Cell phones...in the office and in general ?

Edwards Finance > Phones

Q. Living in Japan--the home of "every kid age 5 or over MUST have cell phone" gets a little too much. And now with those handsfree kits it looks like everybody is going around talking to themselves like psychotics!

A. Recently, my co-worker was in line behind a woman who was having a lucid conversation with the air. Her garden, the kids, the weather, what have you. I wonder how many schizophrenics would go unnoticed if you popped a cell phone into their hands. BTDT. But they have such cute TINY ones. I really wish we'd bought our phones when we were still there. Oh well. With any luck, we'll be back in Japan in 3 years time, and I'll be able to get one then. The one I have is a giant BRICK compared to the ones that I saw in Japan.....not to mention my flat-panel monitor envy. I'm also one of those people who really needs a cell phone, probably more than most. Most folks are at least within striking distance of civilization and a phone booth, but I'm often left deep down some goat path in a rural area, trying to find a trailer home among the thick forests of western Washington. If not for my cell phone, I'd have to drive back to civilization - sometimes as much as an hour each direction - to contact a customer. (I did just that for several years, till I got so sick of coming home at 8:00pm every night I dug deep for cell phone service - I've never regretted it). That said, I can attest to the fact that cell phones do indeed detract one's attention from the road. I drive about 800 miles a week, on everything from interstate highways to muddy by-ways. I sometimes need to contact fellow technicians to get technical info and background information on certain customers, so I find myself driving and talking more than I want to admit. Everyone is familiar with the robotic nature of driving. We can go for miles and realize that we've been on auto-pilot while our minds wander off to tropical islands and scantily-clad native girls. Then we suddenly "wake up" and notice that we've covered three exits without having remembered one road sign. Everybody does this, at least anyone who's driven long enough to have outgrown the "grip-the-wheel" school favored by sixteen-year-old's operating under a driver's permit. The cell phone - hands-free or not - exacerbates that highway catatonia. Phone conversations can consume a considerable amount of your attention, and numerous studies I've seen have shown this to be a significant contributor to serious highway "accidents". I am ashamed to admit that I have, and I continue, to talk while driving. In order to minimize the risk to myself and other drivers, I try to keep my driving conversations short and to the point. When the other person insists on carrying on a non-essential conversation, I will either tell them I need to get off the phone or simply hang up on them and blame it on lousy cell coverage. No driving phone conversation should exceed 60 seconds. If it does, you can always pull over (and I do). I know a lot of people who have cell phones they use only in emergencies -- and/or the only person w/the number is their SO. That's fine ... I just don't understand the people who can't wait the five to ten minutes until they're home to make personal calls. I was on the train yesterday and sat next to a woman who was having a FIGHT with her friend on the cell phone. She would hang up and two seconds later this friend would call back.

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