To think if you are on the phone you don't talk to anyone or anything else?

[storminabuttercup]

My DM drives me crazy with this, I've just called her now, 'yes I will call in about ten minutes, no buster there are no treats in my pocket, and I will bring the bowl I borrowed, sit down, do you want some eggs bringing, down now SIT!'

Im going to start singing show tunes in the middle of sentences....

People who do this are so boring. If you haven't time to talk, then please say so...

I trained my children from an early age not to talk to Mummy when she's on the phone unless the house is on fire.

In my house, it is my DH that persistantly causes problems while I am on the phone. Despite the fact that, on the surface, he seems like a perfectly rational adult, he just cannot grasp that any seeming lulls in my conversation means that the other person is talking . He has to fill the silence with messages to pass on or observations about what we are talking about.

So Friend is telling me about the horrible day she had at work/her partner's annoying habit/her inlaw ishoos and DH is at my side blathering on about 'Ask her if they are coming for lunch on Sunday? Is her DH still going to look at that car? Did they watch such and such last night?' and on and on

He gets all hurt when I mouth shut up at him so I have now resorted to holding up a piece of paper with Shut the fuck up written on it.

He's usually lovely, he just likes to talk. If he's been extra good at not talking, I give him the phone at the end of the conversation so he can waffle on happily as if he was five

I am amazed at how many people don't realise how sensitive phones are, I could hear my friend smoking over the phone (although she had given up apparently) I said "I can hear you smoking!" and she got all flustered because she had no idea that I could hear her. I have to bite my tongue when We chat on the phone because if her kids are there we never have an uninterrupted call, although they have ADHD and ASD so have no idea of boundaries. She shut herself in her bedroom to try and have a chat privately, and they still barged in to tell her things!

Good luck if you ever ring me then. My DD is in the process of getting a diagnosis for ADHD. I have not had an uninturrupted call since she was a few months old. It is ok when she is at school though.

I can set her up with an activity that she likes, that she has chosen herself, but her compunction to have my 100% attention 100% of the time, overrides the desire to do anything should I dare to desert her and talk to someone else on the phone.

I agree with people who say it depends who rings who- DM constantly rings me at work and then gets indignant if she hears me typing in the back ground or if i say I have to go.

But it really bugs me when people are on their mobiles and then carry on their shopping etc- effectively treating the shop assistants with no respect and taking twice as long to do anything

I have really enjoyed reading this thread and feel better for knowing I am not the only person who has a problem with phones!

What Molehill said about being busy in the day and knackered in the evening is true for me too... but I have struggled to explain it so neatly to my mother, who wants to call for a chat / to ask how we are.

My mum NEVER listens on the 'phone but she outdid herself the other day. I rang to say I was having a hysterectomy and was on the 18 wk waiting list. Her answer? 'ooh, did you hear my cuckoo clock go off?' and rambled on without mentioning my surgery. Never mind that I'm scared shitless about it then.

DH's comment was 'the cuckoo's not in the clock ....'

I have small children. I have no choice but to do this sometimes when people ring me.

I don't think I know anyone that does this!

But yy DP is another one who CANNOT ignore a ringing phone. He has even answered the phone to his MOTHER when we were mid-shag [hshock] [hangry]

midseason, I think a lot of posters here understand about small children. The main problem seems to be with adults who do it.

oh. I hate, hate, hate this! my 'd'mum would phone me, (so presumably it was a time that suited her, no?) and as often as not, the conversation would go "Hi Tia, oh, hang on, i need a cigarette (long pause), right, I'm back, oh, no lighter, hang on....(pause), so, how are you, oh hold on, (longer pause) sorry thought I saw someone coming to the front door..... oh... maybe it was.... (pause) no, noone there. Anyway.... (noise in background) - oh, that's the oven, tea's ready, got to go, byeeeeee!"