Caller ID

Wonder who's calling - time to run or be direct?

I know, I should probably get caller ID as it would avoid scenes like this;

*Phone rings, dad answers*
Dad: “Hello”
Caller: “Hello Mr Ahmed. How are you?”
Dad: “Yes fine thank you. Sorry who is this?”
Caller: “Mr Ahmed, we’ve heard that someone in your household has had a car accident recently.”
Dad: *Puts the phone down and looks at me* “Anything you need to tell me? Forgotten perhaps?”
Me: “Err, not that I can remember. Why?”
Dad: “Someone said you had a car accident”
Me: “Who?”
Dad: “The woman on the phone”
Me: *Being sarcastic* “Yes, because cold callers are never wrong and know EVERYTHING”
Dad: ”Sooo… is that a NO then?”

Or this
*Phone rings, mum answers*
Mum: “Hello”
Caller: “Hello Mrs Ahmed. How are you?”
Mum: “I’m fine, thank you”
Caller: “Mrs Ahmed did you know that *insert number* (hundreds/ thousands/ millions) of (people/ cats/ dogs/ any living thing) dying every (second/minute/week/hour/month/year)?
Mum: “Oh really? That is terrible”
Caller: “Yes I know Mrs Ahmed, which is why…”

And so the caller follows this up with a bombardment of more facts and figures etc which keeps my poor mum on the phone for at least a good 20 to 30 minutes. Quite often they manage to persuade my mum into doing whatever they want her to do (bless her) whilst my dad just puts the phone down on them (he just doesn’t have the time, lol).

I can usually detect when a caller is selling me something so I usually make up some excuse (bad I know!) or quietly cut them all off whilst they’re running through their spiel. Recently however I have been tricked on more than once occasion! People will ring and upon answering the phone they will usually respond with “Assalamu Alaikum” the islamic equivalent of hello. It tricks me into thinking it might be someone my parents may know etc and so I will continue the conversation until I’m pretty sure it’s not someone I know. However by this point it’s harder to cut the call off as I’ve been talking to them for a while (sneaky eh?) and so I will continue talking to them and wait for them to come up for air/ take a pause so that I can interrupt and tell them politely to go away.

It’s not all bad though and you do get funny sales people as well, sometimes. Tom from O2 and Hassan from Sky TV – I’m looking at you guys! Making idle chit chat or telling me how lovely my voice sounds over the phone will not make me increase the value of my mobile phone package or sign up to new TV packages. Yet they still don’t get and will ring again every couple of months. And it’s the same guys every time – I think they are being trained to break my spirit! Bring on the caller ID!