The Little Talker

The other day I checked the phone messages, and heard the following:  "You have 19 new messages." 
This statement should have shocked me, but it didn't.  I'm not the best person at checking messages, and I make this perfectly clear on our voicemail.  I tell callers that if they really want to get ahold of me, they should send a text.  Some people must think this is a joke, because they leave a message all the same, and then are surprised when I call them back 2 weeks later.

I have never been very good on the phone.  In high school, I would write down a script of what I wanted to say when calling a friend.  I would make multiple scripts when I had to call a boy - different scripts were used depending on their responses.  In college, I applied for a job as a receptionist.  I had my mom call in and schedule the interview for me, then showed up for the interview and got hired.  My job?  Answering phones.  It was the longest 6 months of my life.

For some reason I can't understand, Noel has taken to phones, or any object that looks like a phone.  She carries on conversations with her imaginary friends, waiting for them to respond, and saying 'bye' at the close.  I don't know where she picked up this habit, because it is very plain it isn't from me.  She obviously won't need to write scripts when calling boys in high school.