Dad: Unedited XXXV

(If my parents don't take your phone calls, at least now you'll know why!  Ha ha!  Enjoy Dad's post.  -- Tracy)

Derf Here!  From the snow-covered but snow-melting Northeast!  The snow is lowering to the point that I am no longer worried about my trailer roof collapsing.  What a relief!!  Thank you, Sun!!

Mainely Tracy recently mentioned a phone call for a survey about flu shots or something related to it.  This made me start thinking about a great, great, great invention making my life much better.  The invention:  Caller ID!

I believe that caller ID is one of the great inventions/discoveries aiding mankind to surely enjoy life at a higher level.

Since we have had caller ID, it has helped us to eliminate unwanted talks with intrusions on our privacy.  Our 'info globe' and 'ID' phones let us know immediately whom is calling.  We never answer the phone unless we know the person calling.  I might also add that sometimes we know who is on the line and also choose not to speak with them.  Just kidding!

As soon as the ringing stops we will check and see if a message has been left on our phone.  Most of the time there is no message.  The next step in our checking on callers is me taking a trip to the computer to look up information on the calling number.  I then look for comments from others who receive the same calls.  More often than not there are reports that the callers should be on the 'no call list.'  The comments also say "watch out" for these people as they are unscrupulous people worth watching with both eyes open.

We are at the point in phone answering that we even get verification of doctors' appointments via messages as some doctors' names do not appear, only their number.

After seeing a number over and over with no message we will pick up the phone after one ring and replace it without answering.  Perhaps they will get the message.  Remove our number from your files, please.

So, it boils down to this:  If you call our number, we answer only to calls that state name and number.  Then we say "Hello" only if we recognize names.  After receiving messages deemed to harm the caller, I will return a call to make the caller aware of their mistake.

Case in point!  We received a message about a business deal that had no connection to us.  Obviously a wrong number.  The return call allowed the person to recall the business at the correct number.

So, if you call us with no answer, understand that we may not want to talk to you or we do not know who is calling.  We'll check your number and if necessary we'll get back to you.  No donations over the phone, however.  Absolutely NONE!!

There, I feel a relief after venting about people calling 'our' phone.  The phone is ours for our use -- not yours!!

I hope this doesn't stop anyone from calling us.  Keep calling -- we'll make the decision!!

Until next time,

Toodle Pip!  Derf.