You know I contribute to an AT&T blog about working moms and cell phones?   Which the girls think is hysterical, since they are so much more techy than am I. 

But here's something even I use (though Rachel's the one who told me about it) -  Cha-Cha.  242-242, texted on your wireless phone to get answers to questions.  Last's week's CalmCoolConnected post about Cha-Cha generated numerous email questions to me, plus (at last count) 16 of the comments that I so desire.  I live for comments.  I love comments.  I want to marry comments.  So please - if you go watch this little video clip - click the "Comments" link, scroll to the bottom, and "Leave A Reply."  They're why I get up in the morning.

Here's the clip:  Learn About Cha-Cha

And here are questions I've been asked:

What's the catch?  They have to charge something.
They do.  But they charge their advertisers, not you (the textor.) 

Is it really free?  Or, as Rachel say, "Free 99!?"
As long as you have a texting plan on your phone.

Will they start spamming me with all sorts of ads?
Not according to their privacy policy.  We use cha-cha all the time and so far - no weirdness.

Who actually answers the questions?
I suspect folks in a call center far, far away.  I would not pursue "Cha-Cha Specialist" as a career choice.

Are their answers any good?
For us they have been.  I've not asked the meaning of life or anything like that.

Guess what?  I asked Cha-Cha what a penguin, boot, train, whale and piano have in common!
Me too.  And I got the same answer you did:  "Black and white."  Which tells me the puzzle must be really old, because not all boots and trains are black now.  But at least - mystery solved.  Or as solved as it's likely going to get.  Where's Nancy Drew and Nero Wolfe when you need them?

Can you call Cha-Cha?
You can call 1-800-2-cha-cha but we don't.  In fact, I'm not sure my kids would know how - you know, that whole "talking on the phone" thing they used to do.   I'm not sure Rachel, Lois or Hannah actually speak words now, other than, "I need...." and "She took...."

Is Cha-Cha 24 x 7?
They say they are but I can't verify it because I'm not.

I don't have AT&T Wireless.  Will Cha-Cha work with my service?
(sigh)  Yes.   But you should get AT&T Wireless.  And you should call or ping me so I can hook you up.  Do it now.  Operators are standing by.


I have another very handy texting trick that I'm saving for another day. You're going to want to know it.  So.....