When you'll stand under a tree in the pouring rain, all in the name of good phone reception
Thursday, 28 August, 2008 at 8:28 AM Some of us are taking this whole 21st century business a little too far. Last night during a heavy round in The Day Of Deluge, I found myself outside, standing under a tree... talking on my phone. Simple enough explanation: friend had a party, friend's home offers me phone reception about 8% of the time... and even then it's spotty. Mostly only helps with texting.
Good thing the friend I really needed to talk to had the foresight to leave a voice mail message the first time she called. Never heard the phone ring at all. But a little notice did make it through, telling me of an incoming text message, so I saw the voice mail indicator, then. Had to go outside to hear the message, and to return the (actually very) important call.
Later, sitting in the floor all cozy in the candle-lit, laughter-filled room, I glanced around wondering if it would be rude to respond to another text message that had just come through. Nah - look over there! Somebody else already was. Of course I realize phone etiquette is all about context. At some gatherings I would never have considered such. This one was fine, though - super-close friends and seriously laid-back atmosphere are not concerned with such trifles. (Okay, yea, I know my Better Than I Am At Being In The Moment friends are gonna' have a field day with this one. If I'm making Friday night's dinner plans while at a party on Wednesday night, how much am I really enjoying the party itself, and what message am I sending to my hostess? I have three responses for you: 1. You're right. I'm thinking about that right now. 2. Trust me. The hostess was just fine at that moment. 3. I was very much enjoying myself at the party but I'm a hard-core multi-tasker and the total of 4 minutes I prolly spent texting throughout my 4 hours at the party didn't take away from my enjoyment thereof, one bit!)
Later I had different angst for about 2 minutes, realizing that if any of my Rarely Leave A Message, Just Expect Me To Call When I See Their Name On My Call Log friends called last night, since those calls don't register over there, those folks might wonder why I never called them back. I mean, I usually would. Would they think I was blowing them off?
That's when it hit me: there really is such a thing as too much accessibility. And I Are Living It. I mean, what if I were to decide to head to a remote beach or mountains for a weekend? These days that would probably bring me a full-blown panic attack! Eek. Prolly need to back off a little on being so reachable, huh. I guess you're all on notice - better make sure you leave messages if you want to hear back. I might have to unplug for an hour or so sometime soon. Just to see if I can...
Reader Comments (4)
Years ago, a summer job taught me to "serve counter customers first." ... I miss the goold old days. :-)
I like the way your summer job trainer put that. Good advice, too; have been trying to remember if any of my own summer jobs told us that. Thinking not.
In context of my party, be assured my counter customers were very well served before I took any calls...
If you want a free, objective way to check the reception in your area BEFORE you lock yourself with a specific carrier, you should really check out "Got Reception?" (http://www.gotreception.com).
Thanks for the link! Of course I was at a friend's house and so I guess she didn't think about this when she moved. Hopefully I've learned from her troubles!