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Sometimes mobile
phones make me wonder. They get me thinking of all sorts of issues about privacy and
etiquette – and above all, self-delusion. I think the biggest myth that users of mobile phones UK are tricked
into believing is that the phone comes complete with a public phone box, and they are thus
confident to air all sorts of personal details that they would never usually divulge to
strangers or new acquaintances. Take, for
instance, a conversation I recently overheard on a train. I tried not to listen, but the
woman seemed so eager to broadcast the It turns out that the woman had just met with her internet relationship cyber-boyfriend for the first time in real life. They spent the weekend together, and things had gone pretty well, or so she felt compelled to announce to one and all. She had met even let his parents, and the couple would be meeting again soon. Yes, they had gone out to lunch once, but they didn’t have much time for anything else, if you knew what she meant (Groan! Oh yes, woman, we all know what you mean – but we don’t want to!!! We just want to catch the train home without imaging your weekend romp!) Yes, he thought she was cute, although bigger than in her photo – although he was smaller than in his photo… if you knew… (I’m not listening to this; I don’t want to listen to this... I’m not listening to a word this woman says on her mobile phone. Ohhhhh, can it get any worse? When will she stop?) Unfortunately she didn’t stop – all was on offer on mobile phone - until she hung up to gather her bags and smugly alight from the carriage. As she left, I imagined that I heard everyone else in the carriage utter a collective sigh of relief. |
lurid details of her successful conquests that it
was impossible not to tune in. It was on a train and must have been using some sort of
off-peak free minutes, or one of those types of