Rant of a Reader

[Apache]

In college I was dating a girl who sounded like she was five when she talked on the phone. More than once she would answer the phone and the caller would ask her if anyone else was there. She would hand the phone to her roommate and the call would turn out to be an obscene one.
Apache

[cfrizz]

Originally Posted by Ripplinger

I think I was responsible for creating the world's most frustrated obscene phone caller. I was actually looking forward to my next obscene caller so I could do it again intentionally, but no such luck. Not ever, not even at home.

Of course at home, I'd give a person maybe 3 seconds to speak up before I'd hang up. And that's if I'd answer the phone at all.

LOL! When I was in boarding school, my best friend answered the phone and it turned out to be an obscene caller. My friend turned the table on him and said, "Do you know Jesus loves you, and he really wants to help you."

He hung up on her!!!!

[Froide]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

People only think their non-verbal hints are overt, loud and clear messages to everyone. That's why hints are the least effective form of delivering a message.

Albert Mehrabian’s 7-38-55 Rule of Personal Communication and its successors (which refine the proportions but don't reorder them) disconfirm your assertion.

Mehrabian’s Elements of Personal Communication:
7% Verbal
38% Voice, Tone
55% Body Language

Case in point:

Originally Posted by FizzyWater

I had one of those scary moments once tied to a "what are you reading?" query.

Before I totally converted to only digital books, I used to troll the used books stores on Friday nights. If I was dedicated to searching in my favorites sections only and not just randomly browsing, I could hit all 3 in town after work and have a wonderful stack of books to start on for the weekend.

Once, it turned out there was some kind of festival going on near the east-side store, and when I left the bookstore I realized I wasn't getting anywhere for awhile - traffic was bumper-to-bumper and pretty much stopped. So I stopped into the closest fast food restaurant for a meal in the hopes that afterwards the traffic would be better. (It was).

I got my meal, stacked my new purchases on the table, and started entering my them into my PDA tracker so I could ensure I didn't buy them again at the next store, but got distracted by one of the books and started reading. Hey, I'm a reader - we've all been there, right?

Two guys came in...Friday evening, two guys out looking for conquests, and I could tell they'd already tossed back a few. I suspect most women here would know what I mean when I say that one of them had a look about him that, well, said he wasn't a nice guy. Could have been cast for the Lifetime movie of the week about the guy who browbeat his wife and treated her like dirt. Wanted to prove he was top-dog by embarrassing and frightening someone else.

He wandered over my way while his friend took their trays to their table..."whatcha reading?"

I had a romance novel in my hand. It had one of those lurid covers that made it more than plain what it was. And I was a female, sitting alone. I'm not a pretty woman - men don't take one look at try to hit on me. This guy just wanted to stroke his ego by being a nickname-for-Richard.

I just looked up and gave a tight smile (and yes, I'm sure that smile looked snarky) - "a book". Then went back to reading it.

He reached over and tilted the book down to get my attention. "What's the book's name?"

The look in his eyes...I'll tell you, it scared me. I was afraid to leave the restaurant before they did. He continued to push until I gave him a few answers that made him feel like he "won" and he finally backed off and went away. And I sat there shaking like the veriest coward, afraid to leave and afraid to make a scene.

I don't understand people sometimes. This wasn't someone who wanted to share reading interests or was looking for someone to talk to and hoping I was only reading because I was bored.

Seems to me you understood that bully-boor perfectly. I'm glad you trusted your instincts and survived that awful but not uncommon experience, unscathed.

[GrannyGrump]

Originally Posted by Ripplinger

...
I think I was responsible for creating the world's most frustrated obscene phone caller. I was actually looking forward to my next obscene caller so I could do it again intentionally, but no such luck. Not ever, not even at home.
....

Originally Posted by cfrizz

LOL! When I was in boarding school, my best friend answered the phone and it turned out to be an obscene caller. My friend turned the table on him and said, "Do you know Jesus loves you, and he really wants to help you."

He hung up on her!!!!

I did something similar once --- I had repeated calls from a "heavy breather." After several weeks, I had an adrenaline rush, and just started babbling: "I am SO glad you called! I have been waiting and waiting to hear from you!" etc. etc., ad nauseum. The guy probably thought we were trying to trace the call, hung up, and was never heard from again.

[underscore]

Originally Posted by BookHoarder

I experimented with this by doing the smartphone goofing. Results: not a word. Some will say "read your books on your phone, then". But I can't. I've got a Pocketbook 740 Inkpad 3, best reader I've ever owned, and to read on it is almost like reading on a hardcover book. Just amazing.

Yesterday i had an opposite experience.
As i have a 9.7 ebook reader i don't always bring it with me, especially if it's a rainy day and my backpack is packed with umbrella, office laptop...
But i keep the same book i'm reading on the smartphone too.
Some people felt obliged to start a conversation with me because i was long staring at my phone so clearly doing nothing ;-)

[4691mls]

Originally Posted by underscore

Yesterday i had an opposite experience.
As i have a 9.7 ebook reader i don't always bring it with me, especially if it's a rainy day and my backpack is packed with umbrella, office laptop...
But i keep the same book i'm reading on the smartphone too.
Some people felt obliged to start a conversation with me because i was long staring at my phone so clearly doing nothing ;-)

I guess if you read on your phone you need to tap it occasionally (well, more often than just for page turns) so people think you're busy

[sakura-panda]

Just sharing. (Saw it on another forum and was reminded of this thread.)

