Recently I attended an event where people were eating and chatting. It was a casual affair.The
gentleman I was sitting next to continually consulted his cell phone, text-messaged someone, and generally kept his eyes glued to this electronic UNINVITED guest.Usually, as a dinner companion, I would have tried to draw him out, asked questions and tried to show interest in him. At one point I did say, "Wow! That must be important." His comment was, "No, it's just my daughter, playing around, text-messaging me."
So, I gave up. I figured that he was certainly not on the same page or really even mentally at the same event. Why should I make a special effort when he wasn't making any?
TURN OFF THE DAMN PHONES. (And I know I'm going to get someone saying, but he was talking to his little daughter. Well, his little daughter is in high school.)
Am I being too hard?
6 comments:
Interesting. We both posted about cell phones today.
No, you are not being too hard. People have forgotten their manners. My cellphone is always on, however, if I am in a meeting or with a client it is set to silent. I do not want to be distracted from what I am doing or who I am with.
Text messaging has gotten out of control, too. I just don't see the point. When I do get a text message, I call the person. Just easier than typing in a message.
What is text messaging??????
Being too hard?? Hardly.
Unless they are willing to excuse themselves ahead of time because there is some sort of family emergency, there is no excuse. It's just pure rude.
I recently read "The 4-hour Work Week" (I forget the author), but in it he claims that he never answers the phone and only returns his calls once a week. Now, I don't know if I would go to that extreme, but, again, unless it's some sort of family emergency, there's no reason that you can't wait an extra half hour to answer the phone.
And don't even get me started on the folks who insist on wearing their Bluetooth headsets into meetings!
Argh. I ALWAYS get in trouble for commenting on that at dinner tables. I make a general comment about how rude it is, then notice everyone put their phones down. It is so unbelievably rude but also boring. Seriously, I don't want to hang out with people when all I do is sit there and watch them play with their phones.
Phones and facebook have turned the world into a popularity contest - people will communicate with anyone who's willing. Very weird!
And this is coming form a tech junkie :)
Amen!
Different scenario. Same theme: Imagine a girls' night out in a Toledo. Small pub. Great band. Included in this group of women were a few 20-somethings. Throughout the night, while the 30 somethings lit up the dance floor, the younger set remained at the table to text message their significant others! True story. I was there.
God love 'em, I think they missed the point of the GIRLS NIGHT OUT! ;)
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