We all know that international dialing vexes me, but did you know that I don't even enjoy making domestic calls? It is true!
Now, I am sure some of you will chalk this up to a few things:
- I don't get enough calls myself, so I am bitter
- I hate all human interaction
- I'm an odd man
It is true that my phone isn't often ringing off the hook (in fact my phone doesn't even have a hook!), however, that isn't the reason I don't like calling people. I bet if I did call people more often they would, in turn, call me and my phone would get more action (though as it stands my phone gets more action than I do... that doesn't sound good at all.).
I like email, IMing, sending letters, voice chatting, and even speaking to people face to face, so it is clear that I enjoy human contact (though it is true that many, many people annoy me. I'm sure I annoy many, many people myself, so all is as it should be).
I am an odd man, I won't deny it. Heck, it is Saturday night and I am writing about how I don't like to use the phone; if that ain't odd than I haven't a clue what might be (well, maybe a cat eating a pancake off a camel). It is odd not to like using the phone, but there must be more to it than that, right? I mean I am a very complex man (ladies, I am an enigma wrapped in a mystery. I hear chicks dig that, but if you're interested in me you'll have to call me).
I know why I don't like calling people, and while it might seem strange on the surface if you think about it my reasoning may point to the fact that I am the most brilliant man in the universe (though I doubt it).
The problem is that phones don't (well most of them at least) display the state of the person you're calling, except in the most rudimentary way.
What does that mean?
Well if you call someone and get a busy signal, you know two things:
- They are home
- They are on the phone
Thanks to advances in telecommunications even this basic state indicator isn't what it used to be. Call waiting assures that you won't get a busy signal even if the person you are calling is on the phone (unless they are very popular indeed and holding two conversations at once).
Don't even get me started on cell phones ('Oh, I got their voicemail! Does that mean that they are out of their service area, on the phone already, saw it was me calling and sent me to voice mail, or have all of their calls going to voice mail?).
As you can see, placing a phone call isn't as straightforward as they would have you believe (the 'they' being The Man).
Therefore, without an indication of the state of the person on the other end of the line (are they busy? do they want to talk to anyone?) every time you pick up the phone you are making a crap shoot, and possibly annoying the other party because we have all been conditioned to immediately pick up the phone if it is ringing, even if we are in the middle of something or aren't in the mood to talk to anyone.
Isn't it rather presumptuous to assume that anyone wants to talk to you at your convenience? I think it is, and that is why every time I think of calling someone I usually talk myself out of it.
'Well, I'm sure they are busy,' or 'I don't want to interrupt them.'
Therefore I hardly ever call anyone, which makes people think I am a bastard, but really I am just thinking of them.
I don't mind emailing people because there isn't that sense of 'YOU MUST REPLY NOW,' unless you're a Blackberry user (but that is another entry entirely). IM is fine because you can set a state that tells others whether are not it is ok to contact you (and if you want to IM with me, just let me know and I'll send ya my screenname). Telephones have none of this.
I am hopeful that with the advent of IP telephony we will be able to set such states on our phones and have that broadcast to people, so that an icon (or something) would show up in the caller's address book letting them know if you want a call or not.
So, am I crazy, or do other people agree with me?
