What do you do when you are driving aroudn town on your tractor, can’t find your friends, and are bored? If you are a particular young Finnish man*, you call the local radio station and try to talk your way into a free prize. There are no contests going on, no give-aways currently taking place, nothing free available. You call and tell tham that you are bored and would like to win something, perhaps if you tell a good enough story or sing a good enough song. Sometimes it even works.

I have to admit that this had never occurred to me. While I do not even have access to a tractor, I still find myself bored at times. The radio contests are never conveniently timed for meö it never occurred to me to make my own.

Are you not comfortable calling up a stranger? Instead of calling a radio station, you can call someone you know but have not spoken to in some time: perhaps a friend you have fallen out of touch with or a family member that you have not spoken to recently.

* Not all young Finns drive around town on their tractors. In fact, this is the only tractor you will see driving around the city. This particular young man does not yet have his driver’s license (he’s only 17 and you cannot test for it until 18) and drives a tractor for his job. He is allowed to drive it around during his off-hours and takes full advantage of this opportunity.