I got my first one in 1996, it was a massive brick, but I was the first of all my friends to get one.
But a few weeks ago I let my phone contract lapse, and I've gotta say that having no mobile phone is the most wonderful experience! I feel so free, I can go anywhere and not have to worry about being bothered by work!
Posted by 80'sRocked (Member # 6979) on :
I love mine and can never go back to not having one.
Edit - I should have mentioned....I use my cell phone for talking, very rarely. After a while on the phone, enough is enough for me. I use it mainly for texting, email, internet, camera, and mp3 player. I also cannot stand when people constantly have that thing stuck in their ear and don't shut up. I just want to slap them.
[ 03. January 2009, 13:53: Message edited by: 80'sRocked ]
Posted by kevdugp73 (Member # 5978) on :
I hate cell phones. I have one, and use it when I need to, but mostly like it for travelling...certainly like my wife having one when on the road with our son...it's come in handy a number of times. Really dislike when people are talking on them while walking through the mall...especially with the new cordless ones...looks like they are talking to themselves. It is now illegal in our county to use a cell phone while driving....
Posted by Ronnie (Member # 465) on :
i don't have one! i quit my service a couple of months ago. people drive me nuts with their cell phone usage.. especially those that drive while talking. my honey hates them as well, but has one just so that i can get in touch with him if need be. otherwise, he wouldn't have one either. he hates talking on the phone period.
i love that people can't reach me when i am out doing stuff. it is definitely a free feeling. Posted by ISIS (Member # 1780) on :
I hate cell phones too. My husband has one for work and emergencies, because he has to drive over a mountain every day to work. I don't have one.
But, I think they are the most rude thing ever.
I can not understand how people can stand in the store and have a conversation with someone, where everyone hears their business.
I can't imagine taking my home phone, and walking in to the store with it, while I am still on it- talking to someone, while I buy groceries- and ignore the person working at the store. That is so beyond ignorant.
I just want to grab their phone and tell them to go home.
You can hear their whole conversation, you feel like you should have a say so in whatever it is they are talking about, I mean they did just make it public knowledge.
My husband says how did people get to be so important. How did we manage for years to live without them?
Posted by NiceGuy Sammy Hain (Member # 3150) on :
Isn't talking in the store to your friend who is standing right next to you making your conversation public knowledge?
I think they're a necessity if used right.
When I was growing up I knew countless kids who would get grounded because they wouldn't contact their parents where they were going using the excuse that they had no access to a phone. Nowdays most kids have cell phones so they can't use that excuse anymore and I'm sure thats saved a lot of unnecessary anxiety for many parents.
All I have is a cell phone. I haven't had a landline phone for about five years now.
Posted by Stitch Groover (Member # 2895) on :
We often have customers in the store who talk on the mobile phones - and then complain that they weren't served.
Well, you weren't served because you were on the phone and we couldn't ask you how we could help you!
Posted by Pittsburghgirl (Member # 7514) on :
I have had a cell phone since 2001. I just got a new one for Christmas . It's the first one I've ever had that is kinda technologically up to date. I actually have a camera and video! Whoo-hoo. The thing that I hate the most is the texting. My ditzy friend texts people constantly. I don't have text messaging, nor do I plan on adding it on. If you want to contact me, pick up the damn phone and actually talk to me! I don't even talk that long on the phone, I'm not a big talker unless it's in person! I told my friend that she looks silly, like a little 12 year old junior high school student playing silly games, texting her little friends about some boy she likes or somehting. Also, I think these kids are going to have carpal tunnel by the age of 18 from all of the stupid texting, so if anyone has a super brainy child, I'd encourage them to go into orthopedic surgery for the influx of idiots from "texting syndrome".
