It being the day before California Handsfree Day, I was moved to run out of the office down to get a new ear bud to replace my busted three-year-old model. I drove to my friendly neighborhood T-Mobile store, only because that was the only place in the vicinity I could be sure would sell such things.

I don’t really like any cell phone stores. Walking in the front door runs the gamut from salespeople with their backs turned trying to get other people to sign away two years of their lives to a shark tank. They must work on commission, because even when I was looking at measly ear buds priced at $14.99, I was accosted by an extremely helpful sales associate.

“What kind of phone do you have?” she asked.

“Aren’t they pretty universal?” I asked, trying to sound Read the rest of this entry »

I’m often petitioned by various public relations people anxious to get their firms a little ink, but alas, none of them have revived the old custom of clipping a $50 bill to the press release.

So most of these entreaties go unanswered. Like weeding spam from your e-mail, I can eliminate most of these without even opening them, even though I’m a curious person.

The more clever ones try to entice the reporter with some topical reference, as in, “our company’s products will stop global warming in its tracks,” or, “as Hillary Clinton recently said…” This week I received a true winner from Jennifer Rounds, director of corporate communications for Peter R. Thom & Associates.

The topic was driver distractions, and her Orinda-based company investigates accidents for insurance companies, public defenders and parties to vehicle manufacturer liability lawsuits:

That July 1, 2008, deadline outlawing the use of handheld devices while driving is approaching.  You’ve probably even written about the pluses and minuses of various hands-free models, but is the new legislation all that there is to the story of driver distraction?  No.  Not by a Read the rest of this entry »