driving and texting is dangerous and should be outlawed. Texting is nothing compared to this dominatrix’s decree!

I find it quite amusing when someone walks by me in the grocery store and says something I think is directed at me and I respond, only to find out that on the other side of their head a Bluetooth earpiece and microphone are flashing as they talk. I think it is awful when I have to listen to a mother trying to tell her six year old how to operate the Nintendo over her cellphone… especially when she is in the booth behind mine at a fancy restaurant. I feel a small amount of relief when the mother asks to speak to the babysitter and repeats Nintendo instructions to a teenager on the other end of the line. At least now I know how to turn the Nintendo on even if I don’t have one. I feel much better if someone else yells out, “Take it outside.” instead of me getting an elbow in the ribs or a kick in the shins if I give that directive.

Do you want to see some pictures of my dog? If I can figure out how to get them to show on this tiny screen… I have some really awful looking pictures of DakotaDawg on this old phone here someplace. I can now email them to you since I took the phone to the Cell Phone Store to have them download the pictures to a thumb drive because the directions in the owners manual for transferring them to the computer did not work.

DakotaDawg: What the heck are you doing?

Darn it. Are you using my phone again?

© steven d philbrick sr+ DakotaDawg 09/02/2010