Posted by Riptide (Member # 457) on :
I had a cell phone last year, but I was using the phone cards instead of a monthly plan/bill. I stopped using it last year, I just don't like gabbing to people unless it's an emergency. I like being free and about, and I prefer to talk to people in person and to their face. I don't even wear a watch! You can tell the time by going to a public phone and pressing the receiver. Everyday I see ridiculous amounts of tech-savy self-indulgence. Wether it's seeing 4-5 in the supermarket with their ridiculous blue tooth headgear to girls on the bus gabbing away on their cell phones while their bored boyfriends have that pained look on their faces.
Posted by Paul Dangerously, you iceholes.... (Member # 1022) on :
quote:Originally posted by ISIS: I think they are the most rude thing ever.
I can not understand how people can stand in the store and have a conversation with someone, where everyone hears their business.
I can't imagine taking my home phone, and walking in to the store with it, while I am still on it- talking to someone, while I buy groceries- and ignore the person working at the store. That is so beyond ignorant.
I just want to grab their phone and tell them to go home.
You can hear their whole conversation, you feel like you should have a say so in whatever it is they are talking about, I mean they did just make it public knowledge.
My husband says how did people get to be so important. How did we manage for years to live without them?
If you want to go down that route, all phones are rude. They are (as the British TV celebrity Stephen Fry once described) like having someone sat in your home or office shouting "SPEAK TO ME NOW!! SPEAK TO ME NOW!!" This is clearly ridiculous.
Mobile phones aren't rude, and neither is using one in a public place, unless you're in a movie theatre or somewhere like that, where silence is paramount. But using one in a store is fine. In fact, it's a great thing to do, as long as you don't neglect the people around you - which you see people doing all the time, even if they aren't talking on the phone at the time....
But please don't get all this mixed up. People can be rude. People using mobile phones can be rude. But that does NOT make mobile phones rude.
And a prime example of someone being rude would be if I was in a store, talking on my phone, and someone just came up and grabbed my phone from me. Not only is that rude, it'll also get them arrested.
Posted by kevdugp73 (Member # 5978) on :
I briefly use my cell phone in stores to check in with my wife...re: do we need this or that...or to list off some movies for renting. It's much easier that way...instead of me coming home with a movie my wife doesn't like...she can hit harder than you'd think.... Posted by pettyfan (Member # 2260) on :
If I could get cell service at my house I probably wouldn't have a landline, either. I take mine with me wherever I go...that way if something happens I have a phone. I totally agree with Pittsburgh Girl...texting is pointless, IMO! Like she said, pick up the damn phone and call the person! If you don't have time to do that, don't do anything at all. I don't have texting either. Why pay for something I'd never use? And as a teacher, I have to say that texting, and all those stupid abbreviations sure does screw up kids' spelling...
Oh, and I'd be seriously pizzed if someone came up and took my phone away from me while I was talking on it...
Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
Cell phone's the only route for me. I don't need both a cell and home phone as I'm fortunate enough to get a good signal and it would be just an unnecessary bill plus I'm always on mine when I'm consulting part of the week. I think they're a necessity in today's world. The only time I'm annoyed by them is when someone's in the fast lane of traffic (I always speed) going slow, talking, holding up those who want to get around. I'd also be p!ssed if someone came up to me and took my phone. How ignorant would it be for someone to do that? I'd pay money to see someone go up to somebody in the store where I work and take another person's phone while they were on it. That's the equivalent of someone coming into your own home and taking it. I call it an invasion of personal space myself........
Posted by Pittsburghgirl (Member # 7514) on :
I use mine in the store sometimes briefly too, like kevdug, to see if there is anything hubby wants or needs. And it makes me feel good to have one in case I break down. Prime example: springtime 2000, my van would not start up after I came out of the bank. So I walked down the road to a payphone in a drizzling rain to call my husband. I knew it was the battery, so I needed a jump. He just came over to the bank and jump started it, but we switched vehicles so he could go get me a new battery. I wouldnt' have had to walk out in the rain in dress clothes (I was on my way to work) if I had a cell phone! Dude, I'd pay to see someone try to pull my phone away from me while I was talking on it! I am not one of those idiots who talks and tries to drive at the same time. I've seen enough 20 year old girls almost plow me over while talking on their cell phone, driving, chewing gum and eating their McDonald's hamburger, ha,ha!
