Norma's Homemade Banana Bar

February 17 - Call Center

Day 4

You’ve always hated your job,
but it’s the only one you can seem to find within walking distance of your house.
You tell yourself things will get better one day, and eventually, they do:
a coworker who catches your eye…Andre

Call Center

Another day, another dollar. But at least I save by walking to my job. No bus fare required. Another good deal, since my car died last year.

But I don’t look forward to going to the call center every day. Answering those phones every day. Ten hours every day. People asking the same questions every day. So boring. I clock in, take a headset, find an open cubicle and settle in for the day. The notebook of scripts before me, I wait for the magic time to log on. But wait, what’s this? A new face in the crowd.

Catty-corner from me sits someone I’ve never seen before. He’s short, his feet don’t even reach the floor. He’s a bit hairy for my taste, and dressed in a flowered shirt, shorts and sandals. Evidently a recent California transplant to Montana. Everyone else is in flannel and wool with Sorel boots.

The day drags on. I need a break. Mr. California seems free.

“Hi there. I’m Norma. You must be new here.”

He took off his headset, I hear music. How did he get music on that?

“Well, tjhk. I’m Andre. WEoerl.” A big toothy grin filled his face.

“Um, okay, Andre. Welcome to the call center. If you need help, let me know,” I made my way to the break room. The more I thought about it, the more I needed to know.

“Hey Andre,” I tapped him on the shoulder.

Again, the headphones came off. Music was blaring out of them.

“Yes?”

“Tell me, how do you get tuned into music? Don’t you answer the calls they send you?”

“Shiatesr, the asldfk. I asldf the suser.” He pushed a button, gave a ‘voilá’ sign. Then the headphones went back on.

“Huh. I never knew I could do that.” I walked to my cubicle, put on my headset., I pushed the magic button. And ‘voilá’! Music. I spent the afternoon in perfect bliss. No calls, no interruptions. If a supervisor came by, I scribbled notes on some paper.

In a few days, though, both Andre and I were in the coffee shop. Our new jobs are baristas. We got in a bit of hot water in that call center. Seems the internet charges for all that streaming music got a little pricey.

W/C 383