AARRRRGGGHHHH!! A telemarker called at 7:30 this MORNING!

I don't know about you, but I will be SOOOOO glad when October 1 rolls around and my number is taken OFF of most telemarketers' lists! Yesterday alone, Saturday, I had FIFTEEN FUCKING CALLS from the damned telemarketers, a few of whom just wouldn't give up and take a polite "not interested" for an answer. The damn calls started at 8:15 A.M., and didn't stop until 10 p.m. A couple times they left lengthy messages on the machine, filling up the damn tape with their nonsense spiel, as if anyone was ever actually going to get back to them!

What really took the cake yesterday, though, was someone calling to advise my parents (my son and I live with them, and they had taken my son to Cincinnati for the weekend, leaving me to do the weekend telemarketer battle alone) of some damn special offer or other on an auto club run by their insurance company. My mom and stepdad have an unusual Polish surname, and my stepdad goes by Terry, not Terrence, his full name. Everyone we know knows this, and they know how to pronounce the last name, so when someone asks to speak with "Terrence" and then stumbles over the last name, I know it's pretty much a given that it's a telemarketer (or a debt collector, and we don't want to talk to them, either, lol!). So anyway, this person immediately starts stumbling over the name, then says why they're calling, about that "special offer." When I very politely said that I was sorry but that he and my mom weren't available, she then asked if I had another number where she could reach them, which totally floored me! I finally lost my cool, saying that not only did I NOT have another number for them (which was bullshit, I knew exactly where they were!), but that I wouldn't give it to her if I DID have it and she had no right to ask! I then hung up the phone, I was so pissed!

But the REALLY infuriating thing was this morning. SEVEN THIRTY the phone rang. I was in bed, but I answered it, thinking it was my parents, since no one else would call that early. Well, lo and behold, it was another damn telemarketer who, upon hearing that "Terrence-unpronounceable-surname" was unavailable, immediately launched into her spiel anyway, something about a new program from one of their fucking credit cards or something like that. Hoo boy, Jesus H. Christ on a raft, did I let her have it, advising her to buy a watch because she should know better than to bother people at SEVEN FUCKING THIRTY ON A SUNDAY MORNING! I repeated that I couldn't believe she was calling at such a time, that I was sleeping, then I firmly said goodbye and slammed the phone down. Then I took the jack off the phone in my bedroom so I wouldn't have to deal with anymore of that shit and could sleep a couple more hours in peace!

And this happens EVERY FUCKING WEEKEND, and, to a lesser extent, during the week. So, like I said, I don't know about you, but I cannot wait for October 1!

that's what my parents do.

Of course, our phone number used to be a fax number, so it's for different reasons (we're on the PA do-not-call list).

It would drive me crazy. I would get these fax machines calling me at all hours of the day and night. I finally had my number changed. Luckily the phone company didn't charge me anything.

we were being tormented with those g*ddam beeping calls, morning, noon , and night.

The only free thing you can do about them is what I stated in the above post, leave the connection on for about 1/2 hour to let the fax "cycle" through, and then you should not get a call like that again.

Other options included changing the telephone number, and expensive telephone add-ons I used to have, but can no longer afford.

Damn fax calls.

but until then, quietly put the telephone receiver down on the surface of whatever it rests on , for about 1/2 hour, after answering one of them.

You probably won't hear from them again!

And I know, they are just poor people working a rotten job, for not much money.

But they are still a pain in the butt with their AM calls.

why the companies using the telemarketers think that calling all the time, or early in the morning, or being pushy, or any of the other million annoying things about the calls, will actually bring them any substantial amount of business! Sure, they may get a few suckers here and there, but by and large it leaves a very negative impression on people.

It is $5 a month through Verizon. It works with Caller ID. Any number that shows up out of area or just doesn't show, will have to give their name to Verizon first.

Legitimate businesses do that, such as my cable company. Then Verizon gives us a double ring, and asks if we want to speak to them.

We belong to the state no-call list, but that was not stopping fax ads....we DON'T have a Fax. This has stopped them. We were being waked up all hours of the night from automaticallly dialed numbers.

We will keep call intercept.

When we lived in the area -- it was great. If the caller's number was unavailable to the Call ID, they had to enter the number manually; if they didn't, our phone didn't ring. Reduced the number of such calls considerably, since most boiler-rooms use computerized dialers and can't respond to that other than by hanging up. Legitimate vendors with whom we'd done business had no problem with entering their numbers.

They don't offer it where we are now (north of Cinci), but just the Caller ID works pretty well. I just assume anybody whose number is 'anonymous' or 'unavailable' is a telemarketer, and I don't pick up the phone.

Even if I'm wrong, they go to the answering machine and I can call them back later.

if you think the "no-call" list is gonna stop them.

complaints and they have to shell out megabucks in fines, that might finally get through to them!

whose number doesn't show.

... just tell them to add you to their "Do not call" list and have them mail you confirmation that you've been added along with their "do not call" policy in writing.

By law they are required to do this. It actually works. I was getting about 5-8 telemarketing calls a day. Now I only get 3 or 4 per week.

costs .35 a month.

Have had the number for a few years.......have never gotten on the lists.

BUT, I also NEVER give my phone number out either to any business entity unless I absolutely have to. I just say I don't have a phone........

I gave up and I keep the bell turned OFF on my phone and the answering machine ON. Anyone who has to get in touch with me like a friend or relative can use my cell phone and or pager, anyone else calling for a LEGITIMATE bussiness reason can leave a message and I will call them back. I HATE telemarketers they are invading MY home. :grr: :grr: :grr:

what they're doing, and I'm fucking sick and tired of all of the whining from the industry, claiming that there "free speech" rights are being violated! THEIR rights are being violated????????????? Ummm.......Nah, I DON'T FUCKING THINK SO! It's OUR rights that are being violated! What I really hate is the telemarketer's attitude that they somehow have the "right" to give their spiel, and they get angry or even pushier when you politely say you're not interested.

It's been that way for over 20 years... :-( And I doubt it's ever going to get any better until the oil runs out.

http://www.idleworm.com/gms/telem.shtml


Somebody rang at my door at 6:30 this morning. Must be one of those days.

And boy did I ever have fun with that link, lol! Just what the hell did they want at 6:30 in the MORNING????? I hope you let whatever company they represented know just how displeased you were!

Heck I was here till after 3AM ; no way I would ever leave Bed at 6AM on a sunday. No company - just a jerk having stupid fun. Telemarketting is illegal here.

On Edit: it wasn't my telephone, but the doorbell. I would have checked; but when I reached the window nobody was there. (I have an appartment in downtown, so things like that happen sometimes.

They (an Aluminum siding company) called me at 8:00 this morning. The problem, other than the fact that they called me at 8 a.m. after a really good night of drinking, is that I live in an apartment, so I can't qualify.

So, I'm listening to "Kelly" as she's giving me the benefits of their siding. While I'm listening to this, I'm murmering, "Oh yeah, you're SUCH a good girl, yeah, just like that." (I'm petting Buttons, "my" cat and she's headbutting me all over the place).

She stops in the middle of her presentation and asks if I'm interrupting something. I tell her no and ask her to continue. I hit Buttons' "ass button" (for non-cat owners, it's that spot just in front of the tail, it makes their butt shoot way the heck up and they (well, Buttons) starts purring real loud. I ask Buttons if she likes it right there, and I hear a gasp on the other end of the phone.

"Kelly" says that she's sorry for interrupting me, and wishes me a good day. I tell her that she can call me at any time, I'm sure that I won't be busy.

I'm thinking that I wont get a call from them for a while. :evilgrin: