Posted on 01/12/2016 7:03:39 AM PST by grundle
Before you read on, I want to make one thing clear: I'm not trying to convert you. I'm not trying to lecture you or judge you. Honestly, I'm not. It may come over like that here and there, but believe me, that's not my intent. In this piece, I'm just trying to ... explain.
People who knew me in a previous life as a policy adviser to the British prime minister are mildly surprised that I'm now the co-founder and CEO of a tech startup . And those who know that I've barely read a book since school are surprised that I have now actually written one.
But the single thing that no one seems able to believe - the thing that apparently demands explanation - is the fact that I am phone-free. That's right: I do not own a cellphone; I do not use a cellphone. I do not have a phone. No. Phone. Not even an old-fashioned dumb one. Nothing. You can't call me unless you use my landline - yes, landline! Can you imagine? At home. Or call someone else that I happen to be with (more on that later).
Asking to borrow someone's phone - to order an Uber, or send a message, or call someone or whatever - could indeed be described as me being a free rider, enjoying the benefits of being phone-free but allowing others to suffer the costs. But I would say: it happens maybe four or five times a month. That's the sum total of the times I find I really need a phone's functionality and ask to borrow someone else's.
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
It was easier when we still had pay phones around.
My wife and I share a prepaid flip-phone for emergencies or anticipated needs only, and turn textng off.
I am amazed at the people who won’t believe that you can’t/won’t text.
I own a cellphone....but in an average year...I probably make fewer than ten phonecalls. It’s mostly there as a GPS or map device....and a way to connect if I had car trouble. I think a quarter of the population are in the same boat as me....it’s a minor thing and not worth all the money for the monthly bills.
I wish I didnt have one. I absolutely hate phone calls and get a pit in my stomach when it rings (buzzes). No good news ever comes from a phone call for me.
If I could have a PDA with no phone function, I would be happy. I envy my parents land-line now.
It sounds like a great idea until when your car breaks down and you are stranded in a winter storm.
Pffffffft...getting out is half the fun! Sounds like an extended winter camping trip to me!
As noted, the lack of public phones makes it hard to live without a cell phone.
I remember not having cell phones at all. And no public phones available when needed.
I remember my car sliding off a country road at night in a blizzard, having to walk a mile to bang on a stranger’s door and beg use of their phone for help.
There’s a reason most people have cell phones today. Considering how cheap they can be, kinda stupid to not have one. And if you’re often borrowing phones to use apps, get your own already, leech.
Yes, I deeply appreciate frugal living.
But if you’re using someone else’s Uber app to get a lift, stop faking it.
I totally agree with you. I have a seven year old "disposable" phone for emergencies that auto-refills for about $9 a month. It is just awful trying to text on that thing.
“It sounds like a great idea until when your car breaks down and you are stranded in a winter storm.”
I’ve got that licked. I don’t own a cellphone OR a car. ;-)
“If I could have a PDA with no phone function, I would be happy.”
iPod Touch. It’s the iPhone without the “phone”.
I use my cell phone fairly extensively as part of my business. Most of my texting is within the family. Most calls are not.
I don’t own a cell phone also....I have in the past but found I never used it much. I have limited resources and don’t like shelling out the 30 dollars a month for just basic service. The only times it ever becomes an issue is if I am on a road trip and need to make a call or if I am running a errand and decide to stop and see a friend... every year there are less pay phones around and social custom has changed to calling before you stop to say hello.
I’m old enough that in my lexicon PDA means Public Display of Affection. Perhaps I don’t belong on this thread.
My phone is used to access the internet and FR when I’m away from home. I’d be happy to pay for a small data plan and pay by the minute for any phone calls I might make (few) but they don’t offer plans like that.
I work in Silicon Valley. In Hi-tech/next generation industry. I still use my flip phone, refuse to text, refuse to own smart phone or TV. Use my cell for emergency only.
By doing this, I am not 24x7. If anyone want to reach me send me an email. I reply when I want to.
“Our technician will be there between the hours of 8 and 5”. Or maybe he won't! Now he calls me 30 minutes before he gets here using his cell phone and if I am not at home I head that way!
MrD and I even call each other from one end of the house to the other, things like “I have fallen and I can't get up”.
I love my cell phone , you can have it when you pry it from my cold.........you know the rest!
Never owned a cell phone. Never texted in my life.
I took a trip into the country with an old friend of mine not too long ago, and he had his phone. While I was driving in my car, he just couldn’t stop checking it, or texting something. Every five minutes or so. Not that he was even monitoring anything special. But it got annoying, all that fidgeting and halting of conversation. He used to be good company, but now he’s a crappy, spastic mess.
Seeing examples like that, the last thing I ever want to do is get entwined in that kind of existence. The further I separate myself from the whole technological cyber-world, the more free and more alive I feel. I’ve seriously considered just giving up on the internet altogether when my aged computer finally goes on the fritz.
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