Walked in the house the other day and the answering machine light was blinking.
Just what I needed after a long, hard day at the office.
To listen to a half-dozen long-winded messages from telemarketers selling products I am not interested in or cannot afford.
Instead, I was pleasantly surprised to hear a voice with a slight Swedish tinge say, "Hi, I'm Mats Sundin of the Toronto Maple Leafs..."
The first thought that ran through my head (first intelligent one, anyway) was, hey, Mats returned my phone call.
Wait a sec, did I call him? What was it about? Were we going to meet up for a few beers?
Then it hit me.
OK, it didn't hit me. I stopped what I was doing and actually listened to the message.
Slowly it began to sink in. Then something did hit me.
Disappointment.
The message, apparently left on other answering machines to befuddle many more Leafs fans, wasn't for me.
Well, it was for me. And about a half-million other Rogers cable customers.
Rogers, one of Canada's cable television giants, was using Mats Sundin to perpetrate fraud.
Here I was thinking Big Matty wanted to talk to me. Nope, I was just another faceless customer to string along.
If there was something positive to come out of this, I now know Leafs TV is included in my cable package. So is Raptors NBA TV, whatever that is.
Great news, except I already knew. Found out when I was surfing the channels one night.
About a month ago. Hey, even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.
Good thing, too. If I waited for Mats to call, I would have missed four games.
Mats, if you're reading this, call back and leave me another message.
This time leave your number.
I'd love to call and leave a message for you after you've had a hard day at the office.
If I recall correctly, there have been a few of those for your Leafs lately.