I just got a telemarketing call from PacBell. "I'm sorry," I said, "I don't accept calls at this number."

"Oh, I'm sorry to bother you," she said, and hung up.

Since I got my new phone number, I've been under siege. Apparently before this number was mine, it belonged to someone named Guido, who suddenly left town, leaving behind a string of bad debts. The bill collectors all phone me starting at 8 in the morning, almost every day. The first few people were really nice about it being a wrong number and everything, but the other day, I got someone who was so rude, and he really caught me in a bad mood. It felt quite good to tell him off. I could always take the high road and just change my number, but I'm starting to get used to this as sort of free therapy.

posted by Lorna Brown at 7:57 PM