[Terisa de morgan]

I would like that cover

[4691mls]

Somebody needs to start selling ereader covers or skins with that cartoon!

[SleepyBob]

I saw that this morning and thought of this thread.

[cfrizz]

ROTFLOL! Love it!!!

[bagpiper1]

Originally Posted by BookHoarder

Maybe it's just me, but this has been bothering me for some time. It goes like this. You're reading a book, feeling good, lost in the story, and at your absolute happiest someone decides to engage you in conversation. Now this wouldn't be too bad, but it only happens when you're reading. If you're, say, staring at a wall or the tv you're good. No one even knows you're alive. But pick up a book, and suddenly they need to know what's going on with you. Or even worse they ask what you're reading.

I fear the "what you readin?" question. I don't mind it if it comes from someone who actually reads for pleasure. But when it comes from a person whom I know hasn't read a book since they were forced to do so in high school I cringe on my insides. I feel that they don't really want to know, but rather they just do it to relieve some internal boredom within themselves.

But here is the worst moment I've had when reading. I use an ereader, having given up dead tree books for ten years now, and I will be in a room full of coworkers with a lull in work. Each one of them will be goofing on their phones with candy crush, snap chats, and Facebook. Perfect opportunity, I think. I pull out my reader, and start in on my book. Within two paragraphs I'll take a teasing reprimand from a supervisor for wasting time on my book. Said sup will see the others knocking out candy crush levels and whatnot, even joke on how hard some level was, but still speak with me about the book.

I experimented with this by doing the smartphone goofing. Results: not a word. Some will say "read your books on your phone, then". But I can't. I've got a Pocketbook 740 Inkpad 3, best reader I've ever owned, and to read on it is almost like reading on a hardcover book. Just amazing.

Anyway, I'm just shouting out into the void, because to do so at work would probably be frowned upon. If I'm not the only one who has experienced these sorts of reading related problems then I'll leave this post with this quote:

"Misery loves company!"

I am guessing it is two or three things :

1.) American culture is anti-intellectual. See the book "The Age of American Unreason" by Susan Jacoby

2.) Most humans in the geopolitical north are genetically primitive stone age humans. A primitive paper book might signal, socially, to leave you alone more to them.Try going back to the Neolithic past, with a time machine, with an eReader and see what happens !

3.) American culture is hyper extroverted and reading is an introverted activity. Idiot Americans think being an extroverted barely literate plebeian simian will make you more successful than a bookworm introvert. Meanwhile idiotic extroverts created the great stock market crash of 2008 but the elite bookworm Warren Buffet prospered during this time--in great contrast to the idiot extroverts.

The headphone suggestion sounds good. Some music like classical baroque induces alpha brainwaves conducive to reading.

[Deskisamess]

Never mind.

[bagpiper1]

Originally Posted by bagpiper1

I am guessing it is two or three things :

1.) American culture is anti-intellectual. See the book "The Age of American Unreason" by Susan Jacoby

2.) Most humans in the geopolitical north are genetically primitive stone age humans. A primitive paper book might signal, socially, to leave you alone more to them.Try going back to the Neolithic past, with a time machine, with an eReader and see what happens !

3.) American culture is hyper extroverted and reading is an introverted activity. Idiot Americans think being an extroverted barely literate plebeian simian will make you more successful than a bookworm introvert. Meanwhile idiotic extroverts created the great stock market crash of 2008 but the elite bookworm Warren Buffet prospered during this time--in great contrast to the idiot extroverts.

The headphone suggestion sounds good. Some music like classical baroque induces alpha brainwaves conducive to reading.

Alpha brainwave music uber alles -- headphones ! :

[Alpha o]

I just paraphrase Carl's Jr. (gobble and git food chain)

Don't bother me, I'm reading. I was brought up to mind my own business, and I usually do.
IF you are reading, unless there's an impending happening, like a snake crawling under your chair, I won't say anything. If you want me to know, you will mention it. Whether or not I'm even interested and answer is another category.

No one would believe what I'm reading anyway. Favorite fiction is Sci-fi. But I also collect books on the Mars Rovers.

Definitely non-fiction. I don't care what American Culture thinks. Nor does American culture care what I think about it and I don't expect it to. I use an ereader, and I can switch to a scientific type pdf about Cassini (Saturn) and/or Galileo (Jupiter) on the fly. Both on the ereader. So are some books about Curiosity, the Mars rover. That usually stops any questions fast.

If that's rude, so be it. I'm totally against the belief that everyone should tell all on Facebook just to keep the general populace happy.

BTW - if I do have my phone in hand, I'm either searching for something online, or watching baseball. Neither one of any interest to anyone else. I don't have any social apps on the phone. Long deleted or disabled. About the only thing I read on the phone are some of the geological pdfs put out by the National Parks Service for background info on the park. I collect those and the phone is more readily to hand than a 10 inch tablet which has been packed where it is hard to reach while riding in the car.