Don't Bother Me

 I have decided that I don't want to be bothered.

I often feel overwhelmed by the endless stream of spam e-mails (usually more than 200 each day, many of them from porn sites or advising me how to 'make it harder and longer.') I don't frequent porn sites, and I don't have anything to make 'harder and longer.' I also am not interested in online gambling, free spins or meeting a 'hot' Asian, Ukrainian or Russian woman. Many of the spam e-mails are sent two or three times in the same batch. I delete everything, but I am tired of this constant barrage.

And stop bothering me with calls from someone with 'cardmember services' offering to lower my interest rate. News flash: I don't pay interest on credit cards. And let's not forget 'Amy' or whoever is calling to let me know that the warranty on my car has expired. And the helpful caller from DirecTV informing me that my account qualifies for a 50 percent discount. Great! How about simply cutting my bill in half and stop calling me? I know these calls are all scams.

Add to these interruptions the seemingly endless calls from my healthcare providers. The most recent one was from a pharmacy technician with some vague message about pre-authorization of a medication. After four phone calls and close to 20 minutes on hold, I finally was informed that an eye medication had been approved. Normally I receive a letter with this information. This time I wasted time trying to return a phone call about a non-issue.

If I were younger and without a couple of medical issues that require visits to specialists, I would seriously consider moving someplace off the beaten path and without Internet service. Seriously! The constant bombardment by people wanting my money -- 99 percent of them scammers -- is overwhelming at times. 

Snail mail is not exempt from the barrage of letters seeking 'emergency' donations, either. I once donated to Mercy Corps some 25 to 30 years ago, or longer. I still get regular letters asking for donations for some emergency situation or other. The same goes for the Sierra Club. If I don't respond to the first, oh, 30 or 40 letters you send me, it is highly unlikely that I will suddenly decide to send a donation. How about Yellowstone Forever, a non-profit that funds projects in America's first national park? Last year I received a letter asking me to use the enclosed response forms to send a donation in both April and May. I guess one donation isn't enough. The group repeated this tactic a second time. Both appeals went straight into the recycling bin.

The Albuquerque PBS station is another that wastes donor dollars on monthly requests for money. Yesterday's mail brought not one, but two appeals for funds. One was a membership renewal, which I tossed into the recycling bin. I appreciate PBS, but I give an annual amount and don't appreciate the monthly duns for an additional 'gift.'

For the past couple of years the only thing I watch in real time on television is local and national news. Everything else gets recorded, so I can fast forward through the endless, inane commercials.

Non-profit organizations should spend their donors' contributions on the things they allegedly do for the community or the world. Stop sending me endless supplies of blank greeting cards, return address labels and calendars. I don't want, and I don't need, those things. I have a supply of address labels that will last two lifetimes. I have dozens of greeting cards and use perhaps one each year. I make my own calendars.

So just stop bothering me! If I decide to make a donation, I will. I don't need to be flooded with requests for still more money. I don't need note cards or address labels or calendars. Just go away!