Text before calling

The sound of my phone ringing makes me panic, especially when I am at home, because I am jealous of my time and require so much energy when engaging with the world. Tremendous mental power is consumed for me to get and stay in the zone, and rest is imperative between tasks.

So I become rightfully engraged when my peace is ruined by triviality: a knock on the door, for example, or a phone call. The good thing is I live in a townhouse where it is rare to receive knocks and, when it happens, it is already an expected welcome event (my niece delivering pasalubong from their family's most recent outing).

An unannounced phone call, on the other hand, is an emergency in my vocabulary. You are calling because an urgent response is crucial. Thus my anxiety. What could be wrong at this moment?

So I become rightfully engraged when someone suddenly calls for reasons less important than life-and-death: to yap, to sell, to send emailable information. I say, How dare you decide that I will spare time for you; that I will drop everything to answer, actively listen, and manage emotions? No, ask persmission, allow me to prepare, text first.