The first phone my family had growing up was a party line. We shared the number LIncoln – 32062 with another family I never met but briefly spoke to from time to time. I didn’t answer the telephone very often, but when I did, it was sometimes for the “other party”. I might hear them on the line when I tried to place a call which may have been a time or two. “I’m on the line.” was my cue to hang up. I don’t know how long we shared the line, but it was a few years. We had a unique ring tone my mom and dad recognized, but ringing was just ringing to me.
Back then phones were a bit of a luxury. Mom made most of the calls. There were local calls and long distance. Long distance calls cost much more and were billed by the minute. Long distance was a part of my life until the last few years. Cell phones took down several barriers, long distance was one.
Cell phones created new challenges. Early on Ruth and I carried one in a satchel we kept in our car. It was definitely for emergencies. It was about the size of a traditional phone, but we plugged it into the car’s cigarette lighter. I never used it. We did get a call from Elizabeth one time when she was in a traffic jam on her way to catch a plane in Chicago. She was afraid she was going to miss the plane so she called us for assistance. All we could do was offer moral support as we had no clout with the airline.
Practically everyone carries a cell phone now. They are attached to us whether we like it or not. Many are “smart” phones that in addition to allowing people to have a conversation, we take pictures, send texts, read our emails, handle financial matters, check the weather, keep track of our golf handicaps, watch TV, etc. etc. We can even have multiple ring tones for specified people. The options seem endless.
Sometimes I find the easy access to be annoying. I see people glued to their cell phones in all kinds of situations. I’ve witnessed people texting others at the same table. What’s that all about?
As I was retiring from Britton-Macon in the winter of 2008, my replacement came to school to shadow me for a day. Our first conversation was a review of a building project we were completing. The work was scheduled to be done prior to my departure, but it wasn’t. He’d have to carry the ball during the final phase.
While we were going over what needed to be done, his cell phone began playing the University of Michigan fight song, “Hail to the Victors”. He reached into his pocket, stopped talking with me, and greeted his caller. I sat there dumbfounded. His message to me was clear, my personal call is more important than you. Later, as we were walking down the hall for a tour of the building, “Hail to the Victors” started playing again. He stopped and took his second call.
At the end of the day, I offered up a piece of advice. “Put the cell away while you’re at work. If it’s a professional call they’ll call you at school. The only thing you’re getting now are personal calls. Personal callers can leave a message. People will find it rude when you value the incoming call over the current conversation. I know I do.”
I learned later that he didn’t heed my advice, and that’s one of the things that contributed to his failure.
I took a consulting position after I retired. The man I reported to and I were making a presentation in a hospital board room to about thirty others when his phone went off in his jacket. It was hanging several feet away. He sprang into action, turned off his cell, and revealed “That’s my wife’s ring tone.” His phone played the Commodores’ “Brick House” every time his wife called. Several thought it was amusing, but we didn’t land the contract
And then there’s this guy.
