Remba recounted in an interview that his dinner the previous evening at the Philadelphia restaurant 20 Manning Street had been distracted every five minutes by cell-phone ringing. In business meetings, cell-phone interruptions are a growing problem, Remba said. He regularly gets interrupted by someone taking a cell-phone call. At his firm, he said, people now start meetings by making sure everyone's phone is off. You call someone every time you have a thought.
Interruptions are also a growing problem in formerly relaxing environments such as golf courses.
Gary Gordon, a podiatrist who lives in Horsham, recalled one game of golf he played when a member of his set was on the phone for 14 out of 18 holes. I play golf to get away from business. Unfortunately, he said, when it comes to telephones, most people unknowingly talk louder, so in public places, they are talking louder about private matters. Post does not advocate telling people they are bothering you with their cell-phone chatter, because, he said, you never know how a person might react. Instead, he said, move away or ask someone in authority, such as a restaurant manager, to approach the noisy offender.