Brooklyn has an uncomfortable way of dealing with those who complain. I watch him with no small amount of envy as he reads the next name from the list:
"Lisa?"
"Yeah, I got a letter in the mail saying I get a free booster or something."
"Okay, do you have the letter with you?"
"No."
"Well, we need the letter in order to scan the barcode on it."
"Well I don't have it with me and I'd rather not have to go find it."
"Okay, let me just look up your address to see that they sent you one."
Oh shit, you didn't think we could do that, did you?
"Hmmm....I don't see it anywhere in the system saying that they sent you a letter." He leans back and flaps open a newspaper from the previous week. It's the same paper he's been 'reading' every day now. It's the paper with either a major tragedy or an unfortunate story painted all over the front page. He flaps it as he waits for Lisa to begin her grievances.
"I don't get any service in my house. My neighbor got a letter saying that they get a free minicell, so why shouldn't I?"
"Uggh, did you see this?" he folds the paper and points to the catastrophe on the front page as he goes on "terrible," then a beat, "sorry, so you were saying you didn't get the letter, right? You can still get one, but they're $200 dollars."
"I...um...no. And I don't think I should have to spend $200 on a cell booster when I pay you guys for service I don't get."
Brooklyn nods at her silently, holding her eye contact.
"I agree."
"What?"
"I agree that you shouldn't need to spend $200 on a minicell booster in order to get service in your house."
"So, you're going to give me one for free?"
"Oh no, not at all," he opens the paper so that Lisa can once again be reminded of the death/destruction/misfortune on the front page, "I just agree that there are better ways to spend your money."
"WHAT?! What are you talking about? I came in here to get a booster for my house so I CAN MAKE PHONE CALLS." She drives home the last few words for the hard-of-hearing imbecile she assumes she's talking to.
"Well, see, now we're back to that $200 dollars because we can't just give 'em away. They cost almost that much to build, so it's a very strict list that gets the letter. I suppose there's a chance that your letter hasn't arrived yet, but I wouldn't want to get your hopes up."
"This is ridiculous. This is SOOOO unfair."
"I know," Brooklyn leans back into his newspaper one final time and shakes his head, "and to think there were children involved."
I'm not saying it's right. It's totally wrong. If I didn't know the guy and the fact that he donates a generous amount of his money and time to those less fortunate, I'd say this is a callous and cynical way of using a tragedy to remind others of their blessed lives. But people like Lisa never even see the paper in front of them, just the obstacle of a human being preventing them from doing and getting what they want.
Brooklyn sounds awesome.
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