Big Wednesday #3
World's worst pollster, job recruiter SNAFU, mailbag questions about cheese, and a TikTok featuring lactose tolerant ants
Not that anyone asked, but the trick to writing slice of life humor is to say yes when most people would say no. Most people won’t answer the phone when a pollster calls, but I see those moments as opportunities to get a story. Same thing goes for an email sent to the wrong address, or a stranger at the grocery store who strikes up a conversation with you in order to sell you a frozen pizza. If you make it a practice to say yes to these moments, you’ll see some wild shit. Truth, after all, really is stranger than fiction. But not every odd encounter works out to a full story. In fact, I often collect story fragments that don’t amount to anything.
The disappointing pollster
The other night I was doing the dishes when the phone rang. I was listening to an audiobook about rising sea levels—a topic I find fascinating and terrifying—so I wasn’t in the mood to be bothered. Then I saw the caller ID: Dynata Research. A pollster! I turned off the kitchen faucet, dried my hands, and answered the…
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