Foo - Why is everybody on their cellphone? <rant>

I'm riding along and see a van slowing as he approaches the intersection(vans are male, miatas female). He doesn't see me and pulls right out in front of me. I swerve, brake, and give the finger all in one smooth motion but the driver doesn't notice; he's busy yakking on his cell phone.

I slow down for an intersection and practice my trackstand while miss Junior Leaguer chatters away on her phone; she finally remembers it's time to move her behemoth Canyonero SUV before I fall over.

I'm on the MUP, taking it easy, trying to dodge the peds that insist on walking in the bike lane. I let them know I'm coming on their left but they apparently can't hear me because they are too busy blabbering on their dang cellphones. I pass a couple holding hands. They are using their free hands to hold their phones. That's right; lovers out for a stroll talking to two different people at the same time. WTF?

It seems everybody and their grandma is on the phone these days. Just what in the world is so freakin' important it has to be conveyed immediately? How did these people ever survive without a phone before? Were they all shut-ins that sat next to the phone all day long? (kinda like my sister when she was a teenager)

Under severe, long and loud protests, I agreed to have a cellphone but I only take it with me on bike rides to help identify the body.

When I'm out riding or hiking or driving in my car, the last thing I want to do is talk on the phone. I enjoy the quiet time, the peace, the serenity. Or the opportunity to serenade the countryside with my versions of Psychedelic Furs songs.

Cellphones. Gaack!!:mad:

I'll type a witty reply when I'm done with this call

Just what in the world is so freakin' important it has to be conveyed immediately?

That the crazy guy on the bike is following them again!

I am super important...that's why! Didn't you know??? :p

Just what in the world is so freakin' important it has to be conveyed immediately?

Nothing. It's more of a psychological fulfillment tool, sort of like giving a pacifier to a baby.

At least that's my take on it.


How did these people ever survive without a phone before? Were they all shut-ins that sat next to the phone all day long?

I suspect they did all the same things they do now, but instead of talking on the phone they paid attention to the world around them.

You'll have the last laugh when they all get brain cancer.

I'm not on a cell phone. You can call me.

Good question. I was stopped at an intersection waiting until I could turn left when a guy hit me from behind at 50 kph (30mph). He openly admitted that his cell phone had dropped to the floor and that he was reaching down to find it when he hit me.

I also have witnessed many drivers weaving about the road while being distracted on the phone. I can only imagine how many bikers on the roads have been killed by these idiots. OK, enough ranting for now.

People confuse what is important, with what seems/feels urgent. Big mistake.

Next time ask those people what they did before they had cell phones, pagers, pda's, etc... How was their social life and social interactions B.C. (Before Cellphones)?

Back then you weren't connected to work by the hip with a cell phone! That's also why I don't give my cell number to my work. I refuse to be "at work" 24/7!

Next time ask those people what they did before they had cell phones, pagers, pda's, etc... How was their social life and social interactions B.C. (Before Cellphones)?
B.C. I used Dialup BBSs, usenet, FidoNet, packet radio, etc. Meeting people face to face is over rated.

*ringing*
Hold on. Gotta take this.

I still don't have a cell phone and I agree with the OP 100%. I've almost been clocked by a couple of morons on cell phones driving. LOL I love the bit about the lovers out on a stroll it's so true.

. LOL I love the bit about the lovers out on a stroll it's so true.
Maybe they were talking to each other via cell phone?

Ha Ha could be, I have seen people call each other from upstairs to downstairs. Granted this was all in fun but still :)

Ha Ha could be, I have seen people call each other from upstairs to downstairs. Granted this was all in fun but still :)
Read this: http://bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=276206



I just got a very important phone call...
from downstairs, 50 feet away from me..
my daughter on her cell wanted to talk to me, it was important.


WTF has this world come to? People feel more comfortable talking on cell phones 50 feet away than in person.

Yikes.

I've yet to see a single good thing that has come out of the proliferation of cellphones.

All those people on the phone.
And not one of them is calling me.
I'll just go somewhere and sulk.

I've yet to see a single good thing that has come out of the proliferation of cellphones.
Roger that!

There's nothing so damned important that can't wait until I get to a landline - or face to face preferably. These thrice-damned things need to be outlawed.

I hate cell phones. My wife and I watched a woman go right past a stop sign and through the intersection this morning on the way to work. Yep, she was talking on a cell phone and looking in her purse or the console for something at the same time. Thank goodness no one was in the intersection. Since I ride a bicycle and a motorcycle these types of things scare the bejeebies out of me. They really need to be outlawed while driving.

i wish i didnt have to rely on a cell phone, but I dont have a landline in my apartment. the absolute worst is when im riding the subway and it comes out from underground and goes across the brdige for a few minutes, half the people in the car are IMMEDIATELY on their cell phones. It makes me wish the train would derail and plummet into the river and i'd be the only one who remembered how to swim.

I'm riding along and see a van slowing as he approaches the intersection(vans are male, miatas female). He doesn't see me and pulls right out in front of me. I swerve, brake, and give the finger all in one smooth motion but the driver doesn't notice; he's busy yakking on his cell phone.

I slow down for an intersection and practice my trackstand while miss Junior Leaguer chatters away on her phone; she finally remembers it's time to move her behemoth Canyonero SUV before I fall over.

I'm on the MUP, taking it easy, trying to dodge the peds that insist on walking in the bike lane. I let them know I'm coming on their left but they apparently can't hear me because they are too busy blabbering on their dang cellphones. I pass a couple holding hands. They are using their free hands to hold their phones. That's right; lovers out for a stroll talking to two different people at the same time. WTF?

