My Take On Modern Communication Devices

E-mails are a fantastic means of expediting information. You have a specific question, needing details, relaying specific plans or communicating an idea? E-mail is perfect. I send MANY per day, relating to both business and personal issues, but only when dealing in specifics. What I hate are letters that state, "What's Up?" or "How are you doing?" Why do I hate these? Because , to truthfully and honestly answer those questions takes a letter of novella length. In the past I have done so, and answered these inane, banal questions, and poured my heart and soul into the letter. Takes hours. What have I gotten back almost 100% of the time? Bupkiss. Not a fucking word. So when I get these mails that ask me these banal questions, I choose not to answer, or, I do the very best thing which is to call that person so we can hear each other's voices, hear the emotion in what we have to relay to one another, and that is a PERSONAL contact that is eminently more satisfying and productive. Letters contain very little in the way of emotion, unless you spend HOURS writing them (I AM a writer, a blessing/curse). Talking directly to a person puts you in direct emotional contact. In my mind, an easy choice. Which is why when people send me these e-mails, wanting me to write something witty or clever to entertain them, inform them of my state of mind, WHAT'S UP with my life, I choose to call instead, preferring real emotion and contact, maximizing your time. What does confuse me, however, is someone who has a phone but seemingly never uses it. Plus I'm all the time writing voluminous e-mails or writing stories which has me writing many many hours a day ( my time is valuable to me, and I only have so much left in this life), so I prefer a phone in some cases, is why I pay my bill every month so I can have a device whereupon I can actually SPEAK to someone. I love e-mails, they have their place in this world (most don't have a clue what to do with them and have e-mail addresses but never use the fucking things, so why do they have them? I ask myself, over and over and over and over and over and over again...) and when I receive a letter that demands a specific reply, I dutifully write a letter back, almost immediately, 100% of the time, unlike most EVERYONE else. But when there is a need to have an emotional and quantitive substantial contact, there isn't any device that can replace a phone, the exception being in the same longitude and latitude so you can touch someone, look into their eyes. yadayadayadayada. Get my drift? You call me on the phone? I answer it, unless I'm in a meeting or busy in a recording studio, where I will usually have my phone off which you can tell because it will immediately go to voice mail. But when I I turn it back on, I check my voice mail and if someone has called, I return that call IMMEDIATELY. Is why I have a cell phone, so people can reach me when they want to talk. I don't check Caller ID to see who's calling so I can decide whether to talk to them or not. I hear the phone ringing, I answer it. That is why we have all these communication devices so that we can stay in constant communication, THEIR PURPOSE! But, I see it as yet another toy in people's lives so they can continue avoiding more and more anything to qualifies as being a HUMAN BEING. What should they do? Get rid of both phone and e-mail so we who do use them don't waste our fucking time and energy. I hope this letter, which took me about 30 minutes to write, explains where I stand on COMMUNICATION.
Hugs and kisses,
-dony