People. A perk of the job. Well, in most cases.
I’m a people person, or so I like to think. And I enjoy talking and visiting with people. Thankfully, my job is a social one and I am afforded the opportunity to communicate with people daily.
Of course, there are always exceptions — like the upset customer or upset subscriber. Sometimes there might be several of those during the course of one day and I will have had enough “people-ing” for the day.
One such customer called a few days ago and I immediately could tell he was upset that he had been charged nearly $300 on his credit card for a subscription that he didn’t approve. Ding, ding, ding ... the light bulb went off in my head.
I asked, “Sir, are you trying to reach The Sun-Sentinel in Florida?” He replied, “Well, yes!” I stated, “I’m sorry, you’ve reached The Sun-Sentinel in Mississippi.” He immediately calmed down and I explained our subscriptions were less than $45 a year and that we often get the Florida paper’s phone calls. He complimented my friendliness and we had a nice chat. Maybe he should think about subscribing here. Ha.
Over the last few days, I’ve enjoyed visiting with numerous people who have either dropped by the office or have phoned in.
I had the most wonderful phone conversation with Catherine Dixson of Georgia, a former Charlestonian and one of this newspaper’s biggest cheerleaders (for which we are thankful). I tell you, if “they” want us to solve the world’s problems, let them just ask Ms. Catherine and me. I bet we could get it worked out. It was lovely chatting with her.
I also had a wonderful phone conversation with Sherry Biffle. I had not heard from her in years and it was so good to hear she is doing well. My daughter Kelsey, Sherry’s grandson Bradley and another friend Brittney were the best of friends growing up. It was fun reminiscing about their youth, and now they are all grown with families of their own.
It was nice to visit with Eula Johnson recently. She has devoted more than 50 years to the education system here in Charleston. I asked her if she was enjoying her retirement and she informed me that she is trying her best to “be retired” even though she has gone to the school a couple of times to check on things.
Speaking of retirement, I also visited briefly with Lori Criswell and Kemmery Hill, who have both recently retired — Lori from East Tallahatchie School District and Kemmery from West Tallahatchie School District. They both told me they had long lists of things to get done. I hope they find time to relax between working on their to-do list.
I want to take a moment to also wish Maura Melton a happy retirement. I hope she will enjoy this time and I know she will probably spend more time with her precious grandbaby.
Another visitor was one who never fails to make me laugh. It is always good to see Jason Williams. He stopped by to say hello and we began to chat, which soon turned to funny stories and laughter. I wonder if folks on this side of the square could hear us laughing.
Football season is here and as the football contest begins in the paper, the doorbell will be ringing with more folks coming in to bring their entries. I always look forward to saying hello and visiting with some. Especially Sue Jennings. She and I share a love of a couple of reality TV shows and we like to compare notes on who we like, don’t like and who we think will win.
If you have a social job, don’t take it for granted. Enjoy talking with people. You never know when one act of kindness or conversation can make a difference in someone’s day.