It seems everybody and their grandma is on the phone these days. Just what in the world is so freakin' important it has to be conveyed immediately? How did these people ever survive without a phone before? Were they all shut-ins that sat next to the phone all day long? (kinda like my sister when she was a teenager)

Under severe, long and loud protests, I agreed to have a cellphone but I only take it with me on bike rides to help identify the body.

When I'm out riding or hiking or driving in my car, the last thing I want to do is talk on the phone. I enjoy the quiet time, the peace, the serenity. Or the opportunity to serenade the countryside with my versions of Psychedelic Furs songs.

Cellphones. Gaack!!:mad:

Yeah i get tired of those idiots too, you are not alone.

I've yet to see a single good thing that has come out of the proliferation of cellphones.

Wrong. Jack Bauer has successfully saved the world 6 times, and it's all because of two things: Cell Phones, and screaming "Who do you work for!"

I, for one, don't care who you work for, so I'll do my part to save the world by using my cell any dang durn time I please.

It makes me wish the train would derail and plummet into the river and i'd be the only one who remembered how to swim.

I love violent fantasies. I have them all the time. It helps sooth the soul. Though people probably look at me weird when I am sitting there completely spaced out with a little smirk showing. :)

You should see all the guys on their phones after school. And I thought teenage girls talked way more than teenage guys. . . oh how was I wrong. I am the only person who dont bring their phone. I am just so sick of cell phone drivers, I dont use it anymore.

I've yet to see a single good thing that has come out of the proliferation of cellphones.
I use mine with bluetooth so that I can connect to the web and surf foo at speeds approaching my cablemodem's speed, all while riding the bus home. Come on. Foo and public transportation at the same time. Tell me that's not the bee's knees.

I love violent fantasies. I have them all the time. It helps sooth the soul. Though people probably look at me weird when I am sitting there completely spaced out with a little smirk showing. :)

I find it to my advantage to appear to be the craziest person in the subway car.

I gave in and ordered my first cell phone. My virginity will be a thing of the past by Wednesday. It's not that I like the idea of having one but it's getting harder all the time to find a public telephone. Two weeks ago, I went into a bar to use the phone but all I found was the place where the telephone used to be, so I walked two blocks in the rain to the laundromat, only to find the phone there out of order. Finally I went to Union Station because it's the one place where I was sure to find a telephone that worked.

Recently, I was in a bar in Portland, Oregon that did not allow cellphone use at the bar. I approve.

And another thing.

Twice recently I've had encounters with people on the @$#@ phone when they needed to pay attention to their driving. One driver ran a stop sign, noticed me and stopped in the intersection, yakking away all the while.

Another driver was stopped at an intersection with no stop sign, no traffic. I was in my car on the cross street which had the stop sign. When I stopped and saw that the driver seemed to have no intention of taking the right of way, I crossed the intersection. The driver remained intent on the phone conversation but seemed to notice that I had "stolen" the right of way.

Hang up and drive!

Hang up and talk to your kid instead of telling him/her to shut up while you're on the phone.

If you can't talk at a reasonable level, take your phone to the lavatory instead of "entertaining" everyone else in the restaurant.

I hate my cell phone...tried to destroy it twice...it will not die

You could drop it in the toilet and see if it floats.

good idea!

I gave up mobile phones a year or two ago. Never felt better.

The saddest thing is the reaction of people when you say you don't have one, and don't want one. They just *cannot* understand :mad:

People are obsessed with these sad little gadgets.

If I'm in a meeting or socialising with someone and they abruptly interrupt conversation to answer their phones, I have a serious mind to rip into them.

Those things are the devil's talk-box.

Many of you people just don't understand that it is not the cell phone that is the problem. It is the person using it improperly that is the issue. Cell phones are a great technological tool in the modern world. If you don't want to use one then fine. But try not to hate those of us that do own them just because you "saw someone driving and talking and they almost killed 36 Nuns on the roadside". Most of us use them very responsibly.
:lol: no, most people do not use them responsibly. They just use them.

Try living without one and you can appreciate how ostracizing it is.

It always starts out with good intentions. But as with most marvel gadgets of the modern age, they quickly corrupt our lofty aims.

When I arrange to meet up with people they find it very frustrating that I am not contactable. It wreaks havoc on their modern convenience lifestyles that god forbid they actually have to meet me when and where they were supposed to :eek: Their addiction is so sad that they can't handle a 1 hour flight without going into withdrawal. I laugh at the clowns coming off planes - the first thing they absolutely have to do is check their phones. People nowadays will have entire conversations texting rather than take the bold step of actually phoning their friends. sad.

Nicodemus, et al. I find your posts begrudging the use of cell phones as an excuse for 'real conversation' highly ironic...seeing as how we're on a forum...clicking away on our computers. A modern gadget of the modern age, quickly corrupting our lofty aim.

Just food for thought. Some people will actually talk to each other on a phone, rather than type a message and post it into a forum.

;)

Okay, what's everyone's phone number? We're taking this forum to the nationwide longdistance plan. Oh wait, that wouldn't work. Got any more bright ideas?

Nicodemus, et al. I find your posts begrudging the use of cell phones as an excuse for 'real conversation' highly ironic...seeing as how we're on a forum...clicking away on our computers. A modern gadget of the modern age, quickly corrupting our lofty aim.

Just food for thought. Some people will actually talk to each other on a phone, rather than type a message and post it into a forum.

;)
I'd agree somewhat with your point. Except here I am focused on the conversation at hand, and there's nothing that this replaces.

Mobile phones, however, are a part of your everyday life, and as such intrude on every aspect of it.

BF adds something to my life. Mobile phones don't.

My presence here is more because the people currently in my life do not share the same interests (cycling and/or politics). Oh, and I currently spend a lot of time here because my current contract job sucks the big one. Spending my time here sure beats the hell out of sitting on the can playing snake for 3 hours a day (seriously - I did that for a few months in a job once because it was that bad).