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hi, i'm ash!
Creator of the New Travel & Design Series, 'OTHER PEOPLE'S HOUSES.'
Travel writer & host, cultural explorer, and architecture & interiors freak.
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I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈
I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈ I THINK YOU'RE REALLY GREAT ✈
The Newsletter
Every week, we're exploring global culture through the lens of the home. From floorplans to fixtures, we examine how houses are built, designed, and decorated around the world (with a side of sass, of course!)
The Podcast
The only podcast where we pass on the pyramids and poke around in the plumbing. I’m Ash, and I'm, exploring the strange, smart, and wonderful ways houses are built, designed, and decorated around the world.
The Books
A new series of OTHER PEOPLE'S HOUSES books designed to help you try on a new life in different places around the world—by getting to "go behind closed doors" inside local homes to discover what it's really like to live there.
Yesss!!! I am the millennial monster who leaves her phone on Do Not Disturb indefinitely. It really annoyes my fiancé because he has to call me twice to get my attention, but I literally have a jolt of anxiety every time my phone buzzes from a notification. Should probably get that looked at… but it’s the reason why I refuse to wear anything more technological than ear buds. I don’t need to be THAT connected to the outside world.
Me too!!!!!!!!! The dings MAKE ME CRAZYYYYY. I have my phone on DND all the time because of it – and when I’m with someone else who doesn’t, even their phone dings make me stabby. The worst are serial texters who text one line at a time and push send over and over and over again, so ding ding ding ding ding. 🤣
(sigh)
Yes, I’m with you on the sales calls. I personally don’t answer any non local calls
But for those of who do prefer to communicate with tone, some mirth and perhaps a little urgency, we cannot accept an email into the void in the hopes that you’ll respond someday when you’re ready.
I’m also there with you on texting but it is an efficient way to get a speedy response without the banter. Just know that my 👍🏻 means “stop talking”
But I’ll give you the A+ number one reason I favor calls over emails:
When you’re done, you’re done.
I don’t need you thanking me for your reply or giving me any pithy prose about your follow-up.
Do you wanna know the fastest way to lose my respect, send an email reply with “you’re welcome”
Thanks for letting me rant on top of your rant.
Buh-bye!
Hahahaha! I mean, when a call is appropriate, that’s one thing. Like when you need to talk to actual clients. But it’s the high-pressure sales calls that aren’t welcome that are just too much. If I send an email, I expect an email reply: not a phone call. Similarly, if you call me, you’d expect a call back. Not me randomly sending an email reply. You know what I mean?! It’s communication culture and etiquette.
I gave up on the expectations of immediate replies and etiquette a long time ago. If you get a call from me, it’s all business and it doesn’t start with “how’s it going?“
Good stuff, Ash!
I am so glad to see this. It makes me feel better about my own phone call flakiness.
I must be on numerous lists. Apparently not the “DO NOT CALL” type, even though I’ve tried to enter that blissful realm on multiple occasions.
Mine are apparently more of the “CALL INCESSANTLY” category. And they have all types of tricks to make new numbers “local” and seemingly “at will”, bc my blocked numbers list itself cannot be traversed in a single sitting by anyone not on speed of some sort.
And yet, they keep, on, calling! 🤦🏻♂️
These types of shenanigans should be illegal. I can’t tell you how much I hate the entire system that allows this tomfoolery to continue unabated.
And perhaps it SHOULD be legal for us to shine industrial grade spotlights in through these a-holes bedroom windows at night while they try to sleep as their fitting punishment.
Just a thought…
Dude, for REAL. I have submitted my number to the “DO NOT CALL” list a bunch of times, but I don’t think it works. 🤣 Worse, I’ve been getting a lot of text spam lately, that seems sooooo real. One that keeps coming up is late toll payment and if I don’t pay, it’s going to credit agencies, etc. But, after researching it and trying to make sure I’m not going to jail, lol, it’s totally fake. HATEEEEEEE.
