Yet another problem with telemarketers is those autodialing systems they all have
now. If I answer the phone and no one's there, not only did I have to interrupt
what I was doing and get up, but I have no way of knowing if it's a crank call, or
someone trying to check if the house is empty before attempting to break in, or an
autodialer hanging up on me because one of the three other people it dialed
simultaneously answered first. These days the last is by far the most likely,
though I'm starting to think it's every bit as invasive as the other two. (Well,
ok, having the house broken into would be worse.)
Last night we got
five phone calls and not one of them was anyone either of us wanted to talk to.
One caller evinced evidence of working brain cells and I was so bedazzled I agreed
to let her give me a quote on auto insurance, though I'm happy with my current
company. (Then she said someone else would call me back. Humph. I bet he's not up
to her standard even if he does have a fancier title.)
I could get
Caller ID, but then I'd still have to get up to see what number was calling. I
could even get the deal where the Caller ID shows on your TV screen, but I have no
desire to watch that much TV. When they get one that flashes across your book,
maybe it will be useful. I could get one of those systems where callers have to
know a special code to get through, but I never remember the code of those friends
who have one, and I have no reason to believe anyone else would remember mine, And
I've run afoul of those systems when I wanted to get through to someone in a
hurry.
The worst is the nmber of callers that dial us at 8:30 or so,
which is generally just when we've managed to fall asleep. If I were less of a
worrywart, I'd unplug the phone when I went to bed. I keep thinking someone could
be calling with an emergency message. I have gotten calls then or later to find
out one parent or the other was in the hospital, and though I can't do much from
2000 miles away, I do like to know these things when they happen. Besides, I'd
never remember to turn the phone back on the next day. I could just turn off the
upstairs phone but I sleep lightly enough that the downstairs one wold probably
wake me up.
Clearly, abolishing all telemarketers is the only
solution. Does anybody really want to hear about glass repair, upholstery
cleaning, or mortgages over the phone anyway?