I tweeted this article yesterday from my beloved Fast Company, and I was a little alarmed by how accurate it was. Not only do I experience phantom cell phone vibrations when I notice other people checking their phones, but also spontaneously from my purse, pocket, wherever. Even if I don’t have my phone on me (which prompts feelings of exposure and nakedness once I realize I am legitimately a phone-free zone).

So then my mind wandered to general cell phone etiquette… and how no one seems to know exactly what that does and does not entail. I did a little research and it wasn’t anything ground-breaking – so why can’t people seem to do it? For many people a lot of this is intuitive, particularly if you’ve grown up in a manner that emphasized general etiquette. I feel like etiquette isn’t really taught that much anymore; I didn’t grow up with it and I know a lot of people in my generation didn’t either. Maybe society is just generally accepting of rudeness? We all have those friends/dates that text during movies, BBM at dinner, check into foursquare at your parents’ house and talk loudly about personal issues on the bus. If you think you may be a cell-phone scumbucket (or other choice words not appropriate for family-oriented blogs), read this delightful article… and tune back into the real world, wouldja?

creative commons image courtesy of donut_p