50+ Lifestyles

Don’t Answer That Phone!

Notes from Triad

The Greatest Generation and the Baby Boomers remember the phone as a great marvel of communication. When it rang, it was important. The person on the other end had something great to share. On Sunday afternoons, families would wait anxiously for that three-minute phone call from Grandmother, Aunt Matilda or Uncle Claude. The children were all lined up for their 5 second chance to talk to the person on the other end. If you heard the phone ring, you knew it was a friend or relative that wanted to talk to you.

In the ‘60s and ‘70s, the hall phone evolved into more than one phone in the home. Probably one in the study or den, one in or near the kitchen and one in every teenage bedroom! It was still used for personal communication between family members and friends or used for business calls.

The 1980s brought about the answering machine. People could call while you were gone and leave a message for you. The primary function was still communication between family, friends or co-workers – people that you knew and would converse with.

Not so any more. Telemarketers, racketeers and con artists have taken over the phone lines! Most homes receive 8 to 10 unwanted calls a day. The people making these calls have gotten quite clever and can somehow make the caller ID number look local. There is no reason to answer the phone unless you are expecting a call and you know the caller.

Many people now don’t even answer the phone. They let the answering machine take over. If it is an important call or friend or family member, they will leave a message and you can call back.

For more information about the dangers of unsolicited calls, please read the article on page 6 by Peggy Dykes of Milestones Area Agency on Aging.