Hiding the Blackberry

I've hidden Young Keith's Blackberry.

It was a hard decision, but it had to be made. Every time the rotten thing flashes, he rushes to it to see what the problem is. Does he have a decision to make? Has something gone wrong? Will he need to rush into work to save the day? Will he - once again - save the world through the power of spreadsheets?

The point is though, most of the time it's just emails from other people he works with him, catching up with their work at the weekends. The work which, if they didn't do at weekends, they would have to do during the working week. Not meaningful stuff, for the most part. "Thanks for your email - I'm working on it." Or "Sorry I didn't respond to you last week. I was having a week off with stress."

But once he's read an email, he can't resist responding - just to prove he's read it on a Saturday or Sunday or three o'clock in the morning, or whatever. And of course that causes someone else's Blackberry, somewhere else in the Home Counties, to flash its little red light. And they find out Young Keith's responded. So naturally they send him an answer.....

So, impressed with Sam's article (which mostly relates to church life, but I've widened it to Keith's life) I've hidden his Blackberry. It's wrapped in cling film, in a four-feet deep plant pot, underneath the Big Yukka in the conservatory. We'll lift up the Big Yukka again on Monday morning and let him have it back before he goes to work.

Meantime, it's had a bad effect on Young Keith. He's sweaty, prowling round the Big House, looking in corners, trying to find out where the Blackberry's gone. I've told him to have a walk, have a read, have a beer. And he tells me yes he'll do that - just as soon as he's found his phone.

I can see I'm going to have to do this every weekend. It could take a while to cure him.