Why I Don't Like to Answer My Phone

I really hate phones.  I mean, really.  I've always hated talking on the phone.  Perhaps it's because I think my voice sounds like a little kid.  Perhaps it's because you can tell so much more from a conversation by paying attention to body language.  Perhaps it's because I'm a little shy and don't really talk much.  Well, all of the above are definite contributors to it, but the biggest reason why I don't like to answer my phone, or why I simply don't answer it at all sometimes, is salesmen.

Multiple times during the day I just let the phone ring, because I know for a fact that it is a salesman.  Grrrrr.... they irritate me!  I realize that it's their job, and they deserve respect, but seriously, if I tell you I'm not interested, that's not an invite to tell me why I should be interested, and if I tell you to put me on your "do not call list," that means don't ever call me again, not to try again tomorrow.

Today, I had two sales calls that I actually answered, and they both happened before lunch time!  Big mistake to answer.

The first one was at 8:30 am.  Eight freaking thirty, people!  Don't sales people know that common courtesy for phone calls is between 9:00 am and 9:00 pm?  Strike one.  It was a realtor trying to get us to choose him to sell our house.  His greeting was this, "Hello, I'm so and so, the best real estate agent in the world."  Um, no.  First of all, you woke me up . . . grr.  Second, you shouldn't tell me you're the best agent in the world.  That immediately turns me off and makes me think you're a conceited jerk.  Strike two.  Then, he asked me if I knew why our house didn't sell.  Of course I know why it didn't sell!  We took it off the market of our own free will!  Strike three.  I politely said, "Yes, I do.  We took it off the market."  He continued his spiel about wanting to be our realtor.  Then asked again, why we thought it didn't sell.  I replied, "We took it off the market because we didn't want to move."  Thank goodness for my response that put his foot in his mouth!  We've had many calls like this, and many letters in the mail like this.  It frustrates me, because they're assuming that our agent did a bad job.  We liked our agent and will use him again if he's available when we decide to put our house on the market again.

The second one was a little later.  Thank you, courteous saleswoman, for calling at a decent time.  However, she needs to get her information updated.  She was from dealer services and inquired about our 2009 Dodge Journey.  Um, we traded that in for our Pathfinder over a year ago.  And, I think we have changed our phone number since then, so that makes me think, "stalker company?"  Also, we get calls from this particular company every single day, and I think we have told them to put us on their "do not call list" a couple of times, and yet, they still call!  Argh!  Oh, and when I told her we traded it in, she asked if we owned or leased.  Seriously, lady, just let me go and update your information!

So, it's been an adventure today, to say the least.  Thank you for letting me vent.  Honestly, I try to be polite to these people, because I'm sure they dislike their job, but when I tell you I'm not interested, I mean it.  Just end the conversation, and don't push me for a sale.