I’m sick and tired of people being rude on their cellphones. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of the cellular telephone. I don’t even have a landline. If you want to get a hold of me, my Blackberry is the easiest way to do so (phone, text, or email…it’s all there).
But, somewhere along the line people seem to have forgotten about common decency when they pull out the ol’ cell. With that in mind, here is a brief list of cellphone etiquette.
- Turn your ringer off when you’re at the theatre. If you forget to do so, do not answer your phone if it rings. Mute—and immediately turn off—the ringer. Even better: shutdown the entire phone.
- Related to the previous point, do not send text messages during the movie. The only thing more distracting than a glowing cellphone screen right in front of me is the guy who answers the phone that he didn’t silence before the movie started.
- The cashier is a human being. Hang up the phone when you’re going through the checkout. Your friend can wait 5 minutes. Ignoring the person who is right in front of you in favour of someone on the other end of a mobile device is a dick move. Don’t be a dick.
- Similarly, don’t answer the phone when you’re on a date. If you’re a doctor or work some other job where you need to be on-call, exceptions can be made, but make sure to inform your date of this in advance so that you don’t come across as an asshole if you need to take a call. If you’re not on-call, your ringer doesn’t need to be turned on until the date is over.
Are there any rules of cellphone etiquette that I’m forgetting? Leave your own cellphone etiquette tips in the comments.
this coming from the loud-talker?!?