M.I.A.

I like to think I'm a good person. I try to be, at least. I pay taxes. I go to church. I don't litter. I use my turning signal. And when I get a new phone number, I make every effort to notify every single person in my phonebook with my new contact information. I update my info with every business I deal with. I send out mass emails as a reminder of my new phone number. Sounds reasonable, right?

Apparently not every person out there is reasonable. One such unreasonable person used to have my phone number before I got it. And since I'm a nice person, I'll do the nice thing and protect her name, so we'll just call her Ms. M.I.A. I am absolutely floored by how she just up and left. After I got my new phone number a year ago August, I spent the first few weeks playing her personal secretary, informing every friend, family member, former co-worker, debt collector, and telemarketer that this was no longer her phone number. And people, please, if someone tells you that you've got the wrong number, just take their word for it. Don't call back 10 minutes later. Or the next day. Don't call back months later, either, because Ms. M.I.A. is STILL not at my phone number.

Christmastime last year was especially fun, when all the distant relatives came out of the woodwork making their annual phone calls. One woman called and gave this weird story about how everyone was looking for her. One of my favorite everyday hassles for a few weeks was from a company who kept calling and leaving voicemail messages, something about being interested in buying her timeshare. Now, if they're getting through to MY voicemail, and hearing MY name and MY voice on the voicemail greeting, wouldn't all these people get the hint that they've got the wrong number? You would think that. But apparently not. I even had some school in Georgia constantly calling me, leaving automated voice messages about (her?) kid who kept getting detention at school.

Well, the months flew by, and no phone calls for Ms. M.I.A. But just when I was starting to miss all the attention, yesterday I get a phone call from her doctor's office. I tell the lady that this is no longer her number. Pretty self-explanatory, right? Again, that would be way too easy. The same lady from the same office called AGAIN today asking for her. WHAT PART OF "THIS IS NOT HER NUMBER", DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND?! And then ANOTHER phone call for her later this afternoon. I'm sure the phone calls will only increase as the holidays get closer..... I don't know who I'm more annoyed with - Ms. M.I.A., or her fresh-off-the-turnip-truck friends, relatives, co-workers, etc....

And yes, everyone I've complained to says, "Why don't you just change your number?" Well, namely 'cause it's a pain in the butt, I've had it for awhile now, and I keep hanging onto a small shred of hope that after a year these people will finally get a clue. Eh, maybe not.

So I think I've finally decided to start calling these people back, and asking them for some random person. I'll just make up a name, and start calling for that person. Over, and over again. I'll get the number off the Caller ID, and just start calling them back in 10 minute intervals. Then I'll call back the next day, just to make sure that the fictious person I ask for STILL isn't there. Yes, that would be fun.

That's my rant for the day.