Addiction to texting: Annoying teenage habit, or just a teenage thing?

Many of my daughters' (13 y/o) friends seem to be addicted to their cell phones and texting. When over at our house, talking to us parents, or doing something with their friends, they have one eye continually on the "text machine". Not once in a while, but pretty much all the time. Discreetly texting while doing whatever else they are doing.

I think it's just kind of rude. I've never said anything to my daughter's friends, b/c I don't think it's my place (except once at the dinner table). My daughter has text on her phone, but isn't attached to it like these girls.

Do you adults find this habit mildly rude/annoying? Or is this just further evidence I am growing old?

 

Crap, this was supposed to go in anything goes. Sorry.

 

Personally, I find it pretty rude. I'm only 26, but to me it's just furthering the disconnect of the younger generation. I've sent exactly one (1) text message my entire life.

 

If it's discreet, how is it rude?

Would you consider it rude if they were getting called on their cell, then accepting those calls?

I mean, if I were talking to them directly and they were pounding away at their texting, I'd be pissed.

Otherwise, I think it's par for the course nowadays.

 

Which I see all too often.

 

I send roughly 10 texts a day. Some days it's 30. Some days it's 1.

Not a young person's thing.

 

My friends and I use text all the time and we're in our 30s. It's an easy way to communicate. Gets the point across without a lot of detail -- kind of like writing for a tab.
It's usually just about where we're meeting and how to get there. I don't see much point in jabbering on in a telephone conversation, when we're going to be seeing each other face to face in less than a half hour.

 

I text (I'm 39), mainly because one of my friends is a texter and it's the easiest way to communicate with her. I don't ever text in the middle of a conversation, during meals, while driving or anything like that. I don't mind texting itself, but I wouldn't do it at any time that would be annoying/rude to others.

With teenagers, I think they need to be reminded about manners.

 

Discreet should have been in "quotes". More like, they think they are being discreet. It's pretty much out in the open.

 

Should have picked up on that.

If they are doing it at the dinner table or something, that is disrespectful. Otherwise? I'm not so sure.

 

Have a 15-year-old cousin who comes to visit my family from time to time. Rather than enjoy the rare time of being with us, she's constantly texting to her boyfriend - in the middle of meals, trying to play a board game, etc. The latest time, she had the chime on so she could hear when a text message arrived, which just upped the annoyance factor. Teens definitely have a different frequency of texting. The 30 texts that IJAG sends in a day were sent in about a half hour of this girl's evening.

 

Oh, I've definitely done more than 30, especially if I have four different convos going on at once.

But those are rarities.