Its not that I dont want to return your message, nor am I lazy .
 

Im only allowing so much of my life to be connected that stupid little plastic rectangle .
I spend countless hours chasing the phone, emails, and texts daily as, Im sure most of you do
I set my phone down sometimes. Shoot me, Im human, busy and like to stop and smell the roses, and enjoy the quiet, and serentiy of the world when I am disconnected .
I dont think putting my phone down for 4 hours, or even an entire day on the weekend makes me a bad person , but it feels like it sometimes .
Anybody else ?
Im glad I am getting closer to the other end of this journey

Don't feel bad, Fred.
I'm not a 'phone' guy and only reason I have one is for emergency reasons mostly. That and phoning home when I'm at the grocery store, trying to remember everything on that list I didn't make before leaving home.
Half the time I forget to even take my phone with me when going places.
Oh well, hardly anyone ever calls me direct on it anyways.

The last guy I was dating would get mad when I wouldn't text back right away. Making it worse, he texted me like all day and wanted instant responses. More than once I told him I can't always text back right away. Personally, I think he was using texting as an electronic leash to make sure I wasn't with another guy.

Anyway, it got really tiring so I broke up with him.

depends on what you are doing on the phone.

had an older man at the DMV once speak up while we are all waiting, silently, ranting about how all the kids are on there phones all day, and why can't we have a conversation with each other instead.

like, what do you think we are doing on our phones? im having 3 different conversations, about 3 different things, with 2 friends and a partner, and im checking the news. and planning an after work happy hour with one of these people. like im using the phone to connect with humans. thats the point of the phone.

these all are more important to me, and better, than having a conversation with a crabby old man who wants to rant about the kids being on their phones so much. like no, dude, no one wants to talk to you. thats a you problem, not a me problem. have something interesting to say, say it politely, and maybe some one will want to talk to you about it. maybe not, hard to compete with all of my friends and loved ones and making plans through this little box, but like like at least you'd be trying.

so like, as along as you are using the phone to connect with humans that you are care about, i see no issue with being on it all the time.

if your just doom scrolling or whatever on social media, taking hours of your life to consume useless content, sure, phones suck.

but the purpose of the phone is to connect to other humans. through a box, or in person, connection is connection. and id rather connect with someone i care about through a box, than someone i dont give a ****, who is interacting with me negatively, in person.

You know you are old when you don't text after 9 PM. lol

Ya. I'm the same way as you Fred.

Ya, funny my newest lady friend and I play it kind of loose with messages. Sometimes its a quick reply, sometimes a day or even 2. We both live busy lives, and both understand that .
Im gonna air tag her ass this weekend so I know where she is at every second of the day . Not.
My friend and his lady have that app, where they track each others locations by phone . If she does not answer, he is checking her location .
Id rather be alone . Trust will bubble to the top one way or another eventually .

I never answer the phone if I am driving. Just leave me a message, and I will get back to you when it is good time for me.

And I really hate the stupid long instructions on how to leave a message if I call someone else. No one at all needs instructions in 2024 on how to leave a voice message if they can't answer.

If ii get a text, and I am not driving, or eating a meal, or in bed sleeping or other activities, I will text you back when it is a good time for me.

And I pay for my phone for my convenience only, not the people trying to reach me. I will get back to you if it is not some BS political or sales call. And NO, I am not interested in selling my house at anything under 5 time market value. I have no intentions of moving until I am wheeled out of here in a wheelchair to the nursing home, hospital, or morgue.

AlI notifications on my phone are off. I run my phone. My phone doesn't run me.

During the free Medicare sign up days I get at least 4 or 5 calls everyday trying to get me to switch.
If I don't recognize the caller's name I just let it go to voicemail

The online voicemail transcription makes it easy to delete all those messages.

Exactly This!!!
I get fussed at because I always have my phone on silent.

Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk

I feel that not answering you phone to a know caller when you are able is rude.

Well, in my case, I am not aware of the caller because my phone is on silent. Now, when my wife and kids aren't home and I am working on something outside, then I will turn the ringer up in case they need to reach me.

Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk

In contrast to most kids these days, I am fairly comfortable leaving the house without my phone on me. Except my wife insists I bring it "in case of emergencies".

It's not my phone usage that makes me a bad person - so maybe that isn't your problem either. :D

I use my phone all day for work… calls, emails, text messages, document access, interweb, pictures, etc. I rarely use my laptop.

Then I use it for a pleasure… calls, emails, text messages, pictures, interweb, etc.

When I stop working, my phone usage well probably be cut in half.

It's a tool, which to some means it's been absorbed permanently into the users palm and can't leave the BORG Hive if they tried.

That would have taken about 2 mins...

LOL! "we don't want to talk to you, but we're happy to talk to other folks."

Actually, I hear/read stories from time to time about folks meeting/talking to really interesting folks that they stumbled across during life, and I think, man, I'd love to meet people like that. But then I think:

I suspect for every gem that you meet, you have to deal with a bunch of dirt.

