How quietly can you spell it?

You'll all remember that a little while ago, I went to the book launch of "Sodomy: The History of a Christian Biblical Myth" which was written by my old tutor, Dr Michael Carden.

Well, today I was given a $50 book voucher for Angus & Robertson as a prize for something pointless at the day job. Without trying to diss Angus & Robertson, they do tend to carry a little more Stephen King, Dan Brown and Bryce Courtney than could actually be considered healthy. Now fifty bucks is fifty bucks, and I thought that if I rang them up, they could order me in a copy of Michael's book so I could use my book voucher to good effect.

So I give them a call.

"Good morning, Angus & Robertson Bookworld, this is Mandy"

"Hi Mandy, I was wondering if you are able to order a book in for me?"

"Of course", says Mandy, "we would love to - who is the author?"

"Dr Michael Carden", I say. But they can't find any listing for a book by Michael Carden.

"Ok, that's not coming up - what is the title of the book"

"Sodomy: The History of a Christian Biblical Myth"

"Sorry, what was that?"

"Sodomy: The History of a Christian Biblical Myth"

"Uhhh, can you spell that?"

"s-o-d-o-m-y"

"Sorry?"

"S-O-D-O-M-Y", right at that very moment, my bosses interstate visitors arrive and are standing right by my desk with very curious looks on their faces. Just how quietly can you spell sodomy on the phone?

Anyway, she finally found it and has put it on order for me. I think I freaked her out though - and not because I wanted a book called Sodomy. I think I freaked her out because I wanted a non-fiction book that wasn't about WWII or a how-to-guide about becoming a white witch. Well, that'll teach me not to make personal phone calls while at work.