There is an art to time-wasting. And then there is the art to wasting other people’s time.

One of the most annoying traits I have come across is those people who ring me after having sent me an e-mail.

I know of several people who do this on a regular basis. Having sent an e-mail they will call to ask… ‘Did you get my e-mail?’.

To which I reply ‘Yes, I did thank-you.’ I have even stopped taking the calls now because I know they are only calling to check if I got the message.

The problem is despite technological advances it seems some of us still do not believe that the e-mail will have sent. So just in case it hasn’t come through I will ring.

This is not the nineties when messages would get lost in the great wilderness that is e-mail neverland.

Not once in my life have I replied ‘No the e-mail has not come through.’ Okay, I did once and the e-mail was sent again several times. Five e-mails arrived thirty seconds later.

You can rest assured that e-mails will eventually make it to the other side. That is what they do.

It is their purpose in life.

Even worse than the ‘e-mail follow-ups’ are the ‘text follow-ups’. We are only permitted to live for a number of years. Some of us will make it past the 70 mark and some of us will not.

I know I have spent several days of my life explaining that I did indeed get the text.

I think there are two reasons why people do this. Firstly, they want to make sure you have no excuse later to ever state that you did not get the message. They do not want to leave anything to chance.

Secondly, they want to save their own bacon when later questioned.

I think after a while there is only way to make sure you get your own back.

‘Do you get the text I sent you’.

‘Yes, I did’.

‘Why have you not replied?’ Embarrassing silence.

Dialling tone.