The wonders of mobile phone technology mean that no matter where you are in the world you cannot escape. Usually I leave the mobile in the glove compartment of the car when I park up at the airport but this time when I packed my suitcase almost the first thing that I included was a charger for the mobile phone since it was inconceivable that I would leave it behind.
My check list on leaving the house always used to be keys, glasses, and wallet. Now the Mobile phone has been added to the list and if it comes to a choice between wallet and phone then I leave the wallet behind. I misplaced my wallet for over a week a short while ago and was just starting to get worried about it when it turned up. Misplacing my mobile for that length of time is totally unthinkable. Occasionally I do go out without it and there are inevitably a dozen missed calls when I check it on my return. If I could actually see past the end of my nose without my glasses then they would be lower than the phone on the list. Keys have to remain at the top of the list unfortunately as I cannot lock the doors behind me when I leave the house.
So when did I become so addicted to my mobile phone? I was once told it’s not how many calls you make that counts, its how many you receive. I have never been one of the mobile users I hate so much inflicting the classic “Hello, I’m on the train/bus/plane, I’ll be home if an hour, what’s for tea?” conversations on everyone around them. I still actually feel embarrassed to talk on my phone in a public place and in fact when I moved tariffs recently I opted for more inclusive txt messages and fewer airtime talk minutes. It’s actually txt messages that I love, not my phone. I send txt messages to myself sometimes, rather like sending e-mails to myself (yes I admit I do that) because once they are in my e-mail in-box of txt message received box then they stay there until I have dealt with them. In a similar way I am starting to love the camera on my mobile. During a recent ward walk about there were several items that needed attention, in the good old days I would have made notes, not now, I took a photo of them and sent it from my phone back to my computer at home. So when I turned on my PC that evening a series of photos down loaded to my in-box. The damaged wall outside St.Begas School, the gate to the Bowling Greens that needed repair and the seating around the Canon next to the Lighthouse all reminded me of things I needed to follow up.
So maybe it just the fact that I can’t remember like I used to that is making me love my mobile phone more and more. I don’t carry a diary any more because the memo function reminds me of things; I don’t remember phone numbers since they are programmed in.
There used to be a “trick” question asked by interviewers to try and uncover your psychological flaws “If you woke up in bed one night and your house was on fire and you can save only one thing, what would it be?” After the obvious wife and children (though how I would choose one from them is something I don’t even want to think about), the answer would definitely be “My mobile phone”
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