Get off your phone.

Call me old fashioned. I like handwritten notes and I prefer talking on the phone to texting. I like the effort and sentiment put into letters and I'd rather hear your voice and talk then have to wait around for a short message with improper grammar and abbreviations. I like more personal things. But with the technology we have today, everyone has a mobile phone. And everyone is always on it.
     Which brings me to what I want to talk about: cell phone etiquette.

There are definitely times that you should not be on your phone. Some are obvious like on a date or in a movie theater. There are places you probably shouldn't be on your phone like in class (unless you sit in the back). But something that really pisses me off is when I'm hanging out with someone or a couple people and there is one person who is constantly on their phone. I don't care what you are doing on your phone. You could be texting someone else, on facebook, I couldn't give a shit. Nothing screams "I'd rather be somewhere else" like staying on your phone.

If someone is telling you about their weekend or just telling a story you should be paying attention to that person. You don't need to have to split your attention between listening to your friend and reading twitter. Who cares if you can recite a main point of what your friend is saying if you don't act like you're paying attention. It's rude. Even when you are hanging out with a small group of people you should not be constantly on your phone. You are with people that you supposedly want to be spending time with. If you are with people you want to be spending time with, why are you devoting time to talking to other people? Why are you making other plans? Next time, just hang out with who ever it is you would rather be talking to.

I personally try to stay off my phone when I hangout with people I care about. When I go out to dinner, sit around and watch movies, or just bumming around with friends I keep the phone usage to a minimum. Of course there are exceptions. And if I'm just sitting around my apartment and a pal decides to swing by to say hello and watch a little tv, I'll probably still have my phone out. But once we start talking I ignore any texts I get.

Also, what I do on my phone is my own business. I don't constantly look at your screen to see what you are doing or ask who you are talking to (unless you are rudely ignoring me and just paying attention to your digital world). So I expect that when I am on my phone you don't try to read over my shoulder. No I am not texting about you. Not everything is about you. No I'm not talking about anything that concerns you. So back off.

And I know every household is different, but in my parents' house we don't use phones at the table. Before cell phones we didn't even answer the land line during dinner. So maybe I'm crazy for wanting to interact with the people around me and not some random person telling jokes on twitter. Maybe I'm off my rocker for preferring to have quality time with people instead of half-assing a friendship where I only pay attention if my phone is off.

It's simple. Don't be a jackass. Be respectful. Get some manners.  If you are enjoying yourself, you won't need to be on your phone. And trust me, people notice. Moron.