CHUCK WHITE UCARE

I think of so many cool thing to write about during the day at work and other places but these jewels evaporate as soon as I sit down to hack them down and I end up having to create totally new thoughts.

I spent the entire afternoon sitting at a phone bank at the local NBC affiliate doing the “UCARE ask an expert”. Operators from various I&R's in the state and other social agencies took calls answering the questions of inquiring minds from around the state: mostly how can I get some distance from the person I am shakled to by some form of social contract, wife, husband, children etc. I need a break. I got the most calls from seniors watching afternoon TV. We looked like a telethon minus the cheap acts and annoying interviews. There was one call from what sounded like grizzled old coot demanding that we get out of his sight and return too local programing. If he wanted telethons he would be watching public TV. Reminded me of the two old coots who used to make comment on the Muppett Show. In actuality the old coot who called probably loved us, broke the routine of his soap watching and gave him an interactive tool free number to bitch at and feel he was making a difference. He wasn't. Truth is or was we were doing the show whether he liked it or not. We had free bodies, free air time (five hours worth!) and a free cold lunch but no beer—Sorry Chuck. So effectively it was easy duty. The producers guys would warn us as we would come up on the break and the local cameras would come to life as the cameras would pan the phone bank—we were told to pick up the phone and act like we were taking calls and seconds after that we would harvest a bunch of real calls.

This studio is located in a huge building in dowtown SLC in the closest thing SLC has to a sky scraper. It's major urban, I was amazed at the presence of armed guards dozing at their posts. The studio itself was locke down (we were actually out in the lobby of the building. The bathrooms wer on the floor above us and the organizer of the event had the only key. We had to go to Donna to get the key to pee. Granted this is the WELLS FARGO building and there is a bank in there somewere but this level of security blew me away.

Shelly—sorry about the vehicles don't push it. You can come another time. Really, I want you alive.