Phone a friend

So I have a favor to ask.

Last week I received quite a shock when I opened the phone bill. It was almost twice what it normally is for a month. A quick review showed a number of very expensive calls. They were all by us, and they were to a number we recognised. It was the first (and last!) time we had ever called that number from our home phone. Over 80 Euro went into four or five phone calls over a few days. They were important, nessesary phone calls, and we would make them again, but they did show me just how lucky we are to live in a internet-enabled world.

We generally make calls with Skype on the computer. A quick glance at the screen tells me how much I am spending (usually 2 cents per minute) and how much credit I have available. Plus I can call another logged in Skype member for free. So computer to computer is free, and computer to phone is 2 cents. 80 Euro would be good for 4000 minutes. Even better, for the same price I can forward calls to my actual phone. Any of you who have ever called the phone # in the US and had me answer in Germany? Thank Skype. I purchased the phone number and simply have the calls forwarded to my phone. When we go away for the weekend the number forwards to my cell phone. When we move in a few months I will forward the calls to our new phone number.

Here's the best thing about the Skype number, and it gets to the favor I need to ask you. It is just a normal phone number in the US. Depending on your plan, it may be free for you to call me. If you have a flat rate for the US, or free evenings and weekends, or any other little tricks which do not exist in Germany, you can use them to call me for free.

The favor? Please call us. When we lived in Hawaii, we were behind everyone, time wise. I called people I needed to call for business early in the morning. By afternoon I could begin to call family and friends as their day wound down. My parents stay up late, so they were called later, generally as I made dinner. I know the time line for being six hours behind. It is easier to call if you are behind than it is when you are ahead. Trust me. Here, just at the time I am thinking "Hey, I'd like to call....", the boy gets home from school and life goes on and I forget to call. Then you all head off to work or whatever else your day might hold, and I might leave a message, but I know that I will forget to call again. Our weekends are generally pretty busy, so I again forget.

I'm not saying that your time isn't filled with the same million things that fill my day. What I am saying is that it is generally pretty easy for me to set things aside for a few moments so I can say hello. If it is a bad time to talk, I do not answer my phone. At night our phones stay downstairs where they will not wake us. You can call at any time, for any reason. You will always have a better chance of contacting me than I will have of contacting you. And it is either free, or the cost of a simple call within the US.

So if you have a Skype account, let me know. We can add each other as contacts, and maybe I'll see you online. If not, I'm not asking you to create one just for me. I am asking you to call us occasionally.

Don't have our US number? Need a better explanation? Please email me. As long as I actually know you I will be happy to give you the info. I am doing what I can to avoid another insane phone bill!

Thanks!