I watched the local news this evening and they aired a story about a local high school football team (the Pflugerville Panthers) that came into the season with the #1 ranking in their district (high hopes all around). They lost their first game, though, and the reporters were trying to put some sort of a "well, maybe this will be good for the team in the long run" kind of spin on things. I was very amused when the head coach had this to say:
"We're a pretty seasoned team. We just...uh...didn't execute on offense, defense, or the kicking game. If we woulda done that, I think we woulda been alright."
Can the obvious be stated any more clearly? Too funny. And, no...I didn't sense even a little bit of irony in his voice as he said it. This stuff cannot be made up.
. . . .
Speaking of things that are too good to be made up, I asked about a photo of that "No Trespassing" sign and Kate says she's just a little bit afraid of being seen taking the photo so I'm not sure if we'll get one or not. Geesh. Being afraid of people with posted "No Trespassing Without Permission" signs. What's her problem??? Heh.
. . . .
And, on yet another note: entertaining phone problems. Kate called a couple of days ago. (That's when I asked about the status of the photo.) We were chatting away when an extension was picked up and then hung up when they heard us talking. I told her to tell Dan to...geesh!...let us talk in peace. "Is there someone in your house???" she demanded. "What are you talking about? It's Dan picking up the phone." "No it isn't...he's standing right in front of me!" At that point, the line was picked up again. A man on the line said he was trying to make a call. I suggested we all hang up since, clearly, the lines were crossed. So, we did that. Kate called back a couple of minutes later and we laughed about the interruption. And, then we heard the sound of an extension being picked up again. This time, it was a woman. "There are still people on the line," she said (to the man who'd picked up earlier, I'm guessing). I asked where she was and she started to give me an address. I interrupted and asked what city. She said Austin. I said I'm also in Austin. Kate said she's in Oregon. The woman asked where in Austin. I started to answer and Kate interrupted to say that this is all fine and dandy but it's costing her long distance money so she's gonna hang up. The woman and I stayed on the line and found out we're living in the same town house complex. I got her phone number, gave her mine, and told her I'd report the problem to SBC from my cell phone.
So, I called SBC and got into some sort of automated report system. I chose the "static on the line, can hear other people's conversations, or [something else I can't remember]" option from the selection of possible problems I'm having with my phone line. I expected that I'd be able to elaborate. Instead, I was asked to enter an alternate phone number at which I could be reached or a message could be left. I entered my cell phone number. The system informed me that the problem would be fixed by today at about 7 pm. And, then it hung up on me. I was not given the chance to explain my exact problem. Apparently, SBC didn't really care about the exact nature of the difficulty I was experiencing. So, I looked online and found that there were no options there to leave more info so I called the other people to tell them I was unable to report that their line was also having problems. They'd apparently decided to screen calls from my line (okay, maybe they'd gone out), so I got their machine and left a message about the status of the problem report to SBC. And, I basically forgot about the problem.
Until yesterday. At about 2 pm my cell phone rang. Caller ID showed an 800 number calling. It was an automated system letting me know my problem would be taken care of between 8 am and 5 pm today and that if I had any questions, I was welcome to call the repair request line again. <click>
So, I called the repair request repair line again. And, I resolutely refused to press any "1 for English, 2 para Español" buttons. After a couple of go-rounds, an actual person came on the line. I explained the situation and asked if I was expected to be home today between 8 and 5 or not. "Oh no," she said, "I'm sure the problem is outside your home." So, that was that.
Until today at about 11:30 am when my cell phone rang again. This time, it reported that the call was coming from my home number. Cue "Twilight Zone" music. I answered a bit cautiously. A man informed me he was calling on behalf of SBC, that he'd found the problem with my line, and that it was fixed. I asked where he was calling from. He quickly said he was calling from the call box...not from inside my home! Heh. So, I guess my party line days are over.
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