Things I Don't Understand: People talking on their cell phones when in public toilets

Yes, you know who you are, and even if you're not one of “those” people, you know what I'm talking about.

I've just taken a short visit to a restroom here at SEATAC airport and was just starting to wash my hands when I heard someone's cell phone start ringing in one of the cubicles.

“No”, I thought to myself. “Just let it ring. There's no need to answer it. Just wait a few minutes ...”, I inwardly pleaded.

“Hello, yes ... hi ... good, good ... no, now is fine ...”

And so began a very boring work related conversation accompanied by all the usual orchestra of sounds you would quite reasonably expect to hear in a public toilet.

I started to shake my head. I mean, really, does the person talking in the cubicle not know that there is a good chance the person on the other end is going to guess that they may not have there full, shall we say, undivided attention. I heard someone once do this in the UK and he was suitably ridiculed by his workmates; here, in the US, it happens all the time.

So, in short: I don't understand people who think that it is ever ok to take a phone call while in a toilet cubicle.