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Kenneth Pobo
Phone Solicitor
1972. My first job,
a phone solicitor.
5-9 p.m. five nights a week.
I’m the guy who interrupts
your dinner, who asks you
to buy a subscription
to a paper. If you do,
you’ll be helping sick kids.
Sometimes people answer
who know little English.
One woman agrees
to getting a subscription
despite not knowing
what she agreed to.
Boring. My spiel begins with
“My name is.” I weary
of my name before the end
of the first night. I say
I’m Neil Diamond. No one
challenges me. Who I am
is a bad connection,
the slam of a phone
before I try the next number.