you know, these bill collectors have got to get a clue. every time they call they get the same answer, "we will pay you when we can." sometimes i toss, "we're unemployed and no i don't know when we will have a job." into that, but lately i don't even bother. not so much because we have a job in the house now, but because it doesn't make a freaking difference if we're employed or not. they still try to get a payment date out of me and even with the job i can't give anyone specific dates, only that i will pay when i can. i'm to the point now that i just say my piece then hang up without waiting for a response. i hate to be rude, but i hate to be harassed even more. of course, all this assumes i answer the phone in the first place.

see, we have caller i.d. caller i.d. is a wonderful thing. very few people we no come up with "cid blocked" and even fewer than that with "no cid available." however, the collectors come up with these two particular phrases all the time. so, i just don't answer the phone. very few of them leave any kind of message on the answering machine.

now here's where the collectors aren't so clever. we have one who has a recorded message. even if i answer the phone, i would not talk to a real live person. and his little recorded message gives me his name and a number to call. yea, right. that's going to happen. NOT! others are real live people and leave messages concerning "an important matter." do they honestly think i'm seriously going to call back after telling them, until i'm blue in the face, that we are unemployed and will pay when we can? then there's the man threatening to "make a decision with or without (my) input." dude, you HAVE my input, you just don't want to listen to it!

i guess maybe they feel like they have to keep calling so i don't forget they exist. yea, like that's going to happen any time soon.