JENN McKINLAY: I was soundly scolded the other evening and I’m not sure how I feel about it. Why was I lectured? I’m so glad you asked.
Hub and I do not keep our cell phones in our bedrooms and we do not have a landline. Subsequently, if someone calls late at night, we have to stumble to the kitchen and check to see who it is and why would they be calling after 9 PM?! Seriously, the audacity! As I was complaining about this to a Hooligan, it suddenly turned into a lecture on how I’m old and should keep my phone nearby. (Picture Jenn glowering here). I was assured that this stance was for safety reasons, but it just felt rude to me.
So, how about it, Reds? Do you keep your cell phone on your nightstand or do you keep it elsewhere to ensure a good night’s sleep?
HALLIE EPHRON: My kids say the same thing, but I’ve got more than a few years on you, Jenn. So I’m just glad they’re looking out for me.
No land line here, either, and overnight I keep my cell on my night stand with the sound muted. You can designate “emergency callers” and (I think) if they call the phone’s supposed to ring. Or that’s how I think it works. Have not tested it. Yet. And I think it’s sweet and adorable that your son worries about being able to reach you if he’s worried about what you’ve gotten up to.
HANK PHILLIPI RYAN: Totally keep my phone on the nightstand. Cannot imagine not doing that.
We still do have a landline, since if you call 911 from a cellphone, it does NOT know where you are, but the landline does. (That’s why dispatchers now say “911–Where’s your emergency” instead of “what’s your emergency.”)
Oh, in every way I think it’s important to have the phone nearby.
LUCY BURDETTE: Yes phone on the nightstand, set up as Hallie described. I use it for my bedtime stories–like THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS, or lately, listening to a Jenny Colgan book that I’ve already read. That way I don’t have to pay attention too much or worry about what I’ll miss.
PS we don’t have a landline either
PPS sometimes I do get in trouble by doomscrolling because it’s so convenient, but I lecture myself sternly about that…
RHYS BOWEN: my phone lies charging beside the bed every night and the first thing I do when I wake in the morning is pick it up! I confess to addiction. We still have a land line that John insists on keeping. And if I forget to take off my Apple Watch before bed it shakes me to remind me to get up and move at 3 am
Lucy, I also listen to Calm bedtime stories when I can’t sleep.
DEBORAH CROMBIE: Absolutely plugged in on the nightstand! I have to put ointment in my eyes at night so listen to audiobooks to go to sleep. I do not give in to the temptation to doomscroll. I silence the ringer. We do still have a “landline” number, but it’s actually VOIP (internet phone) so I don’t know if it identifies us to 911. I guess I should ask my techie/ex-dispatcher husband.
And, like Rhys, I confess to checking the phone first thing in the morning instead of doing something positive like meditating. In my defense, I usually check the weather and read the blog!
JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I’m midway between the yes phone and no phone positions. I do keep my phone on my nightstand (I don’t listen to anything except ambient noise on my Alexa, but I do like to unwind with a few rounds of Ultimate Jewels.) However, I always turn it off, unless I’ve got reason to think one of my kids might need to get in touch with me - for instance, when Virginia is traveling back and forth from Europe. When it’s on, it’s on Do Not Disturb with the select callers feature; as you might imagine, the select callers are my three children.
I used to have it on more frequently, but to be perfectly blunt, all the older relatives I might need to know about in an emergency have already died! My sister and brother might want to tell me about an issue in their families, but they wouldn’t need me in the middle of the night - and honestly, neither do my adult offspring. And I REALLY value my sleep!
We dropped the landline back in, I don’t know, 2010? Out here in the heavily forested countryside, the phone lines would go out as frequently as the electricity. My cell is more reliable, especially since I have a constantly-charged battery pack.
JENN: Maybe it's because I'm a child of the eighties, where we were punted outside and told not to return until we heard my dad whistle but I frequently leave the house without my phone, too. Shocking, I know!!! I just don't feel like I need to be in touch with everyone all the time. Is it just me?
Your turn, Readers! Cell phone on the nightstand, yeah or nay?
