About Me

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Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Andrew was born in London, UK, raised in Toronto, Canada, and cavorted in Ohtawara, Japan for three years. He is married, has a son, a cat named Freddy and a dog named Shaggy (after the dudes in Scooby-Doo). He has over 35,000 comic books and a plethora of pioneer aviation-related tobacco and sports cards and likes to build LEGO dioramas. Along with writing for a monthly industrial magazine, he also writes comic books and hates writing in the 3rd person. He also hates having to write this crap that no one will ever read. He also writes an aviation blog: Pioneers Of Aviation ( https://av8rblog.wordpress.com/ ) - a cool blog on early fliers. He also wants to do more writing - for money, though. Help him out so he can stop talking in the 3rd person.
Showing posts with label Cell phone. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cell phone. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Inconsiderate People

Do you know what I hate? It's inconsiderate people.

This did NOT happen to me, but rather something my friend Em observed this past November 11, 2012.

Em was at the Toronto Remembrance Day ceremony with her family...

Let me present the story in Em's own fantastic words:

"... During the two minutes of silence, a guy's cellphone began ringing. 

Not just that - his ring tone was "Another One Bites the Dust." And loud. With lyrics. 

And he didn't want to let on it was his phone by turning it off, so it went on and on. 

The little guy in front of me started grooving to it. 

Dear God.  Answering the question 21st century style posed by Wilfred Owen, in one of my favorite poems from WWI - what passing bells for those who die like cattle? Only the monstrous anger of the guns, and the dumbass ring tones of the neuronally challenged."

Amen, Em. Amen.

Do you know what Em and I hate?

Inconsiderate people.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

People Who Talk Loudly On Cell Phones

You know what I hate? Pompous self-serving bastiches who think they are the most important person on the planet and therefore should all pay attention to them while they talk inanely about nothing on their cellphone at 7:30 in the morning.

Yeah, you know the type - the idiots who have no concept of a book and have to talk to someone - anyone - on their cell phone.

While it's true I work for a company that is also Canada's largest telecommunications provider, I have no issue with it. I just hate that blowhard talking loudly on his/her cellphone in the back of the bus or on the subway or god help me, in the elevator.

What the Hell is so important that you need to be on the phone all the time - talking loudly about nothing.

Have you not heard about personal space? Why can't you just say:  "Hang on, I'm just entering the elevator - I'll talk in a second when I get out." That would be polite, but not since the heady days of those stupidly-large 'portable' phones (remember when it was cool to have a large phone?) when your connection would cut out in an elevator or in a subway, have people been 'polite' enough to stop yakking in crowded public places.

Nowadays, telecommunications providers are touting the virtues of their phone signals not dropping calls when you go deep within a concrete construct like an office building or parking garage (previously a barrier to maintaining a phone call). It was an irritation to be sure (wah-wah), but it did offer the rest of the population a break from your inane nattering.

What the hell did people do before cellphones became so common-place? You called people from home, the office or from a phone booth - you know one reason why phone booths are enclosed? Partially to provide the user with privacy!

Sure cellphones are a big help should you be stranded somewhere, or you need to call someone and tell them you're going to be late for that appointment with a hooker - and again, I'm not begrudging telecommunication companies for providing the world with cellphones.

I believe that a cellphone etiquette needs to be developed and observed. It's obvious that cellphone users won't do it themselves, what with being so friggin' busy yakking; and they won't listen to the rest of society (unless we call them on their cell phone) - perhaps the telecommunication industry should create rules of etiquette.

What sort of rules of etiquette would you like to see observed? Let's get a list going!

I'll start it off with: No cell phone use in an elevator if others are present. 

Ahhh, but then again, dumb-ass, ego-maniacal jerks don't know how to read, which is why they are on the phone all the time, anyway.

Should you be one of those rare combination of cellphone user and reader - do the rest of us a favour and exercise some courtesy for the people around you.

Yes, it is true - I do not have a cell phone. Not only do I not want one, I don't need one. I sure as heck don't need the extra cost, but mostly, I don't want to be at someone's beck and call 24 hours a day/seven days a week. It's like that old story about "Bell-ing the cat". I get more relaxing in this way.

I hate people who talk loudly on cell phones. You're all a bunch of phonies.