Telemarketers in Transition

I confess. I screen the telemarketers. Given that son FF's phone skills are less than sparkling, and his tolerance for people asking him questions is low, at best, I stop the always-at-dinnner telemarketers in their tracks. Either I don't answer at all, or I gleefully stay on the line--silently--as they repeatedly, almost desperately ask, "Hello?...Hello?...Hellooo?" until, baffled, they give up and go away.

I suppose I should let FF answer when they ask for him by name. After all, dealing with telemarketers is an independent life skill. It might not be on the top of the Transition Checklist,* but it's a life skill, nonetheless.

Tonight, though, I answered just as I saw the "U.S. Marine Corp" i.d. flash across the screen. Blast, I thought in that split second. 

Me: Hello?
Mr. Recruiter: Hi. May I speak to FF please?
Me: May I tell him who's calling?
Mr. Recruiter: I'm from the U.S. Marine Corp and I just have a couple of questions for him.
Me: Okay. FF has autism. Do you still want to talk to him?
Mr. Recruiter: Uh...uh...sure.

Good answer, Mr. Recruiter! Way to be inclusive and non-discriminatory. But then, I cut him off.

Me: [laughing] Good for you, but actually, FF is headed out the door right now for a class. 
Mr. Recruiter: Okay, well, thanks anyway.

When FF turned 18, we did the right thing and filled out and submitted his selective service paperwork (that IS one of the items on the Transition Checklist*). As a result, recruiters know his name and his age. They may also know that he is a college student and that he's unemployed. I don't really know how much Big Brother is watching and how much background knowledge they have on prosprective recruits. They don't know his diagnosis, though--and shouldn't.

On reflection, Mr. Recruiter handled that phone call pretty well. Me? Not so much. A) I should have let FF answer. B) I should not have disclosed his disability. But cut me some slack; it was a telemarketer call, and we were headed out the door and in a hurry. 

I checked in with FF, though, a few minutes later and asked him what he would've said if he had answered the call. "Not interested," he said. He gets better marks for his answer than I do for mine. 

Transition is all about learning new skills. Next time I'll be better. I promise. 

The good news is FF got a call about a job! Just not the job for him. 

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*If your male student between the ages of 18 and 25 still needs to register, find out more information or register online on the Selective Service website. Transition checklists can vary from state to state and may change as your child/student's post-school goals change. Google "transition toolkit" or "transition checklist for students with disabilities" for more info or to create your own. Here's an earlier post on our experiences with part of our checklist.