I’m going to come out today. No more hiding in the closet for me: I love human beings.
There. I said it. Finally.
It’s hard to believe there was a time when I thought it was rude and cold and impersonal for someone to have an answering machine or an answering service. I could imagine them sitting right there choosing whose calls to answer and whose to ignore. Then I – actually, all of us, more or less – got accustomed to this convenience and it gradually became rudeness if someone didn’t have an answering machine. “For crying out loud. I can’t even leave a message. Now I’ll have to call them back.”
Now I’m back where I started. What a pain to play phone tag for days on end, especially with your doctor’s office. It is sometimes almost impossible to reach a human being. So you leave a message:
“Yes, this is Mr. Smith. I never heard back from my test results two weeks ago. I’d like to know one way or another.”
Two or three days go by, maybe even a week. You call again, asking for your test results. You specifically extend permission for them to leave the info on your answering machine.
“Yes, this is Dr. Jones’ nurse. I received a message that you called. Sorry I missed you. Call me back at 555-1212.”
That is not what you asked for! You call back yet again, thinking maybe you’ve got the secret phone number. Nope. You get an answering machine again. You leave a message again. This can go on and on for days, back and forth.
Yes, I definitely love a real live actual walking talking human being every now and then.