Is Anyone Else Concerned?

[shotzi]

The end of last night's show has worried me a bit. I assume the quality of caller will eventually improve, but what if it doesn't? Tom said no Best Show in 2008? Maybe he didn't mean it, but that's the worst news I've heard all year. And 2007 is apparently not looking that great, either.

Anyway, I'm concerned.

[Laurie]

He said the same thing last year.

[wusmmik]

The only way to improve is to call.  I tried to call last night even through a haze of cold medicine to at least stoke the fire a little.  Just make plans to call, that's all.  Laurie, you are a great caller by the way.  The show needs more XX-callers too.

[Omar]

The only way to improve is to call.  I tried to call last night even through a haze of cold medicine to at least stoke the fire a little.  Just make plans to call, that's all.  Laurie, you are a great caller by the way.  The show needs more XX-callers too.

I'd certainly support weekly calls from Laurie, Sarah, and Jess from The Shamblers.  I'd even go for another round with Mary B!!

[Sarah]

I really am going to try to call more next year.  I'll just have to start jotting down anything vaguely entertaining that springs to mind during the week, so I won't have to rely on inspiration striking during the show, which so rarely ever happens to me.  Of course, this may simply mean that I'll become brain-dead all the time, instead of just on Tuesday nights.

[Fido]

I really am going to try to call more next year.  I'll just have to start jotting down anything vaguely entertaining that springs to mind during the week, so I won't have to rely on inspiration striking during the show, which so rarely ever happens to me.  Of course, this may simply mean that I'll become brain-dead all the time, instead of just on Tuesday nights.

I was thinking the same thing.  When Tuesday night rolls around, it's already hard for me to bring anything that I think is worthy of air time on The Best Show.  Is my life really that hard?  Doubtful.  I am always coming across things during the week that I'd like to bring to the attention of the FOT world.  But I tend to forget them on Tuesday nights.   

If half of the people online chatting during the show would call up, it would definitely make for a better show.  I'll try to do my part.  Even though Tom is still plenty entertaining even with slack-jawed knuckleheaded morons calling up just to hear their own idiotic blather on the air every damn five minutes.  The Kid still manages to pull off a W more times than not. 

[Chris L]

Yes, I need to call more with my half-formed, tedious mutterings.  That'll raise the entertainment quotient. 

[shotzi]

He said the same thing last year.

I didn't think it seemed quite as serious last year. Maybe I'm concerned because I don't blame Tom for being fed up with the shitty callers. My problem is that I very rarely am able to listen to the show live.

[John Junk]

I totally thought it was over last year.  I'm not fallin' for that chicken little routine again!

Seriously, though, I would've called but I had a really hard time thinking of someone who I actually had trouble thinking of getting a present for, but who it would actually be safe to identify on-air without offending certain parties.  Then all the sudden it was six in L.A. (9 o'clock in N.J.) and I had to drive 30 miles home from work and then do christmas shopping and all that other crap and I didn't even HEAR the rest of the show and I didn't feel like calling the show and going "Hey Tom, I'm illegally driving 75mph while talking on the phone and not actually listening to the show because I'm about 3,000 miles away from your signal but so anyway what's new?" and then get GOMP'd, nahmean? So there's my excuse.

I had an idea today, though, and I wanted to save it for next week, but it seems like maybe I've already forgotten it. Damn.

[Grimlock]

I guess the real (and terrifying) problem is that Tom puts a lot of weight and faith on/in the chatters, and that, by definition, people who congregate (almost) anonymously in a chat room aren't going to be the best radio people.

The zany, funny quick-thinking chat folk may be molasses mouthed pant pee-ers in real life (leaving out Sarah and Laurie) or may have that annoying manly monotone that calls for immediate gomping.

I get close to calling a lot of times, and sometimes have some interesting thing to add to the conversation, but never actually hit the green button.

So I'd like to suggest a new chat rule: if you don't call at least once a month, you get ignored by your fellow chatters! We all make a chat-pact, and live by it. It will be sad to be ignored, like a bloat-headed Boris, but if you deliver, you're in the gutter!

I may make this a new topic, just in case people miss this one.

[Richard_From_CHI]

I for one am stokcing up on canned good, generators, and bottled water in case Tom hangs it up and society falls.

[KickTheBobo]

Tom: "FMU, you're on the air."
KTB: "Good Evening Tom."
Tom: "Good Evening, Who's this?"
KTB: "This is Christopher"
Tom: "Hi Christopher, where are you calling from?"
KTB: "Cranston, Rhode Island"
Tom: "What can I do for you tonight, Christopher?"
KTB: "Well, I was calling because I was thinking about this thing last night..."
Tom: "Go on..."
KTB: "Like about hipsters n' stuff, ummmmm...like what if there were, like..."
Tom: "Ok, go on...
KTB: "Like hipsters that were into old people stuff...like they were young, but dressed like old people...you know?"
Tom: "..."
KTB: "...and like the cool thing would be to, like...uh...have an oxygen tank as like the ultimate accessory...you know, a bunch of twenty somethings sitting around playing bridge...everyone dyes their hair grey...and they'd be like "Oldsters", ya know?"
Tom: "Oldsters?"
KTB: "Yeah, um...just something I was thinking about. I guess I thought it was funny..or something"
Tom: "You have a good night, Christopher"
KTB: "Um, thanks. You too Tom. Bye"
Tom: "Bye"

HILARIOUS!

[Sarah]

Actually, it sort of would be.

You know another thing that worries me about calling?  I'm terrified that one of my giggles will turn into a cough, and then I'll get the scornful antismoking lecture.  You wouldn't believe how many times I cleared my throat when I was on hold the other night.

[Chris L]

The zany, funny quick-thinking chat folk may be molasses mouthed pant pee-ers in real life (leaving out Sarah and Laurie) or may have that annoying manly monotone that calls for immediate gomping.

Hey, I'm not that zany in there! 

Let a chatter chat and a caller call, that's what I always say. Always!  Ask anyone. 

[Mason]

I should say that even a Best Show "L" is far more entertaining than most other show's "W". I did enjoy the pre-christmas show. Pewter horses made me laugh.

But even I felt a powerful temptation to call in yesterday. That's a pretty big change for me. I've never called a radio show nor have I ever felt the desire to, until now. I just have always had a mild phobia over using phones. Even the idea of calling Sears catalog service to order some plaid shirts would make me nervous.

I've never seen myself as the type of person who'd call a show, but I'm feeling like 2007 is the year I'm gonna take the plunge. The worst that could happen is that I be boring or go blankBut there's no way I'd be any worse than the recent batch of genius callers.

Tom needs some fresh blood.