Like most young people these days, my cellphone is my lifeline. Not only is is my preferred form of communication, but I have my entire life scheduled in my calendar and countless apps keeping track of everything from my calorie intake to spending habits. I love being organized and my Crackberry (err…Blackberry) helps me take that to the extreme. Regardless, when I agreed to spend one day without my cellphone (and share the experience with all you text addicts), I thought that it would be no big deal.

Boy, was I wrong.

In the mornings, I usually wake up and grab my phone from my nightstand to see if I have any new texts or emails. After going through those, I get ready for school/work and periodically check my phone for any happenings. Instead, I woke up and just started getting ready. Surprisingly, I was all set for work about 15 minutes earlier and able to pop open my computer and browse the headlines that way.

Once I got to work, I had to explain to my boss that she wouldn’t be able to text or call my cell for the day. She thought the idea was neat but it quickly became clear that my lack of cellphone would put a dent in our day. I work in an office setting and sometimes have to run errands, which the cellphone is handy and/or necessary for. No one could touch base with my when I was outside of the office and while this wasn’t the norm a decade ago, now you’re expected to be available at all times. One perk (at least from my perspective) was not being disturbed on my lunch break. I could eat and read my book in peace! Read More »

[Life isn’t black and white. As much as we wish we simply loved or hated things, there is often that whole annoying gray area in the middle. Like, we love how hot stilettos look, but hate the blisters the next morning. Or how we love sweatpants, but hate how fat we get when we wear em. Damn you, gray area; you make decision-making that much more complicated!]

The world is a changin’ my friends, and I so don’t want to be left behind. That’s kind of how I feel with the whole Blackberry/iPhone phenomenon. Here I am with my little, dinky LG Chocolate. I used to think my phone was so cool- – I mean, it’s frickin red and can play music — but now I’m not so sure.

Should I upgrade? Help, I’m torn!

Love it:

I want to be one of the cool kids typing away on my Blackberry during class. Even though I’m basically glued to my laptop, I can’t keep it with me 24/7. Damn thing doesn’t fit in my back pocket. If I had a PDA, I’d have access to my email all the time. Even more, I’d have Google for looking up info and phone numbers, a map so I don’t have to stop at shady gas stations and ask for directions, and other super cool shiz that I can’t get on my Chocolate. Plus, the people at Apple have come up with some pretty sweet apps. I totally want to have a personal trainer on my cellphone. I’m pretty sure they have an app for everything… at least that’s what the commercials tell me! Read More »

I’m always a step behind on the latest phone trend. By the time I got a rotary phone in my bedroom, everyone was already onto their cellphones, and by the time I made the jump to cellphones, everyone was already trading up for a flip phone. So it came as no surprise to me that when I finally got a camera phone, the iPhone had come out and BlackBerrys became more ubiquitous than see-through-white-dresses in the summertime.

But it wasn’t until this past summer living in New York City that I truly felt uncomfortable using my cell phone in public. The phone that I had once bragged about because it fit into my clutch was now making me feel as if I was using Zack Morris’s mega phone. People stared at me when I texted and expressed shock and awe that I still used only 9 keys to construct a sentence.

The look I got when I flipped my phone open the other day was the look I gave to my grandmother when she attempted to use her scanner to send an e-mail.

I can’t deny the jealousy. I admit that having the internet on your phone is insanely useful; whenever I’ve gotten lost somewhere, its a friend’s BlackBerry that got me home (not my phone’s tip calculator). And, sure, I’ve gotten frustrated when my T9 brutalized a word so badly that my text ended a friendship. I’ve eyed those keyboards and mouses and wished that my phone, too, could serve as a hand-held laptop. Read More »