Current mood:	bouncy
Current music:	Eryka Badhu

21 missed calls
I hate mobile phones. To my mind they are one of the great evils of modern life. To which have been attached numerous gimmicks as the operators and handset manufacturers travel up the learning curve of how to extract the most money from their punters. You can buy logs to go on your screen. Or enter in the new horror of polyphonic ringtones. Now, I spent a good amount of time working at various phone operators where it was (seemingly) obligatory for marketing to have the stupidest and most annoying tunes. But now we have the rich timbre of the new tunes. None of which are any good so you wind up trying to find something which isn't completely offensive. Then there is the fact that they are so intrusive. There's no way (once the fckuer goes off) to discreetly kill the call without the other party knowing you cut them off. So do you stand there with the whole world thinking you're a or answer it feeling awkward. And if it's someone else's phone you wind up hating them momentarily for disturbing your peace. But today's gripe (amongst the mutltitude) is my answer phone service. Once someone has left you a message it becomes hyperactive in attempting to connect you to the service. Case in point: I went to the gym and one person rang and left a message. When I get back the screen says "21 missed calls". 21!?!?! Bloody hell has someone died? Did war break out? No. It was one person. Of course, now I have to pay to hear what they have to say (hence perhaps the urgency of my operator attempting to connect me to the service). And have to spend 10 seconds listening to them telling me I could leave a voice greeting before I get to the message. Upshot - mobile phones are evil. The tragedy is they are really useful as well. But like all useful things, evil moves in. The fate of USENET awaits us in the very things we are coming more to rely on. On the plus side, my guilt for drop kicking my first mobile into undergrowth has now evaporated ;-)