Where to Whip Out Your Phone

And When to Keep It To Yourself

If you’re anywhere in Clubland, one must understand the vital role that your phone plays.

Now, you might be used to whipping it out at any juncture, like President Lyndon B. Johnson did with “Jumbo”, but remember that neither of them are appropriate forms of behaviour.

So, when and where is it appropriate to use your phone?

Very few clubs would object today to a quick, sideways glance at your phone to answer an e-mail or a text message, or mindless scrolling around the clubhouse, even though the latter will mark you out as the club loner, a most decidedly unenviable position. While this is an aesthetic disturbance, you’re not infringing on a fellow member’s enjoyment of the space, and clubs tend to accept it. When you’re doomscrolling, however, and audio starts playing, you know you’ve crossed the threshold, and in the next few seconds a curmudgeonly club rat or someone on the club staff will scurry along to tell you off, the latter far more gently than the former.

Most clubs are okay with brief phone calls in locker rooms and the parking lots. The emphasis here is on in, not near, not around. Phone calls are a strict no-no around the clubhouse unless you’ve reserved the conference room or have a private room; the same goes for Zoom calls and any other video-conferencing needs you might need to fulfill.

However, some Northeast clubs have stricter phone etiquette than others: the Union Club in New York does not appreciate phones at all, except in dedicated cubicles, much like the University Club. The Yale Club has dedicated phone booths, as do Union and University.

Clubs outside of major Northeast metropolitan areas are generally more relaxed, and might be more accepting of phone usage. But the tell-tale signs are still there: smirks, the stink eye, and a barely audible scowl.

There is, however, one unspoken rule: respect everyone’s privacy. Don’t gawk, don’t take photos, don’t film anyone. Everyone deserves their privacy, and your fellow members and you deserve the same oasis, walled off from the world outside. What happens there stays there visually, unless you’re the membership director taking photographs for the club’s social media (something this curmudgeon is very much against), or for the newsletter.

In short: when in doubt, keep Jumbo in your pocket.

The photo is courtesy of Pixabay.