ulyssesonline.com

The arrival of SMS text messaging on cell phones a few years ago was not an instant hit to Americans mainly because sending a text message meant wasting time. Time is important to all of us Americans. To Filipinos, text messaging really is a phenomena. Filipinos seem to be obsessed with their phones.

Everyone uses text messaging in the Philippines. My first experience with text messaging was at the domestic airport in Manila. I just arrived coming from the US. I saw a girl constantly looking at her phone. I said to myself, this is an interesting behavior. To an outsider, this was unusual.

Who does that? Who looks at their phone all the time? Maybe she’s playing a game. I’ve done that. Maybe she’s using it as a mirror. I haven’t done that yet. Then she started moving her fingers really fast across the keypads. I was amazed at the speed. Her fingers blurred. Look at those little fingers go to work. I never seen such dexterity in my life.

I didn’t know I was watching an expert text messager live in person. Thirty seconds later, her phone sounded off. She picked it up and pressed a couple of keys, and smiled. Ah, it looks like she just received a text message. Maybe a reply. I said to myself, that fast. Amazing. Then her fingers went beserk once again. Thirsty seconds later, it stop. Then her phone sounded off again.

Now, this activity went on for about 30 minutes. Why doesn’t she just pick up the phone and call? It would be much easier and faster. Text messaging is the bread and butter of how people communicate in the Philippines. Why? Mainly because of economics. A call from a cell phone costs anywhere between 5-7 pesos, while a text message only costs 1 peso.

This has forced people to use text messaging more often. Over the years, its become a phenomena in the Philippines. Everybody sends texts in the Philippines. All types of messages from friendly hellos to birthday greetings, and even marriage proposals. I couldn’t believe that one.

I was a newbie in text messaging, well, before my trip to the Philippines. My first text message took me at least five minutes to craft a two sentence message. I couldn’t find the right keystroke combination for the letter I wanted. It was infuriating. Ten minutes later, I sent the message.

I could have called and said the same thing in less than 30 seconds on the phone. I think the hardest part of all, as a newbie was deciphering the actual message. At first, I thought all messages were encrypted. I couldn’t understand it. I needed an interpreter. What’s WRU? I was told it means, “Where are you? I should have made the connection.

I think the most silliest thing of all is that a Filipino will never win the spelling bee contest. People are so used to shortening words on their text messages that I predict in ten years people will have problems spelling actual words in English, Tagalog, and their local dialects. For example, a typical reply would be, “m hre n sm ct. on d way na.” This means, I’m here in SM City, on my way home already.

After 5 months in the Philippines, I learned how to send text messages. I’m not an expert like that girl on the airport by any means. I was proud of my new found talent. I was eager to use it back in the US. After 3 weeks in the US, I sent maybe a total of 3 messages out. Well, so much for text messaging. Only in the Philippines.