A few months back, on the way to work, my car started overheating big time. I pulled off the highway and into the closest service station. Since I had a meeting to attend, I called my assistant to pick me up and left the car at the shop. A few hours later, I received that dreaded call; a blown head gasket. That basically meant that I needed a new engine, not an inexpensive proposition. (I have, figuratively, blown a gasket in the past but never realized how expensive it could be!) I wasn’t so sure that I wanted to spring for a new engine since I had just replaced it aproximately a year earlier. So, I have been renting a car and mulling over the decision. Just a few days ago, I decided I should go for the new engine but I hadn’t yet dropped the car off at the mechanic.
This past Friday morning, shortly after arriving at shul, my cell phone buzzed. Now, I’m usually pretty good about ignoring my cell phone in shul. But, I saw that it was my home number and my wife knew that I had just arrived at shul so I thought perhaps it was an emergency. (One of my kids was home with a stomache virus as well)
I stepped outside to answer the call. My oldest daughter said that a friend of ours had just called and told her that they had announced my name on the radio and that I had 20 minutes to call back to win a car. At that moment, I got call waiting and one of the bloggers from here was calling to ask if I had entered a radio contest. My daughter got another call from a neighbor telling her “your father needs to call ESPN Sports Radio right away.”
It turns out that a local sports radio station was running a “Win a Hummer in the Months of Summer” contest. As most radio contests go, they announce a winner’s name on the air and the winner has 20 minutes to call in to claim the prize. Small problem, we didn’t have the number to call.
Everyone scrambled: I told my daughter to put on AM 1050 to listen for the number, a Rabbi that I know who also heard my name announced was googling away. During that time, I was thinking how Hashem provides everything we need. He knows that I need a car and he found an interesting way to get it to me. I had just finished saying the brocha “shasah li kol zarckee” thanking Hashem for giving me everything I need. Here was proof!
Suddenly, I got another call from my daughter excitingly telling me that they just heard them say my name on the air and they gave the number that I needed to call, a friend also called to give the number and the Rabbinical Googler left me a message with his results. My daughter told me to call right away as there were only five minutes left. I called the number which seemingly rang interminably. Finally an answer:
Radio Intern: ESPN Radio.
Me: Yes, my name was announced on the air.
RI: What’s your name?
Me: David Linn.
RI: Great, I need to verify some information.
Me: OK
RI: What is your birthday?
Me: July xx, 19xx
RI: Sorry, that is not the birthday we have, must be someone with a similar name.
Me: OK, thanks a lot.
After calling my daughter and telling her that it wasn’t me, I went back into shul to finish (catch up on) davening.
I figured if Hashem wants me to have a car, He’s got a world of possibilities at His disposal. Besides, how would I ever afford the gas for a Hummer?
100 per cent. That was one of the amazing things I got out of the whole thing. I’ve got some great friends.
Now you know you have friends who would like you to win a Hummer. This is more important than winning the Hummer.
Yeah and imagine me doing carpool in a Hummer!
If you were worried about the gas David, imagine the price of the insurance!!!
What a story!
JT:
You never know.
Mark:
Ok, I agree, so, to the BT mobile…
So the Pollyana Perspective has really taken off. How do u know though that g-d didnt want you to win the hummer through ESPN .Maybe the DJ read off the wrong birthday and maybe had you put more effort into the hummer winning and gone down physcially to the ESPN Radio station headquarters or whatever they would have gotten the birthday right (or however else you can apply the applying a more concerted effort concept to the hummer winning) …..and you would be driving your Hummer to prayers tonight .You can never know when to classify the situation as g-d wanted it to be this way or to classify the situation as needs more effort.
There may be many David Lin(n)s but there is only one David Linn – and thank G-d he is a co-coordinator of Beyond BT.
If you do win a Hummer, maybe you can Mekadesh it even further by declaring it the Beyond BTmobile. With no real nafkimina (difference) except maybe a bumper sticker.
In actuality there are very few David L-i-n-ns but probably many Davids that spell their last name L-i-n. I actually has a student this semester with the last name Lin.
In this instance, they also mentioned the town where I live (although I didn’t hear it personally, the reviews differed between Kew Gardens and Kew Gardens Hills). As to whether I actually entered the contest, I didn’t remember doing so but I do listen to the station from time to time and have called in once or twice for contests so I figured maybe I qualified like that. When I reached my offfice that afternoon, I found the radio station’s website since I wanted to register for the contest. I filled out the form and submitted, I got a reply stating that my email address is already registered.
As to why you are suspicious, I don’t think anyone could answer that other than you. All I can tell you is what I told everyone who had called me after hearing the name announced “The next time I win a Hummer, I’ll take you for a spin.”
How many David Linn’s are there? Why am I suspicious? Did actually enter your name in an ESPN contest?