Friday, November 25, 2016

Telephone Etiquette


Right now my time is being consumed by my son coming home. Please keep that in mind because I am so happy about it and a lot of my posts will probably be about him. As this one is.

I mentioned that he occasionally had 48 hour passes to come home. He had to sign out at a certain time and I would pick him up. Then he had to call to let them know when we arrive at home. There are to be no stops or visits in the process.

When it is time for him to leave he must call to let them know that he is leaving. Again no stops on the way. He must be back on time or he is violation of his terms and can be sent back to prison.

Also during the time he was here they made random calls to make sure he was actually here. The calls come any time of day or night. He recognizes the phone number so he answers the phone.

It is the way he answers that might interest you. I will not use his real name but I need a name so you will get the full picture. I chose Joe Blow.

The phone rings. My son picks it up and says, "Federal prisoner Joe Blow. How can I help you?"

"Joe Blow, Federal prisoner. What took you so long?"

"Federal prison vacation home, Joe Blow speaking."

"Hello? I want to report a prisoner running down the street in his underwear."

"Federal prisoner Joe Blow. I was beginning to think you forgot about me."

"Federal prisoners R Us. How can I help you?"

"Federal prisoner Joe Blow. You know I feel neglected when you don't call."

"Sorry I took so long to answer. I was down digging my escape tunnel."

I have no idea whether they think he is as cute as I do ( as he does). It seems as if they rather enjoy a sense of humor.

He was recently fitted with an ankle monitor. He is home and he will no longer be staying at the halfway house. They still make the random calls because it is the rules.  I do not understand why because the monitor will show them where he is.

He still has to go in for periodic reporting. But he is home.

19 comments:

  1. Years ago my nephew did something stupid that should have earned him counseling. But, it was in Virginia, and he got a stiff sentence. After a number of years he was paroled, and got on with his life. But, several more years on he did another very stupid thing that did deserve prison time. Because he violated his parole, he has to serve the rest of the old sentence, too. I think he will be retirement age when he is released.
    I'm sure you son knows all this too well. But from an old aunt to your son, please be very careful. Your freedom is precious to your mother and to you.

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    1. I will deliver your heartfelt message. Thank you for sharing your experience.

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  2. I hear you excitement in your words! Your Christmas will be complete this year! Best wishes to your son, Emma.

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    1. Thank you. I will soon be visiting the sites I love so much so be ready for me.

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  3. Like mother like son.

    And I would like to be friend with all these wonder people.

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    1. In your unique way I think you are friends with them.

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  4. Oh I found many Alices in the marathon run.
    most of them went lane.

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  5. i feel so happy for you dear.
    my son is bound to his new job and he will not be able to visit us next month so we decided to go and see him for two days .
    have a wonderful time with your son

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    1. Thank you. It is hard to be so far from loved ones.

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  6. Emma, I know he has been in prison, but I have NO knowledge of any of the details of anything pertaining to that whatsoever. If they are something you would like to share, I would love to feel less in the dark.

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    1. I will check with him to see how he feels about it. Thank you for being interested.

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    2. Dear Emma,

      OF COURSE, I'm interested. You interest me, and therefore the things, people, and events in your life also interest me because they promote my understanding of you. At the same time, this isn’t something I NEED to know or will fill badly if I don’t know. It’s simply something that would promote my understanding of your feelings and your situation (I had thought that maybe I had missed something that you had posted about earlier). What I want most is simply for you to feel comfortable, Perhaps it is a sketch for you to write even as much as you do, so please look upon me as a support rather than someone who is presenting you with a challenge.

      Love,
      Snow

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    3. I like the enlightened way you view things. What I did not clearly state is that I write nothing about family members unless they approve. I feel it is the courteous thing to do. My son actually has provided me with some interesting posts in the past and has given me some stories for future posts. I was actually thinking of writing about how his prison term came about but I have not spoken to him to see how he wants it told.

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    4. Pardon spell check. I try to correct its errors, but an ever amazed by how many I miss.

      "I write nothing about family members unless they approve. I feel it is the courteous thing to do."

      I feel the same way, although I've yet to hit Peggy's limit.

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    5. You are too funny. Peggy might be a candidate for sainthood.

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    6. “Peggy might be a candidate for sainthood.”

      We give one another a lot of space. She takes vacations with friends and most of her social life is apart from me, yet we spend hours together everyday, and there is never any doubt but what we love one another deeply and want to remain together until death. As for my blog, I need that, and Peggy knows I need it, and she’s unafraid of my openness anyway. If she were not, we surely wouldn’t have remained together. Maybe I mentioned that the only time she ever objected to a post was when I wrote one about Islam. She worried that it could get us killed, so of course I didn’t publish it.

      I know I tend to write a lot on your blog, so you let me know if I ever go overboard because I don’t want to tire your readers with my responses. It’s just that you tend to bring up thoughts for me far better than any other blogger I know save one or two. It's also true that my sharing with you is the kind of thing that I like on my own blog. Too many people leave one sentence comments, and I don't even know if they read my responses to those comments.

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    7. People who read my blog will have to decide for themselves whether you are here too much. I enjoy all the comments people leave here so comment when you feel the desire. I understand the relationship between you and Peggy. It sounds ideal to me.

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