Reporter’s Diary: The silver lining of a boring conversation

However, there is also the third kind – the one who poses questions for your questions. The reporter came across the third category, while reaching out to nutritionists for a story. The interview done on phone that lasted almost an hour was with an upcoming dietician, who was more than willing to spare time for a detailed telecom.

The first part of it went deeply into the subject of eating the right kind of food and the myths about breakfast. Well into the second half of the conversation, the reporter seemed to have broached upon the expert’s favourite topic. After repeating her favourite refrain ‘let’s get the real picture right’ almost 10 times, much to the reporter’s frustration, the expert began asking questions about her diet, her weight and sleep patterns, making her all the more uncomfortable. 

Some of the questions the expert posed included: Do you take enough fibre? How many bowls of fruit do you eat? How often do you include greens? Despite replying in monosyllables, there seemed to be no way out. After wriggling her way out of the conversation, the reporter hung up with a sigh of relief. However, when she revisited her notes, she realised she had received a dietary chart from the expert–something that would have cost her at least one appointment with the expert. Talk about the adage: every cloud has a silver lining.