So I had a major problem with telemarketers. The fell into a few categories: Lowering my electric bill (doesn't apply), Lowering my electric bill another way (also doesn't apply), some random vacation place, something in Chinese which I don't get at all, and that there's a warrant out for my arrest by the IRS! What!!!?
So I'm pretty good at ignoring calls from numbers I don't know. But it's still a major annoyance.
So avoidance didn't work. Trying to opt out didn't work.
I did a couple moves and now: NOW? I miss getting called by telemarketers. Because I know how to fuck with them.
I consider myself a nice person and I'm sure the callers are nice people too- just trying to turn a buck. I'm always hustling too but I don't call random people and give them a sales pitch. I work for a Fortune 500 company doing something, I hope, that is substantial.
So first: the calls that gave a pre-recorded message- i knew just what to do. There's a service where you can conference in a robo-responder to basically sandbag the caller (jolly roger telco). And they are talking to a "robot" who basically says"yes?", "yeah", "uh huh" and "okay..." especially when asked very specific questions like "How much do you spend on your energy bill?".
The 2nd time i pulled this the person talking to me said "We're taking you off our list".
So I was looking to pulling this again (and again). But goddamnit they pulled me off the list. I haven't been called in 2 weeks at this point.
The calls in Chinese were also weird. I am conversant in Mandarin Chinese. So i spoke Chinese with them. But- my command of Chinese is poor at best. So I was saying random things.
Careful what you wish for but now I cannot wait to mess with the next telemarketer.
I was asked at work today if i saw the Grammy's. I'm like I've never watched the Grammy's. I don't really care who's wearing what
or if U2 is gonna perform or something. Whatever. Long-hair-don't-care. I know there are people who do care and that's great. I don't happen to.
A really, really old friend of mine passed away recently at the young age of 47 (crap that's old). He quite literally drank and drugged
himself. I think he had wanted, at some point, the white picket fence lifestyle but he never got remotely near it. I recall times in high school
driving around and he'd score some purple passion or sun country wine coolers. But the excess got worse in college with always trying to find some
magic pill (Oxy? Some other shit i forget). Poor guy needed 8 years to graduate.
When he wasn't using he was good. But his life eventually turned
into the worst shit-show ever. I saw him a year ago and kind of had to help him walk. His nerves were shot. I know he knew he was going to die
an early death (he had predicted at 44 years- off by 3). In and out of hospitals and rehab. His parents ended up putting him up in some crappy
apartment and his brother hadn't spoken to him in years. Sad to see happen to anyone let alone your best friend at one time. I'm like "holy shit
this is pathetic, man". We picked up an email conversation last summer (where, for whatever reason he started rattling off trivia about
the Beastie Boys and Depeche Mode). I think the last email that I didn't respond to included a missive about scoring two 40s of malt liquor for
eighty-nine cents. Woot. I'm like "there's nothing I can do", which I've said for years. Some people can't be saved- and that was never the
point in the first place. It's his life not mine.
Of my oldest "core three" friends, I lost 2 of them. One to death, the other to his wife who didn't want him to spend time
away from her. The latter sort of
briefly escaped and had a tryst with an eighteen year old confused high school student. He was going to divorce then recanted and was
going to try to make it work. I rather learned "just because we've been friends forever doesn't necessarily mean we have to be friends forever.
At least he's not crazy. Friends going cray-cray is odd but it happens.
Friends come, and friends go. Some die. Some amaze. Some just get crazy. Some get boring. Here I remain.
I guess gamiss is a clothing company or something? A gaudy 90s revival or something? Looks like that have a huge online ad campaign
that I'm stuck looking at.
It's not as bad as the "The 'Stunning' Truth About Neuropathy Nerve Pain [And Solution]": wait man that was really on my mind-
neuropathy nerve pain, something stunning about it, and there's a solution? Look, fuckers, i know people with neuropathy as it relates
to cancer recovery and fuck off. Take your shitty ads with you. Who did your creative- and how did you find such shitty pictures in
your stupid ads? It's like- if you're going to buy a lot of advertisement space online- why not do it with some style? Why is
NerveRenew trying so hard to have the worst online advertisements? Why not
make it look good? Like, i don't know, entice people to click on your crappy irrelevant advert?
Just a thought.
So back to Game-iss. Just none of that looks like anything I'd like to buy. Too gaudy. Too garish. Now I'm stuck looking at them.
Wandering down the street today, and some relatively normal looking jamoke has suitcase open on the sidewalk. Looked
to be doing a degree of reorganizing. Randomly. Next to said suitecase was a pint bottle of
high end (if there is a thing) triple sec. Huh, i thought, walking by. (we at CC do not promote brands)
Since. I. Was. Walking around aimlessly not being able to decide on a lunch (not really hungry?
Not wanting the shitty buffet lunch?) I rounded the block back to the office. Sure enough, suitcase dude
is still there, now with suitcase closed. But, he was sipping. on. the. damn triple sec.
Half a block later, I'm really curious why the hell he was sipping from a pint bottle of triple sec. So i
walked back and asked. He finally understood me and said:
"j'ai soif. "