When I turned 11 or 12, I received my very own phone for my birthday. However, it wasn’t the same type of phone an 11 or 12 year old would receive today. It wasn’t a cell phone – it wasn’t even wireless. It was a Dale Earnhardt #3 “car” phone.

It didn’t come with my own line – it was just a phone I could use on the house line (however, my parents did eventually give me my own line – because they got tired of me using it to get online with dial up modems). Nevertheless, I cherished the simple nature of what it meant.

This phone couldn’t text, couldn’t play the top radio single as a ring tone, couldn’t watch an episode of the latest sitcom, or browse through your favorite google search. It was a phone. It could make calls and it could receive calls.

Lately I feel as if the phone is losing it’s identity. Phones (especially cell phones) are no longer sold to make and receive calls – they are sold on the basis that you can tweet from the toilet, download an application so you can use your phone as a level, and browse the web at 25,000G speeds.

Now – do I appreciate the fact that my phone reminds me about meetings, lets me check my email, and allows me to reserve a movie on redbox.com? Yes – of course. If technology didn’t advance – I wouldn’t be employed.

I guess my beef stems from the countless people that I see driving outside of their lane because they’re updating their Facebook status. I get annoyed at the people that are too busy playing <insert trendy phone app> to realize they’re about to walk into someone. Or worse yet, when you’re with someone who feels inconvenienced because you can tell they’d rather finish their virtual conversation. A phone shouldn’t be the end all and be all of who someone is – what they think – or control their day to day life.

I suppose I should probably finish this post – my exit is coming up.