Posted by ISIS (Member # 1780) on :
Oh for pete sakes....I never said that I ever took someone's cell phone out of their hand...I said I'd like too, that's a HUGE difference!
It is rude, to stand in the store, blocking the aisles while conversing with someone on a cell phone...the phone isn't suspended in mid air, someone is on the end of it, so that's rude.
Yes, people standing in the aisle blocking it talking to another person is rude too...neither one is right.
I was almost killed because someone was talking on their cell phone, and not paying attention to the road and missed their exit, and plowed in to me and my family.
So, if you drive while talking on the phone, your an accident waiting to happen. After all ...it is against the law...or did someone forget that?
Posted by NiceGuy Sammy Hain (Member # 3150) on :
It's against the law in some states but most don't have any laws prohibiting talking on a cell phone while driving. However more and more have passed laws or are trying to do so.
Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
No laws such as that here although they are trying. I never said you'd took anyone's cell phone only said "if" which implies a hypothetical situation.......
Posted by 80'sRocked (Member # 6979) on :
Texting is not pointless to everyone. For me, it is free with my plan and saves me money in the long run....for one. Second, if I want to send someone a message and they are at work and can't be bothered, it is easier to send a quick text to them to read later. Doesn't mean we all text while driving and use stupid abbreviations. I don't do either.
Posted by Ronnie (Member # 465) on :
there are certain people i know personally, that can't breathe without their cell phones. i would sit with them, carrying conversations and in the middle of me talking, they grab their phone to read a text, respond and or answer calls that are quite pointless, IMO. otherwise, i don't care about anyone else (people i don't know) who are on their phones talking...in the stores,.. or wherever. but then i also think it's dangerous to drive and talk at the same time. and it seems like every other person i pass on the road, is on their phone.. a bit of an over exageration..but still hehe.
i canceled my phone for personal reasons. but when i had my phone, i would get text messages daily, but unless they were important, i didn't really care to do the "what's up" stuff through texting, while i am at work, or at home with my family. but if it suits others, then that's quite alright.
another thing that i got tired of, is the constant wrong number calls. i got harrassed from a mortgage compnay that was trying to collect a debt of some sort for another lady who must have had the number before me. i couldn't do enough to get them to stop calling. and after that, it just seemed that everytime i changed my number people would call asking for someone else.
cell phones are handy, yes.. but just not important to me. and i don't even have a landline. those who know me, can call my desk at work if it's important, otherwise i email them or talk to them on myspace. Posted by aTomiK (Member # 6575) on :
I bought my first cell phone in the late 90īs. Everyone has a cell phone here.
They are already taking out landlines in some parts of the country. Itīs kind of sad but i guess that itīs progress.
Iīm not a heavy user. I donīt get big bills. I just use it when i have or want to.
Iīm not using it to entertain me. I know many people do and then they canīt pay their bills. Thatīs stupid.
I just have a regular cell, nothing fancy. Nowadays you can watch movies, play latest games and God knows what with these gadgets, but thatīs just not my way.
Posted by ISIS (Member # 1780) on :
Ronnie-that is weird that you said about the wrong number thing. Last night at 3:40am...my phone rang...but I couldn't find it, because I had left the upstairs phone in my son's room...but it comes up "private caller", and I have been getting alot of those lately, and when my husband answers- they hang up. You can't hit return call, because their number is blocked, so now I have to go through the pain of trying to put some more "extra features" on my regular phone, to get rid of that person.
I have had people call me in the middle of the night, wanting a room for the night, and I am polite about it... I never have said...you just woke me up...but I am going to tell people from here on out, that I only take advanced reservations....and call back in the morning. Who is crazy enough to go check in to a Bed N Breakfast at 2am?
