Since everyone is griping so much about cell phone use, I thought I’d share a funny story that happened to me.
On December 27 last year, I was in line at Circuit City trying to send out a printer for repair. The line was about 30 deep, and I had been waiting about 10 minutes (the line had not moved an inch). My phone rings, and a few people gave me “the look” as I answered it. It was my sister, calling because the house RIGHT NEXT DOOR to her had exploded (natural gas) and they were evacuating her neighborhood. She was at work out of town and needed me to hurry over and get her boyfriend and her cats out of there and over to my house. Here is the side of the conversation the other customers heard:
Hello? Hey! What’s…what? You’re SHITTING me! I’m at Circuit City in line returning that printer…When? Mrs. Palmer? Is she OK? What about her husband? OH-MY-GOD…How awful!!!..An explosion? From what?..Fire?..HOLY COW!..Well, what about the phones?..OK, so I should go right over before they close the streets off, pick up Dick and the three cats and bring them to my house, right?..don’t worry- I’ll try to check for damage while I’m there…OK…don’t worry…At least everyone is OK…I’ll call you later. Bye.
I stood there in line for another minute or two formulating my best game plan on getting over there, getting her cats, etc when I looked up and saw about 40 people looking at me in silence. I didn’t realize why until someone said “Well what the hell was that about? Aren’t you gonna tell us?”
Apparently my one sided conversation was weird enough to peak everyones curiousity, so I filled them in on the accident and got out of there. It was funny looking back- I can’t imagine what they were thinking as I was (loudly) talking!
I’ve found the phrase “Well, slap my ass and call me Charlie!” uttered into my cell at a slightly elevated volume level will have roughly the same effect.
Must…not…be…pedantic. Must…hold…back.
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You mean “pique” rather than “peak”. Ah, crap, I pedanticized all over the floor. Pardon me while I clean up.
In the meantime, I agree with lola. Can you imagine standing in line, hearing that conversation, and not being enlightened? I’d’ve almost died of curiosity.
v. peaked, peak·ing, peaks.
v. tr.
Nautical. To raise (a gaff) above the horizontal.
I was using this phrase to mean that I (figuratively) raised their curiosity above the “horizontal”. See what I mean?..You don’t??? Well, clearly my intelligence is just to high for you to “get it”. Sorry for the confusion! [/desparate cover-up]
(my sig line is for all spelling/usage inspectors out there. Bite me hard! )
I love one-sided phone conversations in movies; they’re a great comedic device. Anyone see Party Girl? In the first ten minutes, the lead character has been arrested, for the nth time, for an array of misdemeanors committed at her latest rent party. In the holding cell, the cop hands her the phone:
"Hi, Jeannie, sorry to wake you. Listen I need a favor.
)