"We— static —proposal— click —unacceptable," the voice from Tokyo said.

Ten minutes later, the "UFO" was in the trash. The new sleek device sat on the mahogany, glowing with a soft, confident blue light. Arthur hit the dial.

Sarah didn't just walk; she sprinted. She burst through the doors of the local Best Buy and found a "Blue Shirt" named Kevin.

Kevin didn't blink. He led her to the small business tech section. "You want the or the Poly Studio ," he said, pointing to sleek, black bars that looked like they belonged on a starship. "High-def audio, 4K cameras, and noise cancellation that can ignore a leaf blower outside the window."

Arthur hit 'Flash' to dial. The line crackled like a campfire. When the Tokyo team picked up, their voices sounded like they were shouting from the bottom of a well through a mouthful of crackers.

Arthur leaned back, a grin spreading across his face. He looked at the sleek black device. "Best money we ever spent," he whispered. "Actually," Sarah chimed in, "it was on sale."

The connection was instant. The voice from Tokyo was so crisp it felt like the Japanese executives were sitting across the table.