Put your damned movie away...

I waitress part time, mostly on the weekends, and I am dismayed by the number of people, of all ages, who cannot put their electronic devices away for even an hour, to have a meal at a restaurant. Now, I'm not talking about picking up your phone if it rings or vibrates and hitting ignore, or excusing yourself to answer it outside, I am talking about full out overuse...I am talking parents who walk in with three kids and three i-pads/i-phones and or portable dvd players are whipped out so the kids "behave" while out in public.
Yes, Darrell's is not a fancy-schmancy place...if you order a Heineken, expect our veggie burger to be a soy patty and not a hamburger with all the veggies, or ask what our top shelf gin is, be prepared for me to laugh in your face...this is Hamlin, Iowa, people...and we don't play that shit.
MY POINT IS, we are a casual place...we don't care if your kids act up a little...we don't care if they are a little loud (now, no one wants to hear abject screaming and tantrums, normal noise is expected) we don't care if they act like kids...because THEY ARE! If little junior cannot sit through a 45 minute meal at a place like Darrell's without constant stimulation, perhaps you should reevaluate your parenting techniques.
The same goes for teenagers...we often get tables full of basketball teams, volleyball teams, etc and when you go to take their order or deliver their food, they are each so wrapped up in their texting conversations that they can't even remember what they ordered. No lie, I even had a table full that I had separated by last name (their parents were sitting at another table) I had to say the last names of these kids at least three times before I could get a response..put your damned phone down for 10 minutes, PLEASE?
Adults, there are a group of us that aren't any better...As I pointed out before, Darrell's is not a fancy place...fancy or not, that still doesn't mean I want to hear your 10 minute phone conversation from six tables away while I am trying to eat my taco salad...OR while I am trying to serve someone a tenderloin.
It's common courtesy, but sadly, I think common courtesy is the brother of common sense and both are on the endangered species list.