Why does she do this?

[DisneyAddict_M]

My mother called my cell phone this morning and left a voicemail. The message? "Melinda, answer your phone!" Does she think I can hear her? And what's worse is that she YELLED into the phone. Maybe I can hear her that way?

Not the first time I got that message.

 

[disneyfav4ever]

I always get calls like that from my grandmother and mom. I think they're technically challenged.

 

[bananiem]

I'm sorry! But this made me chuckle.
Does she think the voice mail is like an answering machine? Where you and everybody else can hear her?

 

[ChristmasElf]

My mother does the same thing!! I think that some people just figure you're screening calls and can hear them if they yell loud enough like you could on the old style answering machines.

 

[Hercules10]

That's in the mother's handbook, chapter 1!

My mother believes I purposely avoid picking up the phone cause she's the one calling.

Yeah mom...I have no life and wait by the phone every waking minute just to snub your calls.

 

[tikilyn]

Omg My mom is so funny when she leaves a message for me. It goes something like this. Mom "Hello Sabrina... (slience) This is mom... (slience).... (slience like she is waiting for me to pick up the phone and talk to her!! ) Give me a call... OK?


I've told her before that when the voice mail comes on that I'm not going to pick up the phone and start talking to her. LOL She just laughs at me!

 

[MushyMushy]

My mom does it too!

She's actually pretty nasty when she leaves messages, both on my answering machine and my voice mail. Yeah, it really makes me want to answer.

 

[VirtuallyMe]

Yeah it is the answering machine vs voice mail thing. Mostly older population that seem to do this- because you can hear on most answering machines and people did use them for screening calls (I've got a good friend who does this still)

But of course those voice mail calls most of us are completely unaware that a message is being left until we check for them.

What I hate is when my mom calls and lets the machine pick up but doesn't leave a message- I don't have caller ID and she assumes we all have it and if we see that she called we will call her back. That is what she does- she just checks caller id and never the messages I leave and many times I get a call back and am repeating everything I said in the message that she never listened to

 

[safetymom]

I got a message once from my mother in law. Are you there and not hearing me? We loved it.

 

[NMAmy]

I can always tell it's my mom because she heaves a big sigh and hangs up. Never leaves a message. And it doesn't matter how big or small her problem is which makes me freak out.

For example, she fell and broke her ankle. Instead of leaving me a message to meet her at the hospital, she just sighed and hung up. So, now I call back as soon as I've seen she's called--sure it's the worst.

Maybe THAT is her evil plan.

 

[cybrkitn]

You're not the only one LOL! My brother used to do that too - that is, before he got a cell phone himself

Both my mother and my FIL will also do it with our home phone. I keep reminding them that we don't have an answering machine, we have voice mail. My 77 yo FIL is starting to get it though. We got him a cell phone last year and he's starting to come around. My 61 yo mother OTOH, will not get a cell phone. But we just laugh (including my mom) when she leaves the "Are you there, pick up" message on the VM.

 

[cheerful chickadee]

lol my mom does this too, she thinks it's an answering machine and I'm just screening my calls. She yells my name, tells me to pick up the phone, sighs, breathes for a minute then starts all over again and is usually in the middle of her spiel when the voicemail cuts her off. It's hilarious at times but very annoying because when I finally get in touch with her she yells at me for not picking up the phone when my mother calls!

 

[Evil Genius]

You have just described my MIL. Here's a typical message...

(Please read with a Scarlet O'Hara accent)

Are you there?

Baby, pick up it's me.

Shug are you there?

Call me right a way it's very important.


DH will call her as soon as he gets the message. Nothing important, just wanted to tell him she had a corn growing on her little toe or some other nonsense.

 

[Robinrs]

I remember training my parents in the the answering machine. Just say "This is Mom, call me".. I told her.

She always thought if she called it was going to be bad news so she always said "this is Mom, nothing is wrong, really NOTHING is wrong, this is Mom, NOTHING IS WRONG!!"

She would even leave that message with my receptionist!! I'd come in and she'd say, Robin, your Mom called and wanted you to know that NOTHING IS WRONG!!

LOL... I miss my Mommy....

 

[rie'smom]

My mom:"Hi Ju,it's mom,yada,yada,yada"(yeah,after 49 years,guess what,I know what her voice sounds like! )for about 3 minutes. She does this on my cell phone as well. I've told her 1 gazillion times that I do not check my answering machine unless there's a number that I don't recognize on caller ID. Likewise with leaving a message on my phone.Cell phone messages are only checked if it's a call from my kids.
Oh and the best part,if I don't call back after about an hour(I do leave my house ,she calls and does it all over again .

 

[DisneyAddict_M]

At least my mom isn't the only one. The weird thing is, she has a cell phone so she knows how the whole voicemail thing works. She's also the ONLY one who leaves me voicemail messages. Everyone else knows how much I hate checking my voicemail and will just let the "missed call" indicator serve as a message. She's too funny...gotta love her!

 

[jesszac610]

I think it's got to be an over 55 thing cause my inlaws and my parents are both very guilty of being technically challenged. And trust me you NEVER want to visit a drive up Dunkin's with my father inlaw, it's hysterical but soooo embarrassing at the same time, it's almost as though he's placing his order to China!!!!!

 

[kennancat]

That's hilarious - I've never had someone do it to me, but I can totally understand why they would think you could hear them. Have you thought about having your mom hold the phone while someone else calls it and leaves a message so she can see that once it's gone to voice mail, it's gone?

 

[mandy200587]

My dad is the same way. Actually he hates my phone with a passion. You call my phone or my sister's and it has a ring back tone and it drives him nuts. He has our numbers but he is so technically challenged it's not even funny. I have to help him with our dvd player that's how bad it is.

 

[Stitchfans]

I'm one of those moms who leaves messages like that to DD cause all of you seldom answer your phone. What is the sense of owning it if you aren't going to answer the darn thing?!!