A little whisper in the dark

Friends are good, but ......

......when they contact you out of the blue after a long time, you got to figure something's up.

One of my secondary school classmates (it's like over ten years now, come to think of it) began looking me up out of the blue. Prior to this, he's always been the no-show at the occasional classmates gathering that we have every now and then. And the last I heard, he was doing some multi-level marketing job.

So anyway he begins calling me, chatting about how's life and stuff, which is all fine and good. Not wanting to be biased against him and his job, took it in stride and even met up with him for coffee and such. His manner of setting up a date with me was more akin to setting up a business appointment, and that was pretty telling.

He'd passed me a VCD by some millionaire who's probably become a millionaire at least in part by teaching other people how to become millionaires, and charging them a pretty penny to attend. Heh. That only works once. To the guy (Robert something or other), what he says has credit, holds water, but still requires the gifted eye of a successful businessman in order to take the full advantage.

I get it now, you're trying to make me feel the need to be rich, right?

Let's go along with it.

A few weeks later, he calls up asking for the VCD back, and I offered to drop it off in his mailbox since our schedules don't really meet, but he insists on a meetup and that we duly arrange, at my extreme reluctance. Actually more due to impatience at all this beating about the bush.

I'd brought along a friend for a horizon broadening experience, and so we had a casual chat about what was in the CD and stuff like that. Then he says there's always opportunities, its a matter of whether you know how to grasp them.

Patience worn thin, I bluntly stated that I thought that all this beating around the bush really sucks for friends of ten years, and it be better that he stated what he wanted rather than priming me up to be ripe for the multi-level marketing talk that he was trying to get me to go to!

My esteemed companion took a few parting shots before we left. Very good ones too, I hasten to add.

Insurance agents, real estate agents, and now multi-level marketing recruiters. All people to avoid, if you don't want the hassle and discomfort of rejecting a friend's pleas.

Perhaps one should lay ground rules to friends and family who, after a long period of silence, pop up and ask to visit:

If you're visiting to either 1. talk about MLM schemes 2. insurance policies 3. religion,

Don't bother to come. You're not welcome.

posted by Chung Leong @ 2:33 AM