I'm not a people person and unlikely to engage, certainly not initiate engagement, and unlikely to extend it much. I can be friendly, but not likely to be talkative.

I'm on the back half of life, but younger than many/some of the other folks here. I'm also in IT, so I am at a computer all day and at times can spend a ton of time on my phone. I'm also not afraid to put the phone down, go outside and leave the phone inside. If something happens and Internet access breaks, I don't freak out. I like to think that I'm fairly balanced as far as connectivity goes, at least, compared to many/most younger folks.

I have taken the view, and comment to people who chastise me for not answering my phoned that:

I purchased the telephonic instrument purely for my enjoyment and benefit. I will answer it or deal with your message in a manner consistent with my personal pleasure.

If that upsets you, PFO.

I have my phone set to only ring on calls from people who are on my contact list. All others ring through right to voice mail and then I can deal with their call at my leisure.

D.

Yep, my phone is always on silent, but I do usually know pretty quickly if something comes in. But I don't want my phone to ding every time I get a text or personal email or work email or ....

Nah, I always take mine with me (maybe not going to the garage or walking on our property, but if I'm leaving the house, I've got my phone. It's a "just in case" kind of thing, emergencies. You never know when you're going to see an accident or be in an accident or or or .... I also take my keys and my wallet. Used to drive me nuts when the kids would leave the house without their keys. Then they'd be grumpy if they came home and the door was locked.

How dare you besmirch those with patent foramen ovale (PFO) which is a hole in the heart that didn't close the way it should after birth.

You are a monster...:cool:

My only issue with the phone is text messages, which I will only answer from family and very close friends. I never accept a text dealing with business related issues because, I know, el phono does email as well.

The phone stays off at night unless my wife and I are apart. Our kids know who to get in touch with...

I have mastered the Do Not Disturb and Personal time settings on my iPhone, it now adjusts my contactability by time of day and my activity level.....so at night, for example, even my contacts can't ring through unless they do two calls in rapid succession.

My emergency contacts (e.g. She Who Must Be Obeyed and my 96 yo mom, her key care giver, sisters) are the only ones who can call between 9 at night and 7 am in the morning.

I absolutely loathe and hate the telephone, always have, maybe because I have been on call for so many years and had large teams working for me......and calls are rarely "good" news.

As for the poor PFO's you mention - humblest apologies for using the same initialism as what I wish them to do if they call me unsolicited :D

D.

We bought property in the country a few years back, and I've received many texts from folks that "are interested in buying your rural property." I block those texts. If I don't know the sender, I ignore the text unless it's obvious SPAM of some sort, and then I block the sender. I do the same with emails.

I have my phone go into DND at 10pm and come out at 6am except that I have a few folks tagged that will ring through anyway, my mom, the kids, my boss, a couple of other family members. And that's on top of the phone being in "silent" mode all day. I think the difference is that during the day it'll vibrate and the screen will pop up a visual notification, but at night the vibrating and visual notifications are also muted.

I think a lot of people don't know they can change the settings so only the ones you want will make your phone ring.

Fortunately I don't get many calls, as I grew up in a small rural telephone office and have an almost Pavlovian response to a ringing phone. No, I don't salivate, I answer immediately.

Best
Les

The thread title's presumptions may not apply to me :D

This switchboard, displayed in the Alexander Graham Bell museum in Baddeck NS is almost identical to the one in our home from 1946 -76.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1724367242.jpg

The head set plugged in at the lower left. The threaded bit showing at the lower right of the board was for a crank to allow you to use a small dynamo to generate power to make calls if/when the power went out.

Best
Les

I have no problems with the phone being a black hole of my time and energy.

I own a dumb phone. It takes and sends calls, accepts voicemail messages, and can take some photos only Byron would be proud to post. "Can I send you a text?" - Nope don't take them.

Also, if I don't answer the phone, leave a message. If it is important I will call back. No message? Then it must not be important. If you are offended that I didn't answer your call then it stinks to be you. I don't let others dictate my life and I have very little patience for control freaks or those with over amplified attitude of self-importance.

The only exceptions to the above is my wife and my daughter.

They leave a message and you call them back and they don't answer so you leave a message. Then they call back ......
It's almost like a soapbox thing were people are proud that they don't answer the phone.

My business partner bought one of the first cell phones, the Motorola brick. It was crazy expensive and calls were 25 cents per minute. He had to have it.

He moved to smart phones as soon as they were available. To this day, if I want to contact him. he prefers I send a one word text message of "talk". He will either call me right away, or text back "10 minutes" or whatever time frame he needs.

If anything is outside of normal hours, we send each other email. That can be answered later.

Like many here, my cell phone is paid by me, and for my use. I have no problem putting it in silent mode, and not answering calls or texts if I am driving or watching a movie.

