Thursday, July 24, 2008

I heard on the radio this morning....

....that the Pittsburgh Cancer Institute is warning people about cancer risks based on cell phone use. They say kids shouldn't use the devices except in emergencies. We've heard of various studies over the years also associating cellphone use with cancer, but they don't seem to have been conclusive, and in any case, the warnings will continue to be widely ignored.

Neither Tuffy nor I use a cell phone. In my case, some people think that's because I'm some kind of Luddite crank, but in fact it's mostly because we don't feel the need to be connected all the time. Our friends know our schedules and know when they can reach us at home. They also know we don't screen calls and we normally return calls quickly when people leave us messages.

Lately, while out and about on my bicycle, it has seemed to me that a remarkable number of people are on the phone all the time....in the grocery store (um I'm in the meat department what should I buy?), on bicycles, driving cars, walking down the street.... Sometimes I see two people walking together, each talking to somebody else on their phone. What's wrong with this picture?

My big question: who are all these people talking to? I just don't have that many friends.

I can see it now:

Hi, it's mister anchovy.
Mister anchovy? Didn't we talk last week?
Well, yeah, but I just called to you know see how you're doing
I'm doing the same as I was last week. What do you want, fishboy?
You know, just to chat.
Chat? Look, I'm busy, OK? Call me in a couple months.
Yeah. We should get together.
Yeah. I'm kinda busy right now.

Hi, it's mister anchovy.
Look mister anchovy, I know you bought this phone and all, but I can't be talking to you every minute.
Oh. Um, did you see the hockey game?
It's July, anchovy, there is no hockey.
Oh, I mean the soccer...er, football game? The lacrosse game?
You don't even like sports.
Well um...
Look, I'm busy, OK.

So, dear readers, my question to you today is, who the heck do you talk to every day on the phone?

12 comments:

zydeco fish said...

While not quite a cell phone story, my fav story is about a man who looked up while he was going down on his wife to discover that she was checking her email on her Blackberry. Hilarious.

I have a cell phone, but I don't have enough friends for it to be really useful. But, having one makes me feel important and grown up.

Karen said...

I rarely use the phone at all except at work.

Barbara Bruederlin said...

I think we must have been separated at birth. I often wonder who the hell people are talking to all the time as well.

I don't even like talking on a real phone very much. Our cell phone is generally kept in a drawer somewhere and hauled out for road trips.

Zydeco fish - that's a great story! Obviously the guy wasn't doing a very good job.

Anonymous said...

I don't have a cell phone. I still connect the phone call with work where calls have to be answered as part of the job.

I'd rather email people so I don't feel like I'm interrupting their day and they can answer when they feel up to it.

Muppie

Wandering Coyote said...

I currently do not have a cell phone, and I have no plans to get one. I had one a few years ago when I lived at The Centre and didn't have my own phone line, but I certainly wasn't yakking with my peeps constantly...I have no peeps to yak with at all, really. I barely get any calls on my landline.

Bridget Jones said...

My Mom and Sis, occasionally work/pals.

I'm really worried about this cell phone thing, because a good friend died of brain cancer and he was HOOKED to his cell phone since they first started selling them.

Candy Minx said...

I have a group of family and friends that I talk to on the phone on a regular basis. My sister and I have been known to talk for at least an hour at a time. I have a couple girlfriends I talk to on the phone all the time when I am in town.

Since changing to a cell phone my phone time is managed differently. I talk for a long period of time on land line.

I really don't use my cell phone that often. It's an item that has been highly useful when traveling though.

Sometimes my cell phone has been invaluable...for finding people in a crowd, for friends phoning to say their plane is delayed (cough cough) for texting when talking on the phone would be inappropriate (like on the Greyhound bus in the middle of the night) and for changing plans or meeting spots or delays.

I love the idea of being in a grocery store trying to remember what to pick up...and using the phone to add to a shopping list.

mister anchovy said...

No doubt the damn things are useful in emergencies. Still, I can live without one for some time to come.

Candy Minx said...

Well, you know. I feel a cell phone is a luxury item. It is . Even though I have been very happy to have it for when I'm traveling...I actually don't sit and talk on it...

Just on land lines I put my feet up and blab away!

A said...

My mother, sister and I talk A LOT. Well, a few hours a week, anyway. We're all on Verizon, so long-distance is free, and I plan to move out of state soon; it's nice to have guilt-free chats instead of watching the clock like we used to do. I got rid of my landline; there was no point having both.

Mom lives in a really rural area and coverage isn't perfect, but it's nice to know she has it on trips to town if she gets into trouble, especially in the winter.

My boyfriend lives a thousand miles (literally, it's almost exact) away, and we generally spend at least an hour a day on the phone, sometimes many more. Early on we had 6- and 12-hour conversations. If I wind up with a tumor, it's probably from those.

I use a Bluetooth earpiece, which emits much lower transmissions, but it might be doing me some harm. Still, it keeps me from getting in accidents on the road because it's voice-activated, and yes, I can't tell you how many times I've called Mom from the grocery store to see if I can bring anything with me when I visit.

But yeah, I think I could live without it if I had too, if my circumstances were different. Ditto the Internet and satellite radio. They're just entertainment, though, and my cellphone is a communications tool. And I'm very big on communication. Also on saving time and trouble, and it's done that for me a lot.

So many other things in our world trigger cancer that my cell is the least of my worries.

tshsmom said...

I don't understand the cell-phone allure either. I enjoy getting out of the house so I can get away from technology.
We have a Tracfone with a 300 minute/yr plan. We've had this plan for 4 yrs and have rolled over 1348 unused minutes. Only 3 people have our cell number, and I don't turn it on unless I'm making a call. It's strictly for emergencies and traveling.
Like you, our friends and family know our work schedule and call or email us at home.
As a waitress, I refuse to take a table's order until they get off their phones. C'mon, NOBODY is THAT important that they can't turn off their phone in a restaurant or theater!

tshsmom said...

Oops, that should say we've had the phone for 5 yrs. ;)