My Mind's Ink

Cool rational thought is a hairs breadth from panic. You can travel the distance in seconds with nothing to guide you. Allow me to demonstrate.

I am sitting on a bus traveling home after a weekend with friends. My phone vibrates and the display says, “Blocked Call”. I let it ring through to voicemail, as I do with any unusual numbers, but I immediately listen to the resulting message.

“Hello, this is Marci from Visa. We are trying to get in touch with the secondary card holder. She was in the Royal Oak something Clinic today and they have contacted us. There is a problem and they would like her to contact them by phone.” The rumble of the bus, and people talking around me, made it difficult to hear the message, but none of it made any sense.

What clinic? My wife didn’t mention anything about going to a doctor, and she certainly would unless there was a reason not to. Why would a clinic contact you through Visa? Unless it was an emergency! Maybe they have the results of some test and they can’t get in touch with her. Maybe that’s why she didn’t tell me she was going to a clinic, because something is wrong!

I am trapped on this bus with all of these people for at least another half and hour. I can’t wait that long, so I phone her. My call goes directly to voicemail. Her phone is never turned off!? I leave a quiet message, “Hey, um, I got a phone message from some Clinic? They need to talk to you?” I expect her to call back any minute, but no explanation arrives.

I wait out my remaining time on the bus creating ever more dire scenarios. Feeling panicky and silly, I phone her again when I am in a more private setting. She labors to understand what I am asking, and then she laughs at me. In my defense, I was missing a key piece of information. She had gone to the Royal Oak Pet Clinic. The visa transaction for the kitty litter had failed after she left the store.

3 votes

 Loading ...

Find similar posts in: