Just because a cell phone seems like a tether to 24/7 access doesn’t mean that manners went away. Here are a two very important things to remember when using a cell phone:

• Use the 9-9 rule. If this is a personal cell phone you are calling, please do not call before 9 am nor after 9 pm unless it’s an emergency. A REAL emergency, like someone has been rushed to the hospital, not like you ran out of milk for your cereal. Instead, if it’s important, send a text, if the person is available they’ll call you. If not, you’ve not disturbed them.
• Do not hang up and call over and over again. If the person didn’t answer the first time, leave a message. Sometimes, if I’m in a meeting and you call, I can’t answer. If you hang up and call right back, I’m still in a meeting and still can’t answer. If you hang up and call a third time, you’re just being annoying and it gets irritating. LEAVE A MESSAGE.

Do not expect that because it’s a cell phone the person has the phone on all the time. There are times when I’m home and downstairs cooking dinner, doing laundry or whatever and my phone is upstairs. There are times when I’m on a date with my husband and want to focus on him. There are times when I (gasp) take a shower or take the dog for a walk, or am sitting on my front porch reading a book. It’s not personal, we have lives away from our cell phones.

For me, I found that I had become addicted to the phone and others had become addicted to being able to call me all the time. It hit home one day, when at family dinner, we all had our cell phones next to our plate. I determined to simplify my life this year. To get back to basics. To not fall into a trap of having to answer while I’m trying to eat. So my phone gets turned off sometimes on purpose. It gets left behind sometimes on purpose. It doesn’t mean I don’t love you, it just means I am not always available.