Cell Phones, Respect and What the Heck are People Thinking...

I am probably showing my age with this post, but at 37 I feel I have a right to gripe about this topic - talking on a cell phone at the library.

I have pretty much stopped going to the library at school because of the noise, yes, I said noise. The library at Point Park is beautiful. It's in an old bank with three story high ceilings and the acoustics that belong in a concert hall.

Last weekend I was sitting at the back of the library near the vault (way cool room to study in by the way.) and I could hear the conversations taking place at the front door. The building is approximately 3/4 of a city block deep, so this was a long way for the voices to carry. I can deal with all that, but what happened next shocked me. The girl at the next table whips out her phone and starts a 10 minute conversation with someone. Ugh... I am here to study, not listen to phone conversations.

Yesterday I was going to meet Mom for lunch north of where I live, I thought I would go to the library at Slippery Rock, my Alma Mater. I never had too many problems with noise when I studied there before, that is until yesterday. All was quiet in the stacks and I had whipped through two chapters of the advertising psych book I was reading when I heard music. It sounded twingy, like someone had a pair of ear buds shoved in their ears with the music turned up way too loud. After a couple minutes the music stopped and I could hear a one way conversation. This twenty something was talking on a cell phone. Again, this went on for about 10 minutes then she shut up.

Here's my gripe. If you're gonna go to the library, turn the damn phone off or go in the lobby to talk. There are people there for a reason and that is not to hear a one sided conversation while trying to study.

Have the youth in our society lost all respect for others or have they never been taught to be quiet in a place like the library? Are we such a self centered society that no one else matters but me and what my needs are at a particular moment?

Maybe I am a little old fashioned, but I was brought up to be respectful of others no matter how different they are from myself. I was taught to help others when they are down and need a helping hand. And I was taught that when in the library to keep quiet and when speaking, keep it at a whisper.

Enough griping, I'm off to the library where I hope it will be a little more quiet than it was yesterday :)