Phone Buyage

Last night I didn’t work as late as I have done the rest of the week, but I decided instead to go to enquire about getting a Blackberry to replace my old phone. I rushed to Oxford Circus on the tube, but had to get off and walk up from Bond Street as the tube driver informed us that Oxford Circus station was packed and it would be quicker to do so. I popped into Carphone Warehouse, but there wasn’t much information and I wasn’t much impressed. So, I crossed over to the T-Mobile shop and had a little look at the display models (of phones, obviously, not people). A nice young man came to ask if I wanted some help and because I’m a geek and had done lots of internet research on the Blackberry models I was trying to decide between, I told him what I was looking for and asked his advice. He made the choice quite easy by rubbishing one of the models, which despite being newer is apparently way more basic, confirming the impression I had got from my internet research anyway. He was impressed with my geeky knowledge (I mentioned some dedicated media buttons he didn’t even know about) and even more impressed with my firm handshake when he introduced himself (in my experience, men seem taken aback when I shake their hand – not sure if it’s just because I’m a girl, or quite petite, or just not very aggressive/business looking?) and complimented me on my jacket (well, I do have impeccable taste and fab friends – The Mrs paid for most of it with her Christmas present to me) before telling me about my options.

Since I would have to pay an extra cost to get the instant email and internet facilities that are essential with a Blackberry (or why else would you bother getting one), I wasn’t really happy about the fact my bill would increase to more than £50 each month at a minimum. Plus, I would also have to pay about £30 to upgrade my phone. He told me about a really good deal which gave me the phone for free, had unlimited texts, lots of minutes and unlimited email and internet access for £35 a month which is less than my monthly rate now. Only drawback? It was a new deal, meaning I would have to change my number. Hmm. I had suspected this, but I quite like my number and didn’t really want to change it if possible, just because of the extra hassle. “Hmm, I didn’t really want to do that,” I said laughing, “But I don’t know why I care, it’s not like that many people call me.” “Why?” he asked, smiling, “You seem like such a nice person.” “Well,” I explained, “I’m nice to people in shops, it’s my friends I’m horrible to.” I pondered the prospect of a new number for a moment. Times are hard, I really wanted to get the Blackberry, and it would be saving me £10-15 a month. “That could work,” I finally decided, so he invited me over to the desk to have a seat and arrange things. He then continued to flirt outrageously with me, although in quite a pleasant way, which I admit I probably encouraged, partly because I was just feeling in a friendly mood and was chatty with the other staff too, but also because he was actually quite nice and had very good teeth (random observation).

I was laughing at his attempts to impress (not in a bad way, lol). He asked if I wanted a selection of SIM cards to choose from, which I did, so that I could choose the number I liked most or was easiest to remember. Feeling quite tired and a little brain dead, I narrowed it down to about 4, but wasn’t able to decide. He asked if I’d like him to pick, which I agreed and he cheekily suggested he’d pick whichever number was easiest for him to remember. He picked one for me and then started to talk about how it’s good that men should make decisions sometimes, etc. which I laughed about because I wasn’t really doing a good job of convincing him that women can be decisive. He also subtly mentioned that he likes to cook and that he lives alone (again, I was laughing inside at the subtle attempts to impress), but he wasn’t arrogant and was actually quite amusing with it. I was in a cheeky mood, so I kept teasing him about his comments, which he luckily took in good humour, telling me I was cheeky, which I am, so couldn’t deny. I heard his colleague telling the customer next to me about the same deal I was getting and said quietly and with mock offence, “He’s offering her the same deal I’m getting! Er…I thought I was getting a special deal?”

He had all my account details on the screen, which is a little disconcerting when talking to someone in this way who you don’t know, and he commented on my age, in a way I couldn’t quite gauge. “I don’t look it, do I?” I said, having no idea if that is even true, but knowing that lots of people seem to think I am still a teenager or mistake me for a student at work, “I don’t act it either.” “Well, why would you?” he asked, “Who wants to act older?” “Precisely,” I agreed and wondered why I have the compulsion to be silly and self-deprecating around people, especially if I feel awkward or self-conscious. We chit-chatted while he sorted out my new contract and then I teased him when he asked me to fill in a customer satisfaction survey, saying that I would have to mark him down for not knowing about the media buttons on the model I decided against. I then pondered the meaning of the question, ‘How satisfied are you with the assistant’s commitment to support you?’ which didn’t even give a clarifying statement of ‘…with customer assistance subsequent to your purchase,’ or something. “What does this mean?” I asked, cheekily. “Are you going to support me? Does this mean you’ll pay for my new phone?!” He laughed at me and said “Support you in your purchase. Well, you never know, I could support you. In a few years’ time, you might have a ring on your finger and a white dress…” I burst out laughing, raised an eyebrow and replied dryly, “Those aren’t magic words to me.” Why do men always think if they mention rings and wedding dresses that women will mentally hear, 'Ding, ding, ding, jackpot!'? It amuses me. I’ve heard all that stuff enough times, it will take more than a casual reference to marriage to impress me, lol.

All in all, it was quite an amusing conversation and a satisfactory purchase. He handed me my bag and called me ‘madam,’ which he had done all evening and made me laugh (and feel a little bit too mature for my liking, lol). I thanked him for his help and he hinted that he had my details which made me giggle (and a little concerned at just how much of my personal information he had access to), but which I doubted he’d be brave enough to actually use (partly because it probably breaches all kinds of store policies and staff regulations, lol). It was quite fun chit-chatting, but the most exciting part was getting me a sexy new gadget to play with, for free and with a reduction on my monthly bill. Result!