I don't understand your ad with the babysitter's phone number

Clearly what the ad is saying is that The Baby-Sitters Club needs to
come back. ^_^ One number--seven reliable sitters! Child psychology
and mystery-solving free!

Handyman. I would never give out my Handyman's name for love or money.
Okay I will, as long as he isn't working on a project of mine. He does
fantastic work. and I treat him like gold. Homemade lunch and
sometimes beer but only after the job is done.

Exactly what Red said below...excellent babysitters are at a premium
and once you found one you do not want to share her with anyone else!
Kind of like keeping a lawyer on retainer. I thought it was humerous
especially when she is leaving and says to make sure its a window
seat.

It didn't keep me up at night but I completely didn't get it either.
Now I do. Next time I see it I won't be scratching my head.

Very simply, some women DO guard their babysitter's name and number
because they want the babysitter to be available for them. I was the
only girl of babysitting age in my rural area under 16, so without a
license, I was available for babysitting, whereas the older girls were
out having fun. I was in demand, especially on New Year's Eve.

LOL! The OP is obsessing because she doesn't get the ad and I am
obsessing because that actress (the one with the babysitter) looks so
familiar (and I just can't place her!!)

HELP!

Thanks all - I understand what they were going for now.

I had pointed it out to some friends when it came on and it was
confusing all of us, so I figured I could get an answer from this
community and I did.

So thanks.

in some places, good babysitters are hard to find. I've personally
never experienced this, but I remember as a kid neighbors fighting
over my sister and I to watch their kids and would frequently ask us
MONTHS in advance for special occasions. Maybe when you don't have
family around, it's difficult. I dunno!

I guess the lady in the commercial thinks that getting access to a
really good babysitter is worth a trip to Palm Springs. It's a type
of humor that I'm sure people who've never experienced it would have a
hard time understanding.

But I felt kinda bad for the other lady! the main lady uses her to
make the lady with the babysitter jealous and then skips out after
agreeing to take the first woman. So she got nothing out of the deal
and teased with how "WARM" it was in Palm Springs that week! That
seemed kind of unfair :(

Ah well, it's 60 seconds of my life I can't get back anyway!

Good babysitters are hard to find. If you give out the number of your
babysitter to others than he/she might not be available when you need
them.

A good babysitter is hard to find. Once you have one, do you want to
compete with everyone from a Friday night?

I have a good babysitter. My wife mentioned this to our neighbor.
Now, they use this same babysitter.

In fact, while the girl is babysitting for us, our neighbor will call
OUR PHONE to ask the babysitter to sit for her.

Sharing is nice. But when it means that you can't go out on the date
you want because everyone is fighting to get the same sitter...
well... you tend to keep secrets.

This said, it's a bad ad because those people that aren't in this
situation may not get the humor (as your letter shows). Which means,
as I always say, the ad is aimed at you.

Some folks do not share the names of good sitters, cleaning people,
etc, for fear they will be "stolen"

Example: Sallie gives Debbie her sitters name. Debbie starts paying
sitter more, having better snacks available, etc. Suddenly, sitter is
no longer available to Sallie because Debbie has "stolen" said
sitter.

It's an ad. Whereas I never even remember what company a humorous ad
is for, you are obsessed with this ad. Therefore it did its job. I
don't think the babysitter's number was designed to be a mcguffin, but
in your case, it acted somewhat as one.

Jared C.,

When I first saw the Ad I took it to mean that the babysitter is very
valuable to the one Mom and she cared not to share the number thinking
that she would lose the services of her best babysitter.

To some degree this Ad must have worked as it did get your attention
and keep it and keep it and keep it.....


BillR.