To the editor: I don’t know the last time I received a prank call. It’s sad really.
Growing up in Northeast Georgia sometimes requires kids to manufacture some good times. When I grew up in Demorest, prank calls were a part of that fun. I vividly recall the teenage joy of dialing a random number, having a stranger answer, and then saying something equally polite and mischievous while attempting to stay in character on the phone. Those times were great fun. I always had one or two friends there with me to help foster a spirit of unbridled, cheap, generally innocent fun. Free fun too which is always nice!
We generally tried to keep an element of honor in our pranks. Anyone who sounded especially elderly in their answer was spared from our adolescent enthusiasm and instead greeted with, “I’m sorry. I think I have the wrong number.”
Businesses or other members of the general population were unknowing participants in our fun though.
A corny joke, some heavy breathing, or some loud talking were always options and should still be viewed as options for today’s youth. It’s important to keep it clean though.
Moreover, today’s youth have something that wasn’t available in my prime prank-calling days – speakerphone! This technological advancement allows your friends to hear the confusion on the other end. Wow! What a time to be alive!
Why am I not reaping what I sowed? I feel shorted by today’s youth in that I think it has been decades since I’ve received a prank call. While I’ll stop short of posting my number in a letter to the editor, I want today’s youth to know that I am here and ready to answer whatever unknown number calls me. Gather some friends, build a plan, find some courage, and dial some random numbers.
Trust me. It will be a good time. It might take a few tries to get someone to answer, but once you get a bite – good times have arrived!
Nathan Ballinger
El Paso, Texas