Often students communicate in email. Sometimes they present me with situations I cannot easily fix. Adding to the frustration is waiting for a reply to verify they have read the email. I like short circuiting the whole thing by sending them my phone number. Call me I say. It freaks them out. Sometimes it takes three days before they call but once we are on the phone the problem gets solved, whatever it was. So much easier to not bullshit if you can directly talk to the person. That was how twenty-five year old Jerry Weintraub got Elvis to tour stadiums, somehow he got Colonel Tom’s phone number.