Anyway...I have a friend too that can't live without her cell phone, and every time we have a party or she comes to visit, she'll talk to people for a minute, and then she's off in the other room- talking on the phone or texting someone, or checking her messages- I have never said anything to her, because I figure she is a grown woman and she should know it is rude. She has a compulsion over the phone, but she has an obsessive/compulsive personality anyway-so I just ignore it.
I use to talk on the phone more ...years ago. but with the computer- I email everyone to keep in touch. I actually don't like talking on the phone any more. So, when I see people constantly on them- I always wonder what they possibly could be talking about. I find people to be pretty boring at times, and there's alot of people that are really hard to talk to anyway. So, I can never figure out what it is that they find to discuss for hours at a time.
Posted by MotleyRulz (Member # 3598) on :
It's probably not meant to be figured out as it may be private matters that's no one else's business....
Posted by JAY LEE (Member # 6345) on :
Wow, I guess the US has a totally different cell phone culture than Europe! Got my first in '96, and had about ten since then. Everyone has cell phones here, kids, old people... whoever! And it is not considered rude to use them anywhere, except maybe in a movie theater. walk in the city, and there is about a thousand people seemingly speaking to themselves, because of the tiny headsets! The only people I know that doesn't have one, is my grandparents, and they are in their 80's.
I use mine for playing games, taking pics, filming stuff, as an organizer, an alarm clock, a music player, calculator, internet etc. Otside of the obvious calling and texting.
Posted by Smayt Shatner (Member # 1500) on :
I use mine for beaming back to the Enterprise lol ''on my way papa''
Posted by buffalo-girl (Member # 7498) on :
i have a cell phone but only use it for emergency's i mostly browse the web on it when i am using it? if i am not here that is? otherwise i just check my voicemail now and then no biggie dee
Posted by Paul Dangerously, you iceholes.... (Member # 1022) on :
quote:Originally posted by NiceGuy Sammy Hain: It's against the law in some states but most don't have any laws prohibiting talking on a cell phone while driving. However more and more have passed laws or are trying to do so.
And talking on the phone whilst driving is illegal here as well. That's a whole other issue than talking whilst standing in a store though. Until they make THAT illegal, then it will simply be an essential part of life for some, and an annoyance for others.
btw I have two cellphones - does that mean I can be doubly annoying? If so, please can someone point me in the direction of the nearest store?
Posted by bandit (Member # 6296) on :
This is my old cell phone,i think you get my point
Posted by Paul Dangerously, you iceholes.... (Member # 1022) on :
Couldn't you just put it on silent?
Posted by Pittsburghgirl (Member # 7514) on :
Bandit, I used to have that same phone. Only mine was red. For us peeps here in the U.S., cell phones and coverage were quite expensive in the 1990's. The only people I knew who had cell phones were people who had their own business or whose job paid for the phone. My cell phone plan wanted to charge us $40 a month extra for text messaging, which was a no for us. If I need to talk to someone, I just call them and if they can't answer, it's not a big deal. I just leave a message and talk to them when they are able. I do have a friend who would call my home phone first, then if I didn't answer, she'd call my cell phone. Well, if I dont' answer my cell phone, it means I'm in the basement on my computer. She asked me why I wouldn't have my cell phone down here in the basement with me? WTF- I told her that normally people do not get a signal underground that I know of. And then when I didn't answer the phones, she would email 600 times until I called her back for her "emergency", which was usually did I want to go to lunch in 3 days! I think she got the message when I stopped taking all of her calls and didn't respond to the emails either. she is another text addict too.
Posted by EleanorJune (Member # 7024) on :
Sadly enough, my phone is like a third arm to me. I always have it with me, always texting, calling, surfing the web, sending IM's, listening to music. I try not to be rude about it in public, though I am sure one time or another I have been. Sorry! Luckily my phone is provided by my job. There is only one problem I have with it. I never do the most crucial thing...charge it!
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