Yes. Those damn toll payment texts I have received a bunch. Possibly bc I am ACTUALLY not good at paying my stupid ‘toll by plate’ costs promptly, and I refuse to get my own ez-pass bc I don’t use it enough anymore (thank goodness!).
It almost got me a couple times, though. Now I just send the most absurd texts back and hope they actually receive/read them.
And I mean, OFF THE WALL absurd. It could be acting completely oblivious trying to ‘hook me a dumb one’ or trying to (somehow) make them believe that I have an NSA agent in the family that will hunt them down and let me know where to send my “packages”. 😉
I’m just trying to do my own small part to torment our tormentors. I just hope they can read them! 😁
I’ve done one up with my phone, I’ve silenced it. It will permanently be on mute. No digs, no rings. Responses are when ready. Oh, the peace!
YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I think this should be the default!!!!!! Truly. Our society started to implode with the explosion of the modern cell phone.
“I am a woman who’s done explaining.” YES! That’s perfection! I have a friend from London who nails this. When people approach her with something she doesn’t want to engage with, she simply says, “NO, THANK YOU.” No lengthy excuses, no rambling justifications. Just a clear, polite, yet firm “NO, THANK YOU.” I started using it myself, and voilà! It works like magic!
I love people who are great at the “NO, THANK YOU!!!!!!” I’ve gotten much better at this when I’m in public and have people approaching with offers in stores, etc. It’s hard because you don’t want to be dismissive of other people, but at the same time, it’s important to protect your peace.
Her British accent is the best part. As she would say, “No, fank you, guv’nah!” Maybe we can start that trend!
OMG you’re basically describing my life long relationship with phones right there 😂 as if, I’ve never knew myself before this. Always though it was me who was lacking a basic human skill and being a radical introvert, when in fact, it’s a universal, being born in the middle of the 80s thing. Thank you for putting it into words 😉
Some of this really IS generational – I always know Gen X and above when they want to call on the phone, hahahahaha. .
Do Not Disturb for the win.
If I don’t recognize the number, you can go to voicemail. Which I will then ignore for as long as I can stand the little red circle on my phone reminding me you left a voicemail, you monster. Have you no decency?!?!?!
Stand your ground. No means no. No explanation required.
I LOVE Do Not Disturb. Live in that world all day, every day. I know it can be frustrating for friends, but especially as someone who writes for a living, it is incredibly hard to hear the dings and have those distractions. They make me crazy. Can’t do it! If I could, I’ve have no cell phone.
Homeboy had already started mentally spending his Q4 commissions!!!
LOL actually he told us that he doesn’t really work for commissions? And that he gets paid based on positive customer surveys. I found that hard to believe. I wonder if ChatGPT knows the answer hahahahaha.
Maybe we should treat our phones now like a sex worker, if you call me I will charge you by the minute!! Put the pressure on THEM 😂😂😂
Two things.
1) Can we use the word ‘spunk’ more in general please? Yes, I am a child…
2) My phone is permanently on ‘do not disturb’. Game changer. Sure, I miss all the pop-up reminders I set and forget to do everything… but it’s really very peaceful.
SPUNKKKKKKKKK! 🧨
I miss life when all we had were the little flip phones and texting was so painful and so expensive, so we hardly did it, hahahahaha. They DO sell these new phones now that are very limited, intending to operate as just a phone and with the basics, but I haven’t seen anyone with one. Would be an interesting experiment! I think they actually call them “dumb phones.” Here’s one: https://www.thelightphone.com/
SPUNK right back atcha! Old school flip phones were the best – FACT. Is there anything more satisfying than finishing a call by snapping it shut?? I may look into this…
Also the pride at being able to text without looking? Underrated.
This post hit the spot. I catch myself being rude to the phone solicitors, which makes them angry, and they relentlessly call back. So annoying. Great post.
My job is talking to people all damn day, so I FEEL YOU on this. I’m so glad that my two BFFS tolerate my lack of verbal communication for months at a time. We do just fine with texts. LOL
I highly encourage staying on dnd for weeks at a time