Granted, it’s a distant memory, but I remember how I used to go places and even meet people, and none of us had mobile phones. In “the countvof monte cristo”, the title character makes an appointment, months out, to the hour.
Now, we’re increasingly dependent on mobile phones for the smallest trip to the shops, and we make no plans to compensate should anyone be out of contact, even for a few minutes. Which, as it happens, is how I have time to write this post.