Tiny Computers Stole My Life

Talking About Cell Phones or, Tiny Computers Stole My Life!

Imagine if you will, yourself, sitting in an overcrowded movie theatre. You paid $6.50 to get in to see a new movie, and for the next two hours just plan to relax and watch. The movie approaches its climax, you lean forward in anticipation, and then suddenly, someone’s cell phone begins to ring. It rings three times before they pick it up, and then they begin to talk loudly, while in the movie, and you are unable to hear the climax. This story may not be as farfetched as you would think. Cell phone usage has gotten downright ridiculous in the United States lately. It almost seems as if everyone has one now, and feel that it’s great they can always be in contact. They carry their cell phones with them everywhere, and almost seem to be addicted.

Dictionary.com defines addiction as: “the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.” Saying America is addicted to cell phones may sound downright melodramatic, however consider this; this girl will not be named: when her cell phone lost service for a couple of days, she begin to cry because she could not use it. It’s almost as if she was going through a withdrawal from cell phone use. She’s not the only person who would react this way. Think for a moment, and picture how many friends, co-workers, and family, how many of them always have a cell phone with them at all times? How many of them do you think would ‘freak out’ if their cell phone was lost? You can probably imagine quite a few. It may sound strange, but people are addicted to their cell phones. They simply don’t know how to live without them anymore.

Not only our people addicted to cell phones, but they seem to think possessing one makes them the center of the world. It’s as if using a cell phone creates some type of illusion that the entire universe was made for your own convenience. This strange hallucination that cell phones have on numerous people, can become distressing to the public if left unchecked. Consider the earlier story of yourself watching a movie, when somebody’s cell phone goes off. Notice, they don’t seem to acknowledge that their cell phone ringing or their conversation might be distressing to those in the movie audience. They continue on assuming the movie audience doesn’t care. They continue on in their own fantasy world that everyone just wants them to be happy. It never occurs to them that if they must keep their phone on to set it on vibrate, and then go outside if they must talk to someone. The person is obviously suffering from cell phone abuse that they have lost respect for even their fellow man.

Cell phone abuse and cell phone dependant problems are quite common. I’ve already mentioned examples of both, of the girl who cried when she lost service, and the man using a cell phone in a theatre. These problems may be a lot more common than you think, and not just restricted to movie theatres and teenage girls. If you are in college, or are going soon, you may be surprised when sitting in a lecture hall, and suddenly a cell phone goes off! You’re paying good money to get a college education as is everyone else in the room, and so are other people in the room. However, it was just one cell phone so you don’t worry about it. Then ten minutes later, a second one goes off. This is not an exaggeration. I can say from personal experience, that sometimes four or five cell phones will ring in one lecture. It is completely mind boggling. Why would someone go to college to receive a higher education, and then spend their time talking on a cell phone instead of learning? For an example of a cell phone dependence problem, instead of selecting one example I will select a population as a whole. Most people with cell phones always have them on them, at all the time. The idea of leaving their phone behind is completely alien to them. If they were to accidentally forget their cell phone, they would turn around and go back for it. This is no joke.

There is still some hope though. Cell phones may be an addictive hallucinogen but if used in moderation they are shown to carry benefits. Cell phones have been shown to be useful if one must contact another in an emergency. Also, for those who have not overused cell phones they appear to not be taken in by the hallucination. Not only will they turn their cell phones off or on vibrate in movies, but will kindly keep their conversations to themselves. Some of them will go their entire lives without ever developing an addiction to cell phones. This can be a sign of what cell phones can be if used properly. Unfortunately, though some people have learned to use cell phones in moderation, many others still have cell phone dependence and cell phone abuse related problems.

For those with cell phone problems their problems often start innocently enough. They receive their first cell phone, and happily use it to make calls. Then they carry it with them everywhere to keep in contact with others. This isn’t too bad by itself. However, then the signs of cell phone abuse start to appear. The first sign is lack of common sense. This is evident when while talking on cell phones, they may become oblivious to surroundings, and do foolish things, like cross a street without looking for cars. This probably indicates at this stage that the user may be having mild hallucinations. The second stage is obsession. This stage is evident when the cell phone user feels he or she must have their cell phones on them at all time. At this stage they may also begin to buy more expensive cell phones for the purpose of showing off, or starting a conversation on their cell phone. You can tell someone has a cell phone dependence problem at this stage, if they have a conversation on their cell phone about how great their cell phone is. The third stage is a lack of courtesy. Anytime when you’re in an area that is supposed to be quiet, such as a classroom, a movie theatre, or a play, and a cell phone goes off, you have encountered a person in the third stage. The fourth stage, is when they suffer from the hallucination that the world revolves around them, and seems like a more dramatic version of stage three. This is the final stage. In this stage, if someone’s cell phone were to go off in said quiet area, they would not only let it ring, but then pick up and begin to have a conversation loudly. People in stage four are those that suffer the most from cell phone related problem and are obviously in dire need of help.

Cell phone use in America has reached the point of ridiculous. If action is not taken now to inform the public how to use cell phones in moderation current cell phone related problems could escalate. However, if the public is informed on proper and safe cell phone usage it is not to late to break stop this horrible problem before it becomes more dire. Lastly, remember, friends don’t let friends overdose cell phones.