The first time I sent my resume out to recruiters, my phone rang nearly continuously for two days. I complained about it once to my wife. She said I should never be ungrateful for a recruiter calling. He father went through a few periods of unemployment and in her eyes a call from a recruiter was a cause for celebration. From that point on, I've always been patient with recruiters, even the dull ones.

I've been around long enough now to have the tables turn. In 2002-2003, calls from recruiters almost completely dried up. I had a job at the time, but I was looking to leave for greener pastures and became very grateful for any calls I received. Now I'm back to getting lots of unsolicited emails and calls, but I just politely decline and maintain a contact, because if the table do turn again, I'll have a wide net already cast to pull in my next gig.