Day 119 - Have a Text Message Conversation with a Stranger

Date: May 5th, 2010

What do you do when you get a wrong number call or a text from someone you've never met?  If you're like me, its one of the following three things:

1. Say or text "sorry, wrong number" and hang up the phone (or stop responding to messages).
2. Say or text "seriously, still the wrong number" and hang up again or keep ignoring messages.
3. Say or text something utterly ridiculous in the hope that they will respond to your insanity by running, screaming, in the other direction.

Sometimes, if I'm bored, I start with option three.  OK.  Most of the time, but that's neither here nor there.

Recently, cause I've been getting out and seeing people so much, I've been getting calls and texts from numbers I don't recognize.  So, I've been a little more careful about my general strategy.  That being said, I got a text from a number I didn't recognize that just said "hey, what's up?".  Assuming it was someone who's number I just hadn't entered yet, I gave the standard "not much, you?" response.


I know.  Riveting, right?  The way I figured it though, I'd guess who the person texting me was based on the response.  No such luck.  Apparently my mystery texter's interests included "nuthin" and "watchin' tv".  Well.  Thanks, there, Mr. Helpful.  I finally came out and asked my texter what his name was, to which he replied "Jason".

So, since I don't know any Jasons that would text me, I realized this person probably had the wrong number.  Then I had a thought - I explained it was a wrong number, he apologized and I figured, why not indulge the curiosity?  What's the harm, right?  I started asking questions - what does he do, where does he work, what kinds of things is he interested in.

The idea of being curious about someone I've never met is a bit foreign to me.  We all like to think that if someone was in trouble and we passed them on the street, we'd stop to help them.  I like to think that myself, quite frankly.  But without that little addition of "in trouble", I've never thought to wonder what someone else's life was like.  I suppose that's the concept behind people watching.  Looking at the people in the world and wondering where they're going and where they've been.

As for Jason, my texter, we talked for about ten-fifteen minutes back and forth before the conversation died down.  He's living in Ann Arbor, going to school and working.  He seemed like the typical college student.  It made me wonder if people would get along better if they had a healthy curiosity about each other.  I'm not talking about gossip.  I'm talking about knowing the people around us well enough to wonder how they're doing and how they're feeling.  Its silly, but I found myself hoping that Jason, some person I've never met and probably won't meet in the future, was happy.  I'd never stopped and thought about a stranger that way before.  It was nice to feel more... open to the world.