Help me climb up on my soap box, will you?

Today I had the distinct pleasure of having lunch with one of my dearest friends. We went to a lovely bistro and we were enjoying the ambiance, the food, and each other's company. All of the sudden, I hear the most obnoxious ring tone ever! Now, I have been guilty of having my phone on "ring" several times in a situation like that, and then not being able to find it is mortifying right? I tried not to watch this woman (with her husband), as she took the phone call, talked, and then hung up. It happens to us all, no harm, no foul. Well, then I hear it ring again! She had not bothered to silence the ring in an intimate setting of about 10 people where everyone can hear everything...we're not talking about Mcdonald's. She took the second phone call, talked, and hung up. I watched with avid curiosity to see what would happen next. Low and behold, the most annoying "blackberry- text message" sound kept coming through and where was it coming from? You guessed it.

Now, I am not perfect and I am certainly not judging her for needing to communicate to the outside world at that moment...but surely we can silence our phones after we realize that they are on loud...surely we can step outside to have what is blatantly a private conversation. We have truly forgotten this as we have become attached to our cell phones (I'm so guilty of this) and our email. It's easy to forget that other people are around us and that we are truly being inconsiderate of their comfort when we do not take these things into consideration. I remember during a recent trip to our favorite spot, Carmel, while dining at "La Patisserie", someone took a phone call in the tiny restaurant. The Maidre d' quietly came over and politely asked that they go outside to finish their phone call, and they did oblige. There was also a sign on the door that indicated that there were to be no phone calls taken or made in the restaurant. I love this!

I will even go as far as to say that I think as a society, people have stopped caring about other people's comfort and it's "all about me" and what works for us at that particular moment. I am confidant that you readers are polite as can be, but I have to work on this and make sure that I'm keeping my cell phone in check and that it doesn't keep me in check. I have to make sure that I am always being mindful of those around me....being quick to observe and then acting accordingly. I realize this veers from our topic of the week, but this is what caught my attention today and I'm grateful for the opportunity I have to learn from this experience. Will someone help me off this darn box now?