Friday, December 28, 2007
Group Text Messaging: Not The Best Way To Say, "Happy Holidays!"
I remember waking up before the sunrise on Christmas morning as a kid, finding my mom cursing to herself as she tried to put together my Strawberry Shortcake dollhouse. Those were the days, but I have to admit that I'm happy to enjoy the thrill of sleeping in on December 25th now that I'm a grown-up. However, this year, I was not so lucky.
The first text message came in at about 7:30 a.m. My phone gave its shrill alert, jolting me out of my restful slumber. I fumbled for my cell, flipping it open confusedly to find a text message from a friend of mine: "Merry Xmas!" Annoyed, I quickly turned over and went back to sleep. This process repeated four times over the next hour and a half. By the end of the day, I had seventeen text messages displaying the exact same sentiment.
Am I wrong to be thoroughly exasperated with this technological holiday greeting? Am I supposed to be touched by the fact that someone went through their phone, clicked all their contacts, typed an 11-character message, and hit SEND? Was I supposed to write back? Maybe if every person they texted responded with "U 2," they'd see how annoying it was to have a phone clogged with fluff.
To be fair, I didn't mail out a single holiday card, or do anything to prove that I am a more considerate holiday-goer than my texter-friends. And I'm sure there are some people out there who like receiving texts from well wishers. So let's just make a few rules:
1) Only send group text messages between the hours of 10 a.m. and 10 p.m.
2) Erase all of the "FWD"s in front of the actual message.
3) Since this is replacing your holiday card, do not abbreviate words (i.e. "Merry Xmas to u and urs.")
4) If you're actually sending a text message to an individual as opposed to your entire contact list, make it clear from the content of the message (ex. "Happy holidays, Rachel! Can't wait to read the next book.")
5) If you sent me one of those group texts this year, don't be offended by my venting. You actually gave me a wonderful gift: something for me to blog about. ;-)
The first text message came in at about 7:30 a.m. My phone gave its shrill alert, jolting me out of my restful slumber. I fumbled for my cell, flipping it open confusedly to find a text message from a friend of mine: "Merry Xmas!" Annoyed, I quickly turned over and went back to sleep. This process repeated four times over the next hour and a half. By the end of the day, I had seventeen text messages displaying the exact same sentiment.
Am I wrong to be thoroughly exasperated with this technological holiday greeting? Am I supposed to be touched by the fact that someone went through their phone, clicked all their contacts, typed an 11-character message, and hit SEND? Was I supposed to write back? Maybe if every person they texted responded with "U 2," they'd see how annoying it was to have a phone clogged with fluff.
To be fair, I didn't mail out a single holiday card, or do anything to prove that I am a more considerate holiday-goer than my texter-friends. And I'm sure there are some people out there who like receiving texts from well wishers. So let's just make a few rules:
1) Only send group text messages between the hours of 10 a.m. and 10 p.m.
2) Erase all of the "FWD"s in front of the actual message.
3) Since this is replacing your holiday card, do not abbreviate words (i.e. "Merry Xmas to u and urs.")
4) If you're actually sending a text message to an individual as opposed to your entire contact list, make it clear from the content of the message (ex. "Happy holidays, Rachel! Can't wait to read the next book.")
5) If you sent me one of those group texts this year, don't be offended by my venting. You actually gave me a wonderful gift: something for me to blog about. ;-)
