The smartphone era means that we all have the ability to entertain ourselves wherever we are and at any time. If we want to watch any episode of great older shows like House or NYPD Blue or a reality series like 90 Day Fiance or live news from CNN, it's all just a few taps away. We can even plug in some earphones (or use wireless earbuds) and listen to some great tunes like Ventura Highway, Barely Breathing or Walter Reed. And those more ambitious can create their own content using the camera on their handset and some apps.

Even though smartphones have a cornucopia of entertainment options, they don't appear to be enough to satisfy a group of device owners who have created the latest trend, texting their "number neighbors." CNN reports that this fad involves using a person's own number up until the last digit. The last number used for the text message is one higher or one lower than the number belonging to the person who is sending the initial text. For example, if your number is 212-555-1212, you would text a message to 212-555-1211 or 212-555-1213. The idea is to meet a random stranger who just happens to be lucky enough to have a phone number similar to yours.

As with any type of random encounter, sometimes a connection is made and friendships are formed. So far though, we haven't heard about any marriages that resulted from a text to a number neighbor. And of course, there are some who don't want to be bothered by chit chat they are receiving from a person they don't know. As one person recently tweeted, "How did we go from 'don't talk to random strangers on the internet' to 'hey I'm your number neighbor.'" One person said that he discovered that he was the number neighbor of former President Barack Obama, although we have to call bs on this.

We call bs on this exchange

So don't be surprised if you receive a text from your number neighbor. Whether anything comes from it, well that is up to you and your new friend. After all, some long term relationships have started with even less meaningful encounters.

Sometimes connecting with a number neighbor works out

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