Are people just rude?

So as I was sitting in the hell I call the orthodontist's office waiting for Thomas to be done with his appointment, some woman's cell phone rang. It was rather a loud obnoxious ring - quite like my own Hawaii Five-O theme song ring. Except, when I go into an office (or somewhere similar), I turn mine to vibrate or off altogether. Sometimes, gasp, I even leave the darn thing in the car.

So this woman answers her phone. And then proceeds to have a conversation with the person on the other end - in a room FULL of people. Quiet people. Who couldn't help, but overhear said phone call. She tells the person on the other end that she is at the orthodontist's office. Still the call doesn't end. She is annoyed with said person on other end. The conversation keeps going. By the end, I concluded that this was either her mother or her ex husband. The tone of the conversation was not a happy one. My thought was, if this is a call you absolutely had to take, why didn't you step outside the office? I saw another woman do the same exact thing just minutes after I got there. Isn't that the polite thing to do?

I think if this were the first time it happened I might be less annoyed, but the last time I sat in the same orthodontist's office waiting for Jeremy, some woman had a loud conversation on her cell phone in the middle of busy office and there was no point to it. NONE. She was just shooting the shit with a friend or neighbor. I cringed the whole time thinking to myself, "do you really think I (and every other single person making up your captive audience) want to know all about your life in such intimacy?" I mean, c'mon?! Is common courtesy rocket science now?

Most -probably all- of the people who will read this know that I have a cell phone and I text on it regularly. It is the way that I keep in touch with my children, husband and other family members. I also talk on it once in awhile when hubby decides he can't text fast enough to tell me what he needs. I try very hard to be courteous especially when within the confines of a small, totally filled waiting room though. Even yesterday as my phone vibrated constantly from the texts Jerm & my SIL were sending me, I turned off the vibrate mode and kept it on silent. In such a small, quiet room - vibrate was even too loud.

I guess I just don't get why some people are so discourteous. I mean this certainly isn't ruining my life and I wasn't seriously injured because of it, but I have to wonder why thinking of others first isn't a common theme when it comes to cell phone use. I also should apologize to anyone I have ever offended by using my own phone. After these two encounters, I've been far more careful and will continue to be...