Hello? Operator?

When a phone rings something inside my head tells me to pick it up. I can’t quite explain it, but when a phone rings (regardless of what caller ID says) I want to grab at the receiver and say hello. When people call me – I want to talk to them. I actually get really excited when my phone rings and it’s a number I have never seen before. I often think, “Who could be calling me?”

It’s always the same story; I am sitting at home doing something important and right at the most critical point the phone rings. My house has been signed up for the do not call list, so of course, I pick up the phone and so it begins…

“Hello?”
“Is this Mr. Raposo?”
“Yes it is.”
“Hi Mr. Raposo this is blah blah blah from blah blah and I am calling today to offer you the chance of a lifetime. You see if you give us your money we’ll take said money and spend it on ridiculous things – like my salary.”

**Phone Beeps**

“Can you hold please? Hello?”
“Hi, is this Mr. Raposo?”
“Yes it is.”
“Hi Mr. Raposo this is glub glub glub calling from glub glub. I am calling today to offer you the chance of a lifetime. You see if you give us your money we’ll take said money and spend it on ridiculous things – like my salary.”
“I don’t mean to be rude” I say, “but I have blah blah from blah blah blah on the other line – can you hold?”

Needless to say I think people have tried putting blah blah and glub glub on hold before because when I went back and forth between the two lines both of them had hung up (but, what about my opportunity of a lifetime!?)

I find myself longing for the same excitement that came with answering the phone that I experienced when I was a young boy. Like the time I tried calling 555-5555 to get in touch with all those people I saw in the movies. Or as excited as one of my students who lights up when she sees the area code (604) because she knows it is from her hometown of Vancouver. Even that time the girl gave me the “you’ve been given a fake number” number was more exciting then current phone calls from these 17 digit numbers.

When a phone rings – I want to be able to pick it up. The more foreign the area code the better. But, I want to trust who calls me. I want the excitement of conversation and the exchanging of words from one mind to another. Who wants to live in a world where they don’t even bother to pick up their phone because they know it’s not worth their time?

Mind you the more I think about it – I may actually be interested in spending some money to receive the opportunity of a lifetime. Anyone have glub glub’s number?