I Don’t Want to Hear Your Personal Business While You Use Your Cell Phone in Public

I am still trying to get my unpublished book, The Split Second:  In Consideration of Others or Look Up from the Phone published. I offer my thanks to all who have been so supportive.

I want to revisit one of the subtitles of my book is “Look Up from the Phone.” I would estimate that thirty years ago if we encountered a person in public alone and she/he was talking, we would think that this person must be dealing with mental health issues. Today, of course, the likelihood of that same scenario is that the person is utilizing a cell phone in some manner. I happen to think that some people have gone too far with that concept, often disturbing other people, and making some others uncomfortable with their conversation.

I mention in The Split Second that people can be too loud while using a cell phone. I believe that as a group man are louder than women in this case, and I can be as well while using a phone in public. Personally, I do not want people I do not know while out in public to hear by business; I keep public cell phone calls to an absolute minimum.

However, many people out in the world do not share my philosophy. I have heard people discuss matters in public while on their cell phones that were clearly none of my business and could make me feel uncomfortable. Furthermore, when these callers put on the speaker feature on the phone, the situation can become worse. I have heard people discuss sexual matters on the phone, financial matters, and other matters which should be considered personal and private.

Once while in an IHOP, I heard a woman screaming at a place of business while using her phone for an erroneous charge on a credit card. I am all for fighting such matters, but people should not be doing this in public.

I have heard a woman give a credit card number in a restaurant while using her cell phone. I could have written the information down and “used” her credit card information. Of course, I would never do that.

In a Denny’s once, two young ladies were chatting with a young man on their phones. I could hear both sides of the entire conversation, and when the phone was propped up against the wall, I could see on the screen the young man being called getting into a shower and then coming out. What was amusing here, was at that moment, the young ladies were not paying attention to what the young man was doing. Should he not have had some privacy while entering and leaving a shower?

A dear friend of mine told me that recently as she was having a manicure, the customer next her was conducting an interview for a nanny position while using the speaker feature on her phone AND getting her nails done. If I were in that nails shop, I would think this interview was totally none of my business and should have been conducted with some privacy.

There are some who might say “Have we no shame these days?” There are some cell phone users who obviously have no shame and no concern or consideration for how others around them feel.