I have a serious phone phobia. I inherited it from my parents. And then I went and married someone whose phone phobia is even worse than mine.

I don't like calling people. Whether it's a friend or calling people to set up an appointment, 9 times out of 10 I'd rather do it over the Internet. Why do you think I work in speech recognition?

I don't mind it when people call ME. I like to get calls from friends. I don't mind fielding calls at work. Because I can control it--if I'm busy, I don't have to answer the phone. Someone wants something from ME, so they have to figure out how to start the conversation. That's hunky dory.

But when I call someone, how do I know what they're doing? Maybe they're in a bad mood. Maybe they're in the middle of watching their favorite TV program. Maybe they are trapped under something large and heavy. Even when I'm calling a business, I think, am I bothering them? What am I going to say?

It's stupid, I know. And I use the phone quite a lot at work--I have to call customers all the time. This phobia doesn't stop me from getting anything done. But it's there all the same.