::Ring:: Hello?

C and I were having a discussion yesterday about people and phones regarding usage and other issues. Our cell phones have timers on them that allow you to track the length of your calls, incoming and outgoing, as well as your lifetime usage. We've had these phones for just about 12 months exactly now. These are my stats and keep in mind that I've never reset any of the timers so this has been for the life of the phone (about 12 months) up to this morning:

Total Received: 230 hr: 30 min
Total Dialed: 75 hr: 47 min
Total lifetime Calls: 306 hr: 13 min

That's a lot of freaking talking. Also you should also keep in mind that my phone is basically our house phone so I'm not the only one that uses it. However, I will admit that probably 85-90% of the calls are mine. One website that I checked out while trying to find an average usage said that the average cell phone usage by 18-24 year olds is about 1300 min/month and the average usage of 25 - 36 year olds is about 970 min/month. I average about 1531 min/month. GEEZ!! That explains why I had $300 and $400 cell phone bills. This is actually embarrassing, lmao.

Additionally, this is proof that when people say I never call them, they're right. I receive way more calls than I make. Maybe I should've made some of those people pay my overages, lol. And while we're on the subject, just because it may have been a week or more since I've called doesn't mean it was deliberate. Not everything is about you. If your phone hasn't rang, I do believe that means you have a phone with which to make calls. It works both ways.

And furthermore here are some guidelines for phone usage etiquette:

1.) If you call someone and they answer, "Hello?" don't answer back with "Hello" and then wait for another response. Ummm. You called!! Say who you are and what you want, not "Hello".
2.) If you call someone after 11pm you're scaring that person unless you know they routinely receive calls at all hours of the day and night. Calls after 11 usually mean someone is dead, dying, or sick in the hospital and you need to request emergency leave.
3.) Don't always call to bitch about your problems. Every once in a while, shake things up with something positive.
4.) Unless you need a DD, don't call people drunk. Well, unless you're 21 years old and it's still considered funny. 25+ you're just being dumb. I don't enjoy having to interpret what you're saying over the phone while you're inconsiderately eating up my cell minutes. And I don't care if you call after 9 or on the weekends. I don't freaking like it!!
5.) If you're a business, bill collector, or telephone solicitor, don't bother using one of those automated deals that tells a person to hold on the phone while they wait for a real person. 99.9% of people (this is my own estimate) will immediately hang up.
6.) Call waiting is freaking annoying and borderline rude. Yeah, I sometimes use it but only when it's unavoidable and I hurry up as fast as I can. Again, I'm sitting on the other end while my cell minutes float away. Usually I just tell the original person I'll call them back. Which leads us to:
7.) If you say you're going to call someone back, DO SO!! And calling 1 day, 2 days, or a week later doesn't count. You're just rude and self-absorbed. Yeah, we've all done it but some people do it habitually.
8.) If you choose to keep your number blocked, don't get pissy when your call is ignored. I don't answer "unavailable" or "blocked" calls.

I think that's it. And one last thing, I'm cancelling my Hotmail and my Yahoo E-mail accounts in an effort to streamline a little. I don't think it's necessary to have 4 E-mail accounts, lol. Besides, all that my Yahoo and Hotmail accounts are used for is Junk Mail which I never get to see anyway. For the few of you that do use one of these accounts, I've sent you an E-mail letting you know the deal.