How to Handle a Telemarketer

Greetings. This just happened and might give you some ideas for how to handle a telemarketer. My philosophy on telemarketting calls is: they took the time out of their day to call me, so therefore, I should make it worth their while. I could just hang up, but that's the easy way out and isn't really all that fun, for me or them. With that in mind, consider the following:

As I was coming back on my porch after taking my retired guide dog Tony out, I heard the phone ring. I quickly got him and myself inside and raced over to the phone only to pick it up and realize that a woman wanted to get me to participate in a survey. I agreed to do so, wondering if this was the call, why didn't I just let it ring instead of answering. But then my philosophy came to mind, and I started grinning.

I forget what the study/survey was about, but I was asked if I was over 21. I said yes, and then I was asked the ages of everyone in my house over 21. I said that there were two, a 30 year old (me) and an 84 year old (Tony's age in human years). The woman then asked to speak with the 84 year old male, so I said, "Certainly." I went and got Tony and brought him over to the phone, and put the phone down by his mouth. He sniffed it a few times than turned his head away. I got back on the phone and asked the woman if she spoke dog. She said, "What?" I repeated my question. It then must have occurred to her that the 84 year old was a dog, and her response was, after a brief pause, "Sir, this is a serious study. I don't have time for this," after which she hung up. I was in the process of saying, "Hey, you called me," but she had already disconnected. As my friend Carman Fan #1 likes to say, "I shreaked with laughter!"