-^-for posterity-^-

to recount what’s happening with the article and my newfound popularity:

yesterday i took my phone off of the hook because i was concerned that i would not have any time to relax and i would be talking to strangers. today i thought no one would be calling me and i put the receiver back.

mistake.

i came back from breakfast and immediately received a call from a little boy who had just woken up. he was from ho chi minh city and wanted to talk for a little bit. he was studying and wanted to study english but did so very badly. he thought i could help him if i ever came up to the big city. that was a nice phone call.

the next call came a few minutes later from a young woman who asked me if i could answer a question of hers. in the article it said that i worked more enthusiastically than other voulenteer teachers and she was skeptical. why was it that i was full of so much heart felt enthusiasm? i had a hard time answering the question but told her that my mother always taught me to work as hard as possible and with as much enthusiasm as i had. that seemed to appease her.

the next call was from a man asking for my help. he was going to interview for a the executive director position of a company in ho chi minh city and wanted to ask me if i could help him answer a question. what do i do when they ask me ‘why would you be the best candidate for this position?’ i couldn’t answer on the fly and told him i would email him back.

the next call was from a girl who had called two days before reminding me that i promised her that i would be visiting her home land. i reassured her that the hallow promise was still valid.

the next call was from an old lady who spoke softly and asked me questions about my life. she then told me she had a daughter that she wanted me to meet and that we would be wonderful friends. she put the daughter on and the daughter didn’t say anything. i had to milk her for information and decided she wouldn’t be the best wife.

the next call was from two sisters in ho chi minh city. they told me to come up to the big city and we would all go see a movie. the one girl talked on the phone while the other girl yelled instructions to her. they sounded sweet but i doubt i’ll ever see them again.

the last call i received before i took the phone chord out again was from a girl who had three questions for me to answer. how do i study english better? why did i choose to live in long xuyen when i could have lived in ho chi minh city? and do i have a girlfriend? i answered all the questions and hung up.

whenever i have a friend come over, i plug the phone back in so that they will see how many phone calls i receive. we normally wait a minute or so and i let them answer the phone. they immediately start to grin and smirk when someone asks to talk to me. it’s quite a fun game and i have become quite a celebrity.