Thank God For Caller ID....

I hate talking on the phone. I don't know when or how this came about, since I was a normal teenaged girl once upon a time who had to be pried off of the receiver at any given hour. But now, I absolutely loathe it and I only answer the phone (home and cell) if I recognize the caller or number on the caller ID.

Don't get me wrong, there are people that I love talking to, namely family and friends, although talking to my mom is more often than not a sobering experience, but I cannot stand talking to telemarketers, calling customer services, setting appointments, etc. I really have no idea why....phone shy after all these years maybe? I used to work as a telephone interpreter for hospitals and clinics and really enjoyed that....did I burn out? Who knows, all I know is that if I don;t know who is on the other end, I just don't bother answering.

I swear that if I didn't have caller ID I would never answer the phone, and I'd pull the old "screening phone calls" game we all did in the 80's and early 90's. Remember that? Someone calls you, they start to leave a message and you realize that you want to talk to them so you pick up mid message and feign that you were just walking in the door, flushing the toilet, or cleaning up after your dog.

And now, telemarketers are starting to call our cell phones. My husband has had to deal with those calls quite a bit already....not me, I don't answer, remember? But I just hate hearing my cell ring (all cells have completely obnoxious ringtones, no matter who you are) only to see an "Unavailable" number pop up knowing full well that someone is trying to get me to donate money I don't have or buy a subscription to some magazine I haven't even heard of.

Yes, thank God for caller ID. Now, if I could only find ringtones for both my home and cell that don't make me want to jump out of my skin everytime the damn things ring. A babbling brook or ocean waves might be nice......

ModelMom – March 1, 2006 – 1:07pm

caller ID – cellular phones – misanthropy – telemarketing – telephones

Confessions of A Model Mom –

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I feel the same way.

I was ecstatic when I first got my cell phone. Heck, I remember when I used to run home to check my ansering machine, then the beeper-pager craze and now the cell.

I liked it better when I could actually be MIA...

theclassy1 – March 1, 2006 – 2:48pm

Spoofcard

You are going to hate to hear this but for every good technology that comes along it seems like someone comes up with a way to ruin it. I was just reading about spoofcard, it gives callers the ability to program in a number that the person they are calling will see on their callerID. (you can check it out yourself at spoofcard.com).

Anonymous – March 2, 2006 – 1:04pm

Thrilling!!!

I only pick up if I recognize the number. Everyone else can leave a message!

By the way, I found a site that all of you might be interested in. I posted all the info on my latest entry at my blog. Check it out and let me know what you think!

Ciao!

theclassy1 – March 2, 2006 – 2:05pm

me too!

i only pick up if i recognize the # too. but i bet one of these days someone is gonna figure out how to make a familiar number show up when the call is actually coming form a telemarketer.....LOL!

ModelMom – March 2, 2006 – 9:19pm

no way!

that is crazy...i am gonna have to check that site out. what will they think of next!!

ModelMom – March 2, 2006 – 9:18pm

They are ridiculous!

If I get a telemarketer on the phone, I am always courteous because I know they are doing their job. Now if I get one of those abrasive, persisitent types that doesn't get the picture: I hang up!! That's what I will do! I am too busy to deal with nonsense. My 4 yr old is on the autism spectrum and he HATES when I am on the phone. If I can't talk , I make it known. If they don't get it they will be hearing the dial tone!

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theclassy1 – March 3, 2006 – 4:42am

I am almost always

I am almost always courteous. The only exception is for the highway patrol fundraisers.

"Ma'am, we're calling to get your support for the highway patrol, and we are going to send you a lovely sticker. Now we can't promise this will get you out of any tickets. HAAA!" They always bleat in my ear, they always sound as though they are former used car salesmen with hairy chests poking out of their button-up shirt and WAY too many gold chains around their necks, and they ALWAYS wait for me to laugh at that same tired joke. They also seem to have a knack for calling when someone is bleeding or I have to pick my son up from school, or something else where I have to leave the house immediately. And normally I wouldn't answer the phone in such situations, but it might be a school emergency...

Argh.

IntricateGirl – March 3, 2006 – 7:18am

Police Fundraisers?

My ex-husband has a business. It was brokrn into on several occassions. The police did nothing even though customers stated they observed the burglary. Later when the business was booming they implied that it was in his best interest to donate money to their fundraiser!

They used to call me at home all the time. I never donated any money... I can't see myself funding the same people that give me a hard time when I am driving...Anyone watch Crash? Well, that movie was realistic. Welcome to my life!

Earn money blogging at Blogcharm!

theclassy1 – March 3, 2006 – 8:03am

gasp!

That is unreal! I haven't seen Crash, but it sounds like the police corruption of old where the police were competing with the mob for business.

They always start out with the sob story that deputies must buy their own bullet-proof vests. Well, first of all, that's a load of crap. Second, if they do have to buy their own, it's not like the government doesn't make funds available for the purchase (I just researched this to make sure I knew what I was talking about). Third, I live in the middle of nowhere and we've had two violent crimes in the last 15-20 years. One made national news (sadly) and the other was against a police officer, but the offender was not from around here and the officer is fine now. But the crime had nothing to do with bullets and his vest can't stop a car from hitting him. Fourth, I've worked in a police station (not an officer) and there's equipment there. And fifth, and most importantly, my freakin' tax dollars pay for that stuff. It's not that I WON'T fund them. It's that I already DO! lol

IntricateGirl – March 3, 2006 – 8:47am

You know what!

That was an excellent point!

Earn money blogging at Blogcharm!

theclassy1 – March 3, 2006 – 9:17am

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