I sleep about five hours a night but not always the same five hours. Before Comic-Con, it was generally 3 AM to 8 AM. 10 PM is, I've found, a great time to write because my phone rarely rings (unless it's Sergio) and I'm not thinking about calls I should make. But since around Comic-Con — and I'm not sure it caused the change — the five hours are more often around 11 PM to 4 AM, and right now, I've been sitting here writing since about 4:15. I'm one of those people who, if I wake up for any reason, I'm generally up until further notice.
4 AM isn't a bad time for writing. The phone is still not a distraction…and won't be until around 9 AM, by which time I won't feel that annoyed at the interruption since I already got so much work done today.
Except that as I was typing the first paragraph of this post, the phone rang.
The Caller ID pegged it clearly as a Spam call and I usually don't answer those but I was curious: What kind of business thinks it's a good idea to call people at six in the morning? Might not that be a good way to make people more hostile towards whatever you're selling?
So I answered and it was lady with an accent of no identifiable region asking if I'd be interested in selling my house. At 6:08 in the morning.
My latest way of dealing with such callers, assuming they're not of the robotic variety, is to ask them where they got my phone number. They never know…or claim to not know. This lady told me, "You're on a list I was handed. I don't know where they come from."
Since this call is about real estate, I figure she must have my address there and she admits that she does. What follows goes like this…
ME: So it shows you I'm in Los Angeles. Do you know what time it is in Los Angeles?
HER: Six in the morning, I guess.
ME: What time is it where you are?
HER: A little after 9:00 in the evening. [I suspect she's in The Philippines.] I like to get a few hours of calls in before I go to bed.
ME: What time do you usually get up in the morning?
HER: Around eight or so.
ME: And how would you feel if someone woke you up at 6:00 in the morning?
HER: I wouldn't like it.
ME: But you call people at 6:00 in the morning their time.
HER: Yes, I've found that people are usually home then.
ME: Aren't some of them mad that you wake them up?
HER: Some are.
ME: So mad that they won't answer your questions or say they're interested in selling their houses?
HER: Yes but no matter what time I call, people are angry that I called and they won't answer my questions or they say they're not interested in selling their houses. Calling at this time, I reach more of them.
True conversation. Hey, at least it made me laugh and gave me something to write about here. I think I'll go back to bed and see if I can manage another hour of shuteye.