Sad

Just returned from our home-style restaurant (see previous blog) and observed something that made me sad.

At the table next to us sat a little boy about four, his dad, about 40 and the dad's dad, age around 75. During the meal the 40-year old's cell phone went off at least three times. Each time he answered and talked long and loud. One call was about scheduling his son's surgery for next week. No, I did not need that information but his voice was clearly carrying over to the surrounding tables. He addressed another caller as "Mr." and spoke with a tone of voice indicating to me that Mr. Somebody was indeed, somebody important. Again, I did not care.

What I cared about was the lack of interaction between the three of these guys. The young son ate in silence. The older man ate in silence. The middle guy talked. When he was not on the phone he talked about a trip he would be taking to Florida and then a trip he would take to New York over the July 4th weekend.

I admit it is hard sometimes to interact with those of another generation, be it older or younger. And yes, older folks can be hard of hearing. And younger kids can be ignored rather easily over grown-up conversation.

Of course, you are thinking, she doesn't know what the situation was. She is just guessing from this one observation that dad is a little 'into' himself, ignoring the two men who should mean the most to him in the world.

What am I really thinking about this.

I'm not happy that this guy could not extend the courtesy of turning his cell phone to vibrate in a public place. And before you jump to conclusions, yes, I always turn my phone to silent when we enter a public place. And yes, it does bug the heck out of me when I hear my husband's phone ringing out loud and clear with the Ohio State fight song. But that did not happen this morning.

That's what I think about it.