I have just about had it with cell phones. Don’t get me wrong. They are very valuable for a myriad of reasons, but they are starting to really annoy me. Strike that. It is not the cell phones, it is the stupid people that let them rule their lives.



Recently, my son let his cell phone coverage lapse. It really bothered me because a mom wants to know that she can contact her child at any moment. Granted, he is an adult, but I still need to check up on him. I thought maybe he was running from the law or something, but he claims he just wants the peace for a while.



For some strange reason, restaurants and bars bring the worst out in cell phone users, and I don’t just point my finger at the customers. My new cook (I call him a “cook” because I am so irritated by him I won’t give him the title of “chef”) is so addicted to his stupid iPhone at work I had to ban him from using it. He thinks I am an idiot and sneaks in the back to use it when I am not looking. The clock is ticking with this one.



Why do employees think they have the right to call, text, watch movies and indulge in other mindless options these new fangled phones have while on company time? I’m sure this not only affects me. It has to affect every workplace out there. It makes me so angry when I see my cook with his phone, I seriously want to smack it out of his hand, but I won’t.



A woman in Portsmouth, N.H., did just that. She was having breakfast at a restaurant where a man wouldn’t stop yammering on his phone, so she slapped it out of his hand. Unfortunately, the guy turned around and slapped her with a lawsuit, which he eventually won. We can all live vicariously through her.



Picking up on last week’s column, the husband and I went to breakfast last Sunday, and in the booth across from us sat a nice looking couple. They were not saying a word to each other because they were both busy on their cell phones texting others. At one point his OTHER cell phone rang some annoying ring, which he let ring several times before answering. What is wrong with people?



Some say that is why texting is so great. It doesn’t disturb other people around you. Well I am here to tell you that it does. It tells the person you are with that the conversation you are having with your phone is more important that the conversation in front of you. I don’t even know how to text. My phone is so old I have to keep it together with a rubber band.



A few nights back, I sat at a local bar with friends surrounding me, about six of them total, and each one had their cell phone sitting on the bar. When did WE become so needy or important? Are we that important? I know a chef that wears a Bluetooth in his ear all the time. How many culinary emergencies by phone does this guy have to attend to?



There is rumor of a restaurant in Seattle that will charge you $5 if you use a cell phone. They have yet to actually charge someone, but I think they are on the right path. I’m not saying you can’t take your cell phone into a restaurant, but please have some manners. Put it on vibrate and take it outside when you need to talk.



Restaurants are here for relaxation and pleasure. Leave the rest of the world outside and your connection to it. My son is on the right track.



Eat out Tacoma. We need your love.



Sandee Glib has worked in the restaurant and hospitality industry for more than 12 years as a server, bartender, cook and owner. Her opinions are expressly her own and she is always right.