measi's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Demon Cell Phones Cell phones have their use in society, I know. They're quite handy to have around in an emergency. They're practical for businessmen and doctors. They do have a place. However, I am getting entirely sick of the abuse of cell phones, and their encroachment on my daily life. I do not have a cell phone. I looked into getting one for a bit, but the costs of getting one had many more cons than pros right now. Why do I need one? Just to look cool? Not that many people call me. I have voice mail at home. It's accessible from anywhere. My friends and family know my work number. When I leave the house, I really don't want to be tethered to the phone. Perhaps it goes back to the fact that I grew up with a beeper around the house. My dad's an OB/GYN. He had a beeper. And when he left the house, he had to be tethered to it. I understood why. It made sense. It didn't make sense to me that people who don't need such things for their jobs would have one. In fact, I STILL think that beepers should be limited to people who need it for their professions. I debate some sort of limit with cell phones, too. Some people seem to absolutely adore that tether, though. Too much. And no offense, but I get so sick of the "who's calling" game that seems to be prevalent among high school students with cell phones on the subway line. And the subsequent loud conversations that are impossible to ignore. I have utmost respect for people with cell phones who get ringed and then go off somewhere privately to have a conversation where they won't bother other people. I also have more respect for people who get ringed, and they specifically say "I can't talk right now, I'm in a huge group of people. I'll call you back in a few..." Some people, however, should never be allowed to have a cell phone. EVER. Case in point from this morning's shuttle ride. I get on the shuttle at the T stop as I always do, and this girl comes forward on the bus to the driver, flipping out because she hadn't been paying attention as he circled the route and missed her stop. Hey... it happens. *shrug* We all miss exits off the highway or start driving on autopilot to work, rather than go the other way down the road to the store... this stuff happens. So I had sympathy for this girl as I got on the shuttle bus.... ... for about the first minute and a half. Then my sympathy, as well as my respect for her as a human being, quickly began to erode. As I sat down, this girl crumpled into a seat two rows in front of me and literally began bawling. Like spoiled seven-year-old being told she can't have that toy in the window bawling. As she's sobbing in the front row seat, other shuttle riders are getting on, staring at her warily, and then going as FAR back into the bus as they possibly can. These are experienced subway riders-- when there's a weirdo in a seat, take one as far back as you can away from said weirdo. So she stops crying after a couple of minutes, and then proceeds to call people on her cell phone. First she calls (presumably) her boss, screaming that she'd missed the stop on the shuttle AGAIN this morning. Apparently she'd made the ring twice in a morning. This begins my thoughts of "how the hell do you miss the stop TWICE?!?" Then she begins a plethora of calls to various people in her need to vent and whine, but she gets voice mail for each person because they all are most likely at work at five-past-nine. Each one who doesn't answer directly, she bitches out for not having a cell phone "because I need to be able to get in touch with you in an emergency.... but what I'm calling about isn't important... but I think I'll be getting you a cell phone for Christmas..." (this was said verbatim for each message. I kid you not. Her message was reason alone for these people to never EVER get a cell phone). She finally gets someone on the other end of the phone, who she ALSO bitches out for not having a cell phone and goes through the run-on above. Then she begins to flip out and cry again to this person about missing the stop on the shuttle. And it gets better--- apparently, she's missed it THREE TIMES in the past three weeks of working. AND has missed her commuter rail stop. But she insists that it's everyone else's fault and that she's paying attention and doesn't know how it happens. The shuttle finally leaves the stop and begins the ring from Newton into Needham to start dropping people off. I'm thankful at this point that I am the first stop. Coincidently, so is she. Now... to cut into this story... what amazes me about her missing this stop is this:
2) Unlike some of the buildings, the shuttle physically has to leave the street and drive through our parking lot to drop people off because the entrance to the building is a decent walk back from the road. That should be a huge clue in. We won't mention that there is a large sign with the address on it out in front. You'd think that if she'd been working here for three weeks, she'd at least be able to recognize the building. It IS a very distinctive looking building. Trust me. 3) How she misses her stop off the commuter rail is beyond me. The closest commuter rail stop to the office is the very last stop on the line. My head hurts just trying to comprehend that one. So back to the shuttle ride.... She's getting herself worked up, crying some more, and getting louder and louder as she goes. The whole bus can hear her, and no one can do anything but endure the onslaught of her insane conversation with this person on the other end of the phone. She blames the shuttle driver for being useless (mind you, he's literally sitting two feet in front of her, so he can hear this verbal abuse the whole time). She decides that it must be that she's too small to be seen over the seats, and that since she was the last one on the shuttle, he didn't see her so he skipped the stop. (this is one of those airport type shuttles-- unless she was lying down, you can see anyone sitting in a seat). But that is the decision that she comes to agree to, along with her person on the other end of the phone. Then she starts complaining as her signal on her phone weakens because *gasp* she's going under a bridge AND the Needham radio towers (of which there are several... and undoubtedly wreck havok with cell phones from time to time). She finally gets off the phone, and literally RUNS off the shuttle bus when it pulls to the stop. With rolls of our eyes, the rest of us get off the shuttle, and once we get into the elevator (she decided to take the stairs), we couldn't help but start laughing at the insanity of it all. Extreme case? Definitely. But hardly uncommon these days. Maybe I should figure out some sort of licensing bill for these things.... 10:33 a.m. - 22 October 2001 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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