You should be slapped in the mouth!

Ok so I was a home taking a break from the college life and at my house we have this nearly archaic invention that some people forget exists sometimes: a landline phone. I know what you're thinking, who has a land line anymore? But I'm here to tell you that they do still exist! Anywho one of the many joys of a land line is that they are often listed in phonebooks and telemarketing lists and I'm sure other things that make it easy for people to call you and annoy you. So let me paint the picture for you: Its Saturday night around eight and my mom and I are having a pleasant conversation about pleasant things when all of a sudden, the phone rings. From that new-fangled contraption called caller ID we can clearly see that it's either a) someone we don't want to talk to or b) a telemarketer (but really what's the difference in those two options). Anyway so this time we decide to not let it ruin our lovely conversation and we ignore the call. A little while later, maybe ten minutes or so, the phone rings again. I recognize that it's the same kind of number and I decide that maybe it would be better to just handle the person on the other line so they wouldn’t continue calling and interrupting my mom time. So I answer the phone, not in the most polite voice but still not rude, and this is how the conversation goes:
Me: "Hello"
Telemarketer: Hello may I speak to Ms. Hoontay?
(Clearly this is not how you say my last name)
Me: May I ask who's calling? (Note the correct grammar and politeness here as this is key to the story)
Telemarketer: This is Linda from MedTech Advantage
Me: (to my mom but still into the phone) Mom, do you want to talk to Linda from MedTech Advantage?
Telemarketer: (before I could get an answer from my mom) Well you're just a rude child aren't you?
Me: (stunned into silence) hangs up

As I'm relaying the outrageous comment that a telemarketer who called and interrupted my lovely Saturday evening conversation with my mom, the phone rings yet again. Seeing that it is again Linda from MedTech Advantage I answer the phone again.

Me: Hello (much ruder than previously)
Linda from MedTech Advantage: You are a rude child who deserves to be slapped in the mouth!

Again I am stunned and in an effort to not express my true feelings of distaste for the whole idea of telemarketers, so I hung up again.

Now, am I the only one who thinks this is a bizarre thing to have happen? I mean how many of you have been called back by a telemarketer much less insulted by one? I don't know about you but I was very upset (to say the least) when this happened. I thought about calling up the company and complaining about appalling customer service and I thought about a long list of things I could have said back to Linda from MedTech Advantage but then I started thinking about Linda.

I know that every telemarketer is a person and that their job probably sucks because they get hung up on all day, but is it really necessary to lash out to an innocent potential customer like me? I mean obviously Linda from MedTech Advantage was having a bad night but hello? Why take it out on me? I get it I do. I know what it's like to work at a job you don't like and have to deal with customers on a daily basis but still, lashing out does nobody any good.

So what's the point of me telling you this story? Well besides the obvious- it's hilarious and crazy I thought I'd try and give you some nugget of advice or a life lesson and here it is. Even if you're having a bad day DON'T take it out on someone just for existing especially if you are representing somebody's company. I don't recommend it when you're only representing yourself either but ESPECIALLY when you're on the clock. Don't piss off the person who pays you. That's never a good plan.

It's been a whole two days since Linda called my house and I still can't believe that that happened? Got any crazy telemarketer stories that can top this one? Please let me know!

Can i get some cheese please?

Ok story time.
Today I was hungry so I decided I'd hop in the car and go get some delicious food from my local Sonic. Yay Sonic. Super. So I pull into my space push the button and wait to give my order. I say clearly into the speaker "May I please get a number one with cheese no onions no pickles with fries and a strawberry watermelon slushie?" So I'm waiting for my meal hoping it’s going to be as delicious as I've been anticipating and like five minutes later (quick for sonic in my experience) my food is being delivered. yay! So I get my food and drive away. I get all the way back to my house and open my burger only to find that my cheeseburger is only a hamburger. Almost like mistaking sprite for water, biting into a hamburger expecting the delicious cheesy flavor to massage your taste buds only to discover that that cheesy deliciousness is nowhere to be found, is a shocking disappointment. For those of you who know me, you understand the love affair that cheese and I have. Cheese and I- we go way back. Cheese grits, cheeseburgers, hash browns with cheese, grilled cheese, cheese sticks, blocks of cheese- whatever kind of cheese I'm usually down. This cheeseburger with no cheese was a huge disappointment to me. I can't say that I threw in down in disgust or marched back to sonic demanding that they provide me with a delicious slice of cheese for my burger (I actually just ended up eating it) but this whole situation made me think. Now I understand that people who work in the fast food industry have to deal with picky customers like me every day and that mistakes are bound to happen but how difficult is it to actually listen to what someone says?

In our society today how often do you give anyone enough attention to actually hear what they have to say and understand what they are saying? Texting and email and even phone conversations all contribute to our shortened attention spans. Listen to yourself have a phone conversation with a friend or a relative? How often do you interrupt or are interrupted? How often do you just have to say something even if the other person is finishing up some story they just had to tell you? You know that feeling when you think of something you want to say and you want to be polite and let that person finish what they're saying before you just jump in there with your own story? you’re sitting there thinking about what it is your going to say instead of listening to the end of that story they are trying to tell you right? Think about it.

Another time that we are famous for not listening to people is when we ask for opinions. Imagine this situation: you go to a store and find a fabulous dress (sorry fellas I’m a girl) you try it on and you look hot! You’re sitting there twirling in the mirror admiring how good your butt looks and then comes the time you put it through the friend test. Say you’ve got two friends. You ask them what they think, one says "eh...it looks ok" and the other says "oh well that looks alright" what you hear "It looks great buy it!!" instead of actually listening to what your friends said, you just hear what you wanted to hear. While sometimes your friends are just haters and can’t recognize your awesome fashion sense but most of the time they’re just looking out for you. If you would listen more carefully, you could potentially avoid buyer’s remorse or worse- not looking as cute as you thought you did.

So here is the point of my little rant. Listen to what people are saying. Don’t just project what you think they should say or what you want to hear on what you think they are saying. Pay attention to people. I mean real attention. Put down your phone. Stop texting or checking your email or playing some game. Look at the person (eye contact is preferable) and actually listen to what they have to say. Communication is one of the most basic parts of our society and even though we now have all this technology that's intended to improve communication, our attention spans have deteriorated thus breaking down our ability to communicate effectively.

Get with the program people. Listen and pay attention to what’s going on around you. You might actually hear some good stuff.