Phone Etiquette

Why is it that some people are not aware of how to use phones in public situations? They don't put their phones on silent at the cinema, they talk loudly on public transport or prefer to communicate on their phone rather than with the person in front of them?

I often see the panic on people's faces to respond to their phone during a lesson even when I am waiting for an answer to a question I have just asked. It seems that we sometimes pay more attention to this little devices than to the people around us as if this type of 'human' contact is more important.

Another things that irritates the hell out of me is when people decide to share their taste in music in public spaces. Headphones? No? If the music was good I wouldn't mind so much but it's always the same type of Euro disco crap. I have often thought about counteracting this by blaring some Neil Young or some Simon and Garfunkle on a bus or train just to see the reaction.

The interesting thing is that mobile phones are still a relatively new piece of technology but can we spend time without them? How did we contact each other in the past? I guess it was more about planning in advance. Perhaps we were more punctual as we had no way to inform someone we were going to be late.

Of course, there are some people who don't use them. Once I heard about a manager of a language school who doesn't have a phone yet somehow she manages. Try going out without one for a day. It's a very liberating experience.

Fighting it on my own

Due to my stubborness or perhaps due to a continuing lifestyle flaw, I have been feeling less than perfect for the last few days. My girlfriend insists that it is the former while I am convinced it is the latter and that my body will work with me and not against me once I give it the encouragement and the ingredients necessary to do so.
Put simply, I have a common cold (Acute viral rhinopharyngitis, or acute coryza) which I have read is commonly caused by lack of sleep, lack of vitamin D and exposure to cold weather. From the same Internet source (Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_cold) I have also read that it is the most common disease suffered by humans of which there is no cure but thankfully, it is rarely fatal.
The fact that there is no cure is interesting. Of course, Wikipedia is not a scientific journal but it seems to support my argument and suggests that medication helps but only alleviates suffering while the body must do the bulk of the work by itself. According to the same site, in the US more 'than one-third of patients who saw a doctor received an antibiotic prescription, which has implications for antibiotic resistance from overuse of such drugs'.
The recovery process usually takes between 7 - 10 days but can take longer. I am on day 7 so I am feeling optimistic.