My sister sent me an article she had torn from a magazine. I suspect the magazine could be Oprah, given that there is an O<\/b> in the upper corner of each page. If you’d like to go see the original article, look for the December, 2004 issue. The article is called “You Have The Right To Remain Silent.”<\/p>\n
\nBoy….the title tells you everything. In your house, when the phone rings, is there a rush to answer it? My mother is 88 and she has her own phone. She swears that it waits to ring until she’s clear across the house in the kitchen, or sleeping. Once she’s established that it’s HER phone that is ringing, there’s the race to her living room. Of course, she never makes it in time to answer the call. She’s installed caller ID, so she can see who called if they didn’t leave a message. Once a month or so my stepson will sit down to erase all the messages that have built up in the system for her. If it was my phone, he’d have to sit down once a month to erase all the messages that had built up in the system for me. You can see where I get my mechanical ability.
\nIn the past, our dinner time was roughly 6:00-6:30. For the past fifteen years my husband’s business associate has called Monday through Thursday during dinner hour. My husband will not tell him that we are eating. Instead, he takes the call, and then returns to the table. Personally, I feel that when you have a family activity, you should ask your caller if you could return their call later. I’ve adjusted to Dear Husband’s preferences. I’m trying to serve dinner earlier these days. Do you think his calls will come earlier, too?
\nI have just about reached the point where I don’t answer the phone. I mind having charities interrupt my day with their pleas. I don’t care to have fund raising companies call and brow beat me to send money for police retirement funds. There are times I simply let the machine take the call. It’s not that these things aren’t good causes, but there’s only so far my charitable giving can stretch, and once you are on a list as a giver, you are on EVERYONE’S list! We are inundated with these calls, and feel they should be on the restricted phoning list, too.
\nOur business phone and fax are on the same number. The phone is set to ring twice before the fax machine kicks in. If I don’t make it to the phone in time, I can pick up the handset to get a piercing blast in my ear from a fax being received. There’s good reason to let calls go to the machine. My insurance agent has accused me of being selective about my calls, but it’s only to save my hearing.
\nI resisted getting a fax machine. I was concerned that I would be forever at someone else’s beck and call if they could reach me in this manner. I dragged my feet until Dear Husband went out one day and bought an HP Office Jet. I have to admit, MY day is a lot easier with one, but there’s still room for abuse. Offices that are poorly organized, will send a fax expecting me to respond immediately, and it isn’t going to happen. I’ve tightened up my business practices to be on top of this kind of thing, but there’s a limit to what you can accomplish. It’s the old joke about “You want it WHEN???”
\nI think we should have one day a week when there is NO phone service (except for medical emergencies and police). What do you think? Could you get behind this idea? Let’s all disconnect…….walk away from that phone, and do it PROUDLY!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
My sister sent me an article she had torn from a magazine. I suspect the magazine could be Oprah, given that there is an O in the upper corner of each page. If you’d like to go see the original … Continue reading