It all happened Christmas day when I was thirteen years old. There was a present under the tree with my name on it. I had asked for a cell phone for Christmas this year and I was really hopeful I got one. So I tore away at the wrapping paper until I discovered the little mobile go-phone that was inside that present. I was so blissfully happy; little did I know that day would change my life forever. Through this blog you (the reader) will take a step back and see the last 5 years of my cell phone life and how it has changed my real life for better and for worse.
All right so any good story starts form the beginning so lets start that Christmas day when I received my go phone. Here take a look:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lP-1mO2NxcQ&feature=related Now for those of you that don’t know what a go phone is, by today’s standards, a crappy little flip phone that was probably obsolete soon after it was given to me. But hey I was a thirteen-year-old kid who finally got a fun so I was as happy as can be. I remember calling and texting all my friends who had phones also, soon I learned of my limited minutes and how much phones cost. This is the starting point of how phones complicated my life. Go phones are phones that the selling point is pay as you go, you’re given and initial 200 points for calls and texts, now when you go over your phone doesn’t shut off but goes into the negatives (a way phone companies scam). So pretty soon I was in the negatives and the woes began. The overage rate was huge and being as young as I was I had no income so my mom ended up paying it, she wasn’t too happy about that. So I learned how to limit my talking, which sucked, and how to stay within my budget and range. That first phone taught me a pretty good lesson about self-control.
If a phone has taught me anything in life it would have to be, how something bad can happen in the blink of an eye and out of no where. From the time I got my first phone until now I would say I have gone through 7 cell phones. My mom always says that I’m too hard on my phones, but I would defiantly say that the phones I had were jinxed and the phone companies had it out for me. All my phones always had some sort of problem with them, I would do nothing, they would simply break or something was wrong! For the longest time I thought I was cursed and going to go through phone after phone. Then I realized maybe I was a little to0 hard on them. But anyways every time something would happen to a phone it would lead to a trip to the cell phone store. My mom hated to go to the cell phone, and when I say hated I mean she probably hated that more than anything else. It was always a hassle and she would always get mad at some little thing so it would lead to arguments. We get mad at each other she’d yell and me, and then ten minutes later everything would be fine. It was so annoying. With each new phone there would be a new set of problems, so in turn it would turn into a new argument. The worst thing hat ever happened with my phone was I hit a mailbox because I was texting while driving. It was a dumb thing to do and entirely my fault, but the way I see it if I didn’t have the phone I would have never hit the mailbox. This cost me a lot of money. So I would say cell phones have defiantly caused anguish and anger through out my life.
My cell phone has kept me connected and attached to my family and friends way easier. I can talk to anyone of my friend either here, or at another school or in another city at the touch of a button. Or I can shoot them a text and it works the same way. So I stay up to date with my closest friends not in Norman. I talk to my parents everyday without my phone I wouldn’t be able to talk to my mom or dad. Cell phone communication is usually really informal. I think I’ve gotten used to being informal sometimes when I talk to people, because of my phone. Other than my car I would say my phone is the most important thing I have. My MacBook is a close second but that’s a story for another day. So I’m always on my phone, I use it literally all the time. My parents would even get mad at me sometime because I would use it while talking to them. Looking back now I feel bad about it, but that’s life. I’d say there is a down side to all my phone usage though. I think my attention span is shorter because of all the instantaneous communication, I don’t think I can just focus on one thing because I do so many things at once on my phone. Since I use it all the time the idea that I can always multi-task was implanted in my brain. This is a bad thing when I’m trying to do school work or something important. I’ve been working on this though! I’ve been using it a little less and not always having it on me, being away from my phone has done wonders. It was safe to say I was addicted to my phone, but now I’m not! I think its safe to say cell phones make communication a little less personal. That’s probably not a good thing; being personal is a key to communication and cannot be lost. I guess we just have to take the good with the bad though. For each bad there has been a good, my phone has me much joy. Well through it I guess, through the communication it offers. I love being able to hear my mom, dad, and brother’s voices everyday. I’m really close to my family and with out my phone I wouldn’t be able to maintain contact while I’m away.
That Christmas changed my life forever. I’ve had many phones, many fights, and many happy times. I’ve stated how I feel about phones, so now the questions fall to you; are phones worth all the trouble? How has your phone changed your life? Your personality? The way you interact with others? How do you feel about my stance on cell phones?
