Mother's phone etiquette. AIBU or is she? (It's her, isn't it?!)

[bupcakesandcunting]

My mum is driving me round the twist with her bleeding mobile phone behaviour. We bicker over it a fair bit, including last night. She says I'm being a priss. I say she's being rude. If I give you some examples, can the MN jury clear this one up please? Ta

*Gets 'phone out in sitting room, whilst DH, DS and I are watching Eggheads. Proceeds to dial her friend and speak in unhushed tones. When she is having problems hearing her friend, she will pull a wincey face at me and gesture for me to turn the telly down

*Sat at the dinner table after I have cooked, she'll hear that her phone has a message alert. She will leave the table to read the message, sometimes she will even ring the sender back, at the table, using one hand to hold the phone, the other hand to try and eat.

*There have been occasions (Mother's Day for example) where MIL has been present. MIL and my mum don't see each other often. MIL will be talking to mum and mum will read a received text message, in the middle of conversation.

There are more. It's the kind of behaviour that I would expect from a fourteen year old, not a fifty four year old granny. I really shouldn't have to be remonstrating with my mother over politeness wrt mobile phones, should I? Or am I being a stuffy cow?

walking

She is BU but YABU to sit down as a family and watch Eggheads.

YANBU and it drives me mad. DH will sit playing games on his phone whilst sat chatting with family and friends. Grrrrr

I don't think they should be switched off altogether, diddl, otherwise it defeats the object of having a mobile phone. May as well just stick to your work/landline. I just object to the mobile phone being the Most Important Thing, the thing that Must Not Be Ignored, over and above actual, real people who are in your company.

So rude! I hate this kind of thing. Probs wouldn't say anything as a one-off, but as it's persistent, I wouldn't be able to contain myself.

She's totally U. And boorish.

My mum is surgically attached to her mobile and does all the same things as yours.

Plus, when I am talking to her on the landline I can hear her message alert and then hear her titter as she reads the message. Soemtimes she reads it out to me and then says "hang on, I've got to answer this" all whilst I'm on the actual phone.

How rude!!!

senorita

My post didn't make sense either. I blame not enough sleep after a crap night shift. Apologies Bupcakes

Why are we unreasonable to watch one programme together? Not even every day, more like once or twice a week? Am I missing something? Is every spare minute supposed to be crammed with making macaroni necklaces and compost?

And agree with mardy how can you watch Eggheads?!!

They're so smug.

Esp. that CJ. So annoying!

No apologies required, Wine

Ahhh, that's why we watch it. We love it when the Eggheads get outfoxed (usually after Daphne has ballsed it up in the Sports round) and you get to see that little twat CJ pouting and preening like a huffy little toddler.

Egg.

Heads?

My mum used to be like this.. would never be more than an arms length away from her fone. She was having an affair.

If she answers fone again while you are watching tv then before she answers ask her to go into kitchen. Or keep turning it up a notch while she isnt looking and ignore her signals to turn it down.

Well for us, when we are all at home the landline is a perfectly acceptable mode of communication

I think that phoning/ texting/reading texts in company/when visiting/out for a meal/drink is very rude.

But then I just don´t really get the concept that if I am out with someone I need to communicating with someone else iyswim.

Er Bupcakes you are not known for your softly softly approach on MN and are usually happy to tell MNers what's what.

Methinks you are really an old (or young?) fluffy bunny who doesn't swear in RL and understandably wouldn't want to upset her mum. And not your MN persona at all.

Would the real Bupcakes please stand up!

(Oh and she is BU unless she has only just worked out how to use it 6 months after getting it)

ahh now I see.

It really irritates DH and me the way that an Egghead, at not knowing the answer, proceeds to tell you what the answer isn't and why. and what the answer would have been had the question been something different.

I actually laughed out loud reading this. She is just like a teenager. I would turn the tables on her. do exactly waht she does and with regards to the meal I would take her meal away and tell her that if she wasn't polite enough to ignore the phone at a meal time then she shouldn't be allowed a meal. If she wants to behave like a teenager then she can be treated like one :)

Or, if she chats during Eggheads make a point of pausing the TV (if you can) or turning it off (painful) and you and DH pointedly stare at her. Sit either side of her when you do this if you can.

It might freak her out enough to get her to go into another room if she needs to natter to her mate.

"I think that phoning/ texting/reading texts in company/when visiting/out for a meal/drink is very rude."

Oh I agree, absolutely. I just switch mine to silent and discreetly check it on a visit to the loo. I don't tend to leave it at home/switch it off altogether in case there IS an actual emergency. Unlikely but there might be.

Oh, Geordieminx I would LOVE it if my mum was having a sordid affair with a man... She has been single for years

SunRays I do tell my mum off and she just goes "oh shut up" My mother isn't easily persuaded that she might be wrong about something so sometimes it's just easier to let it go. She acts like a petulant teenager if I force her to do something she doesn't like i.e banning her from smoking at my back door and sending her right to the bottom of the garden...

Rude, rude, rude. DH runs his own business and frequently has to take calls etc, but if I am watching tv and he starts pulling faces at me, I point out it is called a mobile for a reason, so mobile off somewhere else.

Well we switch mobiles off at home as if there is an emergency or someone wants to chat, we can be contacted on the landline & we´re not teenagers who need to be texting all the time.

husband & I have our time together.

Yes diddl, I thought we were talking about out visiting etc etc. There's no need to get smug because you turn your phone off in the house!

I want to punch all of the eggheads' faces so I avoid it at all costs.

Even Daphne? You couldn't punch little old Daphne. She's always happy! :(

(I bet she's a right cow behind the scenes )

I'd like to punch Daphne first.