the thin line between optimism and delusion…

I got a new cell phone about a month ago.  I like it.  I don’t LOVE IT.  But, I don’t HATE IT like I did my old phone. 

What kind of relationship do you have with your cell phone?  When I got my new phone my dad wanted to know why I didn’t get a blackberry.  I told him I didn’t need a blackberry.  I’m a compulsive person, and I get fixated on things, like my email, or my cell phone, or my laptop.  And I kind of think a blackberry would have been bad for me. 

There was a point during the fall of my third year of law school when I was taking more than a full load of classes (which included a 4 hour clinic environmental class).  I had class all day long on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and most of Thursday, then Friday I had the clinic, and it was football season, and my weekends were full of house guests and parties and late nights at waffle house and/or easy mac.  I was living by myself, and my life happened on the weekends, with people who didn’t live in Athens, and my weekdays were long. 

After class during the week I would go for a run on the trails (with Cristina if I was lucky), pick up some sort of dinner (umm, hello earthfare!), take a shower, get into bed, and watch tv while playing on my laptop until I went to sleep.  Since I spent all day in class, then had my laptop open all night, essentially the only time I wasn’t on line was when I was working out.  Which seemed pretty normal.   But it made me dependent, made me uncomfortable to not have my laptop with me, turned on, and ready to go at all times.  It left me scanning restaurants for evidence of wireless and hoping for internet at friend’s vacation homes. 

In contrast, my first year out of law school, I lived by myself in a precious cottage that was just a little out of my price range and had an address of 1107 1/2, and when I moved in the cable company couldn’t process the 1/2 of my address without me going to the office, so I ended up without cable or internet.  Which was fine with me, I couldn’t really afford it, and my parents lived half a mile away with a tivo and a comfy couch perfect for Sunday afternoon lounging.  Plus, netflix was there for me. 
It was an adjustment to not always be on the computer, to not always have access to my email, but it was good for me. 

That was a bit of a tangent, what I really wanted to talk about was the cell phone. 

Obviously many people use their phones for work, and don’t have the luxury of turning it off ever, but that isn’t going to play into the rest of this post, so suspend reality for a little bit, k?

When you with all of the most important people in your life at one time, you don’t give a damn where your cell phone is.  Because, the people who would call that you would want to answer are all there.  This obviously doesn’t happen very often, especially if you live somewhere far away from your family or close friends. 

But when there is someone who is important to you, who is far away, your cell phone becomes much more important.  When something is happening in your life, or the life of someone close to you, who is physically far away, losing your cell phone seems tragic.  If you are waiting to hear from your sister who you expect to get engaged this weekend, keeping your cell phone close is a priority.  If your husband is on an airplane on the other side of the country, you are going to make sure you hear the phone when it rings.  I personally believe this to be the correct purpose for a cell phone. 

Being with the people you love is always preferable to talking to them on the phone, and the days where you could care less where your cell phone is, whether it is charged, or even if it is turned on are the best of all and should be enjoyed by losing track of your electronic devises for a little while.  Remember that you own your cell phone, blackberry or laptop, and that it doesn’t own you.

Because the times in between those perfect days will give you amply opportunity to get your money’s worth out of your phone.