Coming from a girl who is currently sans-cell in a tech dominated world, texting in social situations is a really big annoyance. Usually it's tolerable, since most people aren't huddled over their Crackberry 24/7, but there are many people who don't understand that their texting can be a bother.Text in public all you want, just not when you're attention should be otherwise occupied by the living, breathing person in front of you frowning at your lack of attention. My advice: Know when to text, and when not to.
When you pull someone aside to have a conversation, or are mid-explanation of something increrdibly important, the last thing you want is to be interrupted by a small, hand-held device. I think that people believe that texting is much easier and faster than calling, and just assume that it is okay to whip out your phone and send back a quick response to the last text you received. In reality, it isn't. These quick responses usually end in replies, and these replies create conversations that interrupt the one we're having person to person, face to face. Wanting to make conversation with people is okay. Wanting to make conversation with multiple people at a time isn't. You wouldn't talk to me and the person next to you at the same time, so what makes texting any different?
Mellat's Texting Etiquette:
- Place your ring on vibrate. Trust me when I say no one wants to listen to you live "la vida loca" as you reply to your texts.
- Be discreet. I'm sure what your buddy Brian told you was funny, but you don't need to laugh that loud.
- No need to flaunt your texts. This ties into the one above: Yes, I'm sure Brian's joke was top-notch, but no that doesn't necessarily mean I want to know how it went.
- Those "PING!" options on the Blackberry? A lot louder than your average vibration.
- I'm not going to third-wheel in a conversation I'm not part of. Don't start a conversation you're not going to continue.
Prada or nada, baby.
Ms. Powell, I know I'm supposed to be done, but while my opinionated juices are flowing let me say that I really don't have anything against this texting business. It may be a smidge irritating, with a smattering of annoyance, but it really isn't as bad as I made it out to be.Texting is like any other form of communication, just one where the boundaries aren't so obvious.
