"YouÂ’re a jerk!"
Now get this. I was sitting at my desk, when I remembered a phone call I had to make. I found the number and dialed it. A man answered nicely saying, "Hello?"
I politely said, "This is Patrick Hannifin and could I please speak to Robin Carter?"
Suddenly the phone was slammed down on me! I couldnÂ’t believe that anyone could be that rude. I tracked down RobinÂ’s correct number and called her. She had recently changed the last two digits of her number. After I hung up with Robin, I spotted the wrong number still lying there on my desk. I decided to call it again. When the same person answered, I yelled, "YOUÂ’RE A JERK!" and hung up.
Next to his phone number I wrote the word "Jerk" and put it in my desk drawer. Every couple of weeks, when I was paying bills, or had a really bad day, IÂ’d call him up. HeÂ’d answer, and then IÂ’d yell, "YOUÂ’RE A JERK!" It would always cheer me up.
Later in the year the phone companies introduced caller ID. This was a real disappointment for me. I would have to stop calling the jerk. Then one day I had an idea. I dialed his number and when I heard his voice I made up a name. "Hi." I said, "This is Herman with the telephone company and IÂ’m just calling to see if youÂ’re familiar with our caller ID program?"
He shouted, "NO!" and slammed the phone down.
I quickly called him back and said, "THATÂ’S BECAUSE YOUÂ’RE A JERK!"
And the reason I took the time to tell you this story is to show you how if thereÂ’s ever anything really bothering you, you can do something about it. Just dial 722-4822.
A few months later an old lady at the mall really took her time pulling out of the parking space. I didnÂ’t think she was ever going to leave. Finally her car began to move and she started to, very slowly, back out of the stall. I backed up a little more to give her plenty of room to pull out. "Great," I thought, "sheÂ’s finally leaving."
All of a sudden this black Camaro comes flying up the parking aisle (going the wrong direction) and pulls into her space. I started honking my horn and yelling, "You canÂ’t just do that, Buddy. I was here first!"
The guy climbed out of his Camaro and completely ignored me. He walked toward the mall as if he didnÂ’t even hear me.
Thought to myself, "this guyÂ’s a jerkÂ… there sure are a lot of jerks in this world." Then I noticed the for sale sign in the back window of his car. I wrote down the number before hunting for a new parking spot.
A couple days later, IÂ’m at home sitting at my desk. I had just got off the phone after calling the 722-4822 jerk (ItÂ’s really easy since I have his number on speed dial) when I noticed the phone number of the black Camaro guy lying on my desk. So I figured I should give him a call too.
After a couple of rings someone answered the phone. I said, "Is this the man with the black Camaro for sale?"
"Yes it is," he answered
"Can you tell me where I can see it at?" I asked
"Yes, I live at 1802 W 4th street. ItÂ’s a yellow house and the car is parked right out front."
"IÂ’m sorryÂ… whatÂ’s your name," I asked
"My name is Don Hansen" he replied
"WhatÂ’s a good time to catch you Don?"
"IÂ’m home in the evenings," he said
"Listen Don," I started getting serious, "can I tell you something?"
Don seemed a little caught off guard by the change in my tone but eventually answered, "Yes"
Then I did it, in my moment of glory I shouted, "DON, YOUÂ’RE A JERK!" And I slammed the phone down. After I hung up I added Don HansenÂ’s number to my speed dial.
For a while things seemed to be going quite well for me. Now when I had a problem I had two jerks to call. Then after several months of calling the jerks and hanging up on them, the whole thing started to seem like an obligation. It just wasnÂ’t as enjoyable as it used to be. I needed a different form of entertainment. And see that I am a loyal person I figured I would keep the JerksÂ… the only thing that would change was my method.
First, I had my phone dial Jerk #1. The man as always answered nicely. And I immediately yelled, "YOUÂ’RE A JERK!" but this time I didnÂ’t hang up.
The jerk said, "Are you still there???"
"YeahÂ…" I answered defiantly.
"Stop calling me," he insisted
"NO!" I shouted back
After a slight pause he responded with suppressed anger, "whatÂ’s your name pal?"
"Don Hansen" I responded with a smile on my face.
"And where do you live?" he said with the same dangerous tone.
"1802 West 4th Street." I answered fearlessly.
"IÂ’m coming over right now Don. YouÂ’d better say your prayers," he threatened.
"Yeah, like IÂ’m really scared, JERK!" and I hung up.
Then I called Jerk #2. "Hello" he answered
So I replied, “Hello, JERK!”
He stared in on me right away, "If I ever find out who you areÂ…"
"YouÂ’ll what?" I interrupted
"IÂ’ll kick your butt!" he shouted. Not able to stifle his anger as well as Jerk #1 did.
"Well, hereÂ’s your chance. IÂ’m on my way right nowÂ… JERK!" and I hung up.
Then I picked up the phone and called the police. I told them a big gang fight was going down at 1802 West 4th Street. After that I climbed into my car and headed over to 4th street to watch the whole thing. I turned into 4th street and parked my car under the shade of a tree half a block from Jerk #2Â’s house. There were two guys fighting out front. Suddenly there were 12 police cars and a helicopter. The police wrestled the two men to the ground and took them away.
A couple of months later I get a call for jury duty. And I was selected to be a juror for the trial of the two jerks who were both charged for disorderly conduct. It turns out I might have influenced the jury a bit; because when they announced the verdict, they said, "We the jury find the defendants to be guilty, AND a couple of JERKS!"