MATTE RELEASE--(COLLEGIATE PRESSWIRE)--Sept. 6, 2006--I was recently shopping downtown, minding my own business, when my cell phone rang.  Not wanting to draw too much attention to myself by gabbing on the phone while fighting other shoppers for bargains in the sale racks, I quickly touched my Bluetooth ear piece and said quietly, �Hello Laura, what�s up�. 

You would think that by the way the lady with the leopard print vest and banana clip in her hair reacted - that I was the weirdo.

Are you alright she said?

Hold on a sec Laura�Excuse me m�am, what do you mean? 

As if channeling DeNiro she says �Are YOU talkin to ME?�

Um, Laura, I�ll call you back. 

You see, �I�m hands-free,� I calmly told Ms. Leopard Print Banana Clip woman.  I pulled back my hair so that she could see my Motorola H700 Bluetooth headset and showed her the new phone that I just bought from Cingular in my purse. 

What, you mean you�re wearing your phone on your ear?  Um, sort of, yes.

Bluetooth headsets aren�t only convenient for my shopping expeditions, they are also safe.  Naturally, when you�re in the car, having two hands on the wheel is a plus.  In some states, it�s even against the law to talk on your cell without a hands-free accessory. 

I don�t drive too much while I�m at school, but I do walk around town and campus quite a bit.  I like to have my hands unencumbered, especially at night, in case any sketchy people are around.  During the day, I can carry my books and my latte without having to balance my cell on my shoulder. 

It you haven�t tried using a Bluetooth headset yet, check it out.  There are a bunch of deals out right now both for back-to-school and pre-holiday promotions.  When I was at Cingular the other day I noticed that they had rebates on a few of their headsets � including the one that I got - as well as products by Southwing and Plantronics. 

And, if you get strange reactions while you are seemingly chatting away to no one, take the opportunity help educate those less schooled in the glorious world of hands-free gabbing.  They�ll thank you for it!