Question for Americans, please. Oh yes, and a poll....

[thismaz]

Question for my American flisters. Please can you help?

If you need to make a collects call, what happens? I mean...

I guess you dial the operator. If it's a public phone box, what number do you dial?
What do you ask them? "I want to make a collect call to..." Is that it?
What would they say?
What happens when the phone at the other end rings?

ETA: I'm asking the question in the context of it being 1997. Sorry, I should have thought to say that.

That's it. Any advice, appreciated.

The other bit of this post is because for months, every time I logged on, LJ was asking me if I wanted to post a poll.

So why do I want to post this poll?
. - because I've never done one before.

What's it about?
. - Whether I should do a poll.
[Poll #929765]
*Wipes brow* It's taken me an hour and a half to do this post.

Comments

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

Thank you, Cindy. Do you mind if I bug you with one more question? If there weren't one in the motel office (or if it was broken) could there be one across the street, outside a diner? Is that the sort of place where the telephone company would put one? And if so, would it be on the wall outside, or would it be inside?
Many thanks. I don't really know why I'm worrying about this so much, but I do seem to be. Maybe it's a way of procrastinating, instead of writing. *g*

[grneyedwoman.livejournal.com]

You would find them at an convenience store. The kind that sells gas and coffee,sodas,beer,snacks, sometimes hot food. Not always at a straight gas station.A liquor store. Outside a diner like Denny's. They are usually outside at least here on the west coast. Man oh man haven't thought this much about phone booths since I let my phone go years ago for a few months when we couldn't pay the bill. Weirdly fun.
Cindy

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much. I know I am making a great fuss for what may be one line, or may not even be there at all, but for some reason this really got hold of me. So I am very grateful to you for taking the trouble to answer.