Eye contact as a dying art!

I spent years attached to my cell phone because it was my link to work and, at the time, I was a workaholic. The day I left and handed in my phone was a very liberating moment. These days, Anita and I have one cell phone between us and have a very simple phone plan which allows us to do just that, make and accept calls. No texts, no web browsing, no e-mails! Our reception at home is sketchy at best, using the cell phone there requires sitting in the kitchen, facing west and holding the phone to your left ear. We are right at the very edge of reception and, though recent additions to the towers in the area has improved reception, it has in no way solved the problem. If we want good quality we need to drive a mile and a half to the black-top road. In the middle of winter, especially during a blizzard I will take the cell phone to the barn with me. During lambing I will take the cell phone with me when I check the ewes. When Anita drives to work, she takes the cell phone with her. It is one of those tools for safety, one of those 'in case' things, just like the heavy blanket in the back of the pick up during winter. When we go to town together sometimes we remember to take it with us, sometimes we don't, it isn't high on our list of priorities.

I was shocked on Christmas day. We went to Anita's Mom and, as she was filling the dishwasher, I went back to the living room to see if there were any more dishes. There were at least half a dozen people in the room and every one of them was glued to their phone; a corny zombie film would have shown the tiny screen sucking their souls from their bodies through their eyes. Texting, playing games, catching up on emails or Facebook, exchanging the occasional word but their individual involvement with their phone was central. It used to be that there was a phone protocol, you switched it off if you weren't on call for work or put it on silent mode if you did need to be available for something important. Those last two words were the key....... something important! A Facebook update did not qualify for that particular category. In much the same way, etiquette requires that you look a person in the eye when making conversation, it is the polite thing to do. It shows the person that you are interested in what they have to say and that they are important to you. If you feel that your texts are more important than my conversation, that's fine, you should be able to set your priorities but don't expect me to waste my time. I have more important things to do than be second best to your screen. 

We all know it is rude to leave your phone on during church, in a theatre or even in a cinema but I have even seen someone texting during a funeral we attended recently! Am I really old fashioned in saying that phone usage is revealing a lack of respect in those who are unable to switch it off? Today I heard of a new way of dining with friends; all cell phones are put in the middle of the table face down and ignored. The first person to cave and look at their phone or answer it picks up the bill..... obviously I am not the only person irritated by peoples' inability to switch the dang thing off!