I hate all the political text messages, and I just delete and report as junk all of them. I have 4 email accounts, and my phone gets them all. Still, I prefer to use my computer and Outlook to read and send email. It is all synced to all my accounts as well. It is handy to build a new contact in Outlook, put it a folder that it should be in, and it just appears on my phone. Same for appointments.

Like most of the people on this board, I lived most of my life without a cell phone. It is now my second brain. I can't imaging going back to life without it.

If Joe will get off of that soapbox .... then I'll step up on it :D.

Didn't get called a lot, but when needed, I was needed .... during my corporate gigs I carried a pager & started with a bag phone, then cell phones, and it was 24x7x364 (Thank You Jesus :)) .... a necessary evil ... no mas. I check my phone more regularly now.... but it's rarely on me.

T-Rex :D

That's very cool! Thanks for sharing. I can only imagine from seeing on TV/movies.

Hell, even my old Nokia dumb phones had SMS capabilities. I assume that's just you not wanting (or not paying) to be able to SMS.

The ratio of calls from folks that I don't recognize to VM left by folks that I don't answer is very small. Sometimes I go so long between receiving VM that I wonder if it's broken and call from my wife's phone to test. Clearly, if they don't leave a message, then it isn't important.

It's funny, I'm a "techie" but I never had a pager and held out on cell phones as long as possible. Now I have a cell phone, but keep it years before upgrading. It's weird because I feel like I'm the kind of person that would want/have to have the latest and greatest.

Yep, hate the political crap. I don't get much, but trash any that I do get.

Yep, didn't have it for a long time, but wouldn't want to be without it now. Hell, I have myself in my phone, and have all of my addresses (work and home) for the past 20-30 years (which is several). Having all of that helps with filling out forms sometimes.
I've had some jobs where we had "follow the sun" teams so I didn't have to be on call. I've had some jobs where I was on call (often in rotation with someone else, so for 1-4 weeks at a time with the option of being called at any time). Fortunately in my gig for the past several years, I'm not really on call. If there's a problem that I'm particularly well suited to solve, I could get a call as an escalation, but, fortunately, that's rare. I had a job once where the on call was so active that my group complained. We asked either for an "on call pay" when we were on call or the ability to stay home when we were on call. I was shocked when they approved both things. In that case, we got called pretty much every night, often 2-3 times per night. I always figured if "they" saw emails from me at 9pm, midnight, 3am, and 5am, that they shouldn't expect me in the office until I rolled in, usually around lunch.

I'm glad I'm not having to deal with that crap now.

^^^^ Megasuck being on-call like that ... never had the pleasure ;). Most of my calls ... weren't "my problem" .... more like EVERYTHING is down .... help ... at 3am :D

I was a first or last resort .... only got called when needed... really good folks handled the routine issues ... and only called when necessary.

Other times they left me alone .... or not :D

If you have a work phone that requires communication then I understand. To some extent, you are being paid to be available.

The point I am trying to bring is that when the calls are personal communications then there is no implied obligation to be available at everyone one's beck and call. To think that you are so important that I must answer your call is narcissism with a side order of hubris.

I have one for the "It's a small world category".

Leaving Charlotte NC's borders on a Thursday night the vehicle I was in got hit and run by a red chevy pick up driven by an obvious drunk. He backed up, shut off his lights, and floored it. Eventually the drunk ran a red light that we did not follow successfully past that.

So we went back to file a police report with Charlotte.
Because the truck's lights had been turned off, that included the license plate's lights.
All we knew were the driver's shirt color, color and make of truck. (Nice of truck makers to put their name on big reflective letters on the tailgate.)


I was looking over my shoulder back at the truck as we got hit.(A very compromised position.)
Que the following week and I was in increasingly severe neck pain.
Go to Chiropractor's office in Fort Mill.

Am sitting in waiting room.
Guy there before me is on a cellphone and was in process of retelling a very familiar sounding story.
When he got off the phone I started asking questions.

He was a police officer for the town of Matthews NC and was in that chiro office waiting on his wife.
The story he was telling on the phone given the distance this waiting room was from the accident site unbelievably was indeed a continuation of where we had left off with Mr Hit and Runner.
Just after us losing us the drunk had careened into the first parking lot to park and hide.
Unfortunately he didn't have enough control to not hit a parked car.
That parked car had in the driver's seat the police officer sitting next to me in this waiting room.

Oops.

Small town police don't play.
Up with the radios and on with the chase.
Eventually after more contact the drunk jumped from his moving truck to go into the woods and hide.
They brought in dogs.
The dogs didn't have a hard time following such a strong smelltrail and that was that for Mr. Hit and Runner's night of hit and running.

Also turns out Mr Hit and Runner was experienced at this, having done it before.
Hence the lights off to hide the liscence plate.
Also turns out Mr Hit and Runner didn't have insurance.
My memory is foggy on if he had a DL, but if he did, he probably wouldn't.

....Anyway.

Once someone knows a # has left a message that loop would end as a message was already left.

I’m having difficulty reaching you regarding an extended warranty.