I Don't Believe it!!!!

[kiwipom]

I live in a small town, the phone book is about four pages. There are two listings with my surname, I'm one my daughter the other myself.
For the last 30 years I have bred Great Danes and people asking directions are generally asked "do they have the big dogs?" and are directed to our house.
At the moment it's time to register our dogs in NZ, we have only one dog left, down from a high of six.
So I registered the dog but decided the Council did not need to know my date of birth (it must be on their electoral roll anyway) and as they knew my address where the dog lives they didn't need my telephone number and the dog can't answer the phone anyway.

I have just had a phone call from the Council pointing out my ommissions from the Registration Form.
"What is your date of birth?"
"You don't need to know"
"OK then, How old are you?"
"As old as my tongue a little bit older than my teeth"
"And how old are they?"
"Over 21"
"Thank you"
so question answered satisfactorily, they didn't really want to know my date of birth But then the clincher

"What is your phone number?"
"You're PHONING me to ask my phone number?"!!!!!!!!!!

And local govt. wonder why we don't want to trust them with our personal details!!!!!

Made I Larf and I hope it brings a smile to you as well
I Don't Believe it!!!!!

[JoanneB]

It's exactly the same over here, and I always fight against it!

'They, whoever they maybe', always ask for your date of birth when it is totally irrelevant, and if there is one thing that infuriates me this is it. As a result I have numerous calls asking if I want a stair lift, or make a will........ How dare they ask such questions to a absolutely gorgeous young lady!!!

[busyglen]

As a result I have numerous calls asking if I want a stair lift, or make a will........ How dare they ask such questions to a absolutely gorgeous young lady!!!

I have fun if asked if I want a stair lift.....I tell them sorry but none of their fitters would be able to fix one in our property. I am assured that they are very good and can put them into quite small spaces......until I explain that I live in a `bungalow'! Ooh I am awful aren't I? ;)

Glenys

[Ladkyis]

I ask two questions when people like that phone

1. How did you get this number?

and when they say it was auto dialed

2. You won't mind if I hang up will you?

I am always polite because they are just doing what they are paid for and I don't want anyone to think that I am rude. I never wait for an answer to question 2 so that could be thought of as rude but it does me a power of good to just put the phone down quietly and cut them off.

[zane]

I am 44 and have a young grandson and its great when I get mistaken for his mother and then I have to blush and say no I am not his mum I am his grandmother and then I have to cope with the total disbelief you cannot be his grandmother you are way too young!!! Ha Ha :D

Just as a by the way what do you guys get called by your grandkids or what did you call your grandparents? I called mine nana and grandpa, my hubby called his nannan Gough or nannan Straw and my girls called theirs nannan Chris and nannan Margaret, my grandson calls me nannan, it used to be nana but he changed it to nannan, my hubby was called bapa for years then he changed it to grandpa.

[Oates]

Just as a by the way what do you guys get called by your grandkids or what did you call your grandparents? I called mine nana and grandpa, my hubby called his nannan Gough or nannan Straw and my girls called theirs nannan Chris and nannan Margaret, my grandson calls me nannan, it used to be nana but he changed it to nannan, my hubby was called bapa for years then he changed it to grandpa.
I call(ed) mine Grandma/Grandad and then their first names. I called my great grandma Little Nana.

[BeeE586]

I refuse to acknowlege nannan or any other version of same. I insisted on being Grandma from the beginning, although now they are all teenagers it is just Gram. My husband died before any grandchildren were born so does not enter into the discussion. My sister is also Grandma to her tribe and ex husband is Grandad. We are told we are "old-fashioned" or "not keeping up with the modern trend" but so what, we hate the diminutives.

My maternal grandparents were Grandma and Grandad Rodgers and Gr Grandma was old Grandma Rodgers. Paternal lot were Grandma and Grandad Fenton - no earlier generation there.

My daughter in law is Nanna to her grandchild, my son is Grandad, I am Grandma Eileen and the child's paternal grandparents are Nannan and Gramps.

My daughter in law's children from a previous relationship have always called me Eileen and my son also by his name.

Is there a diminutive for Grandfather ?

Eileen

[Terry]

My maternal grandparents were Nan (or Nanny) and Granpy, and my maternal great grandparents were Gran & Grandad. NEVER, never were their first names used under any circumstances.
Never knew my paternal grandparents.

[BeeE586]

On another tack ........

My father in law always called his wife 'Mother', It was only when I started with Family History many years after they were both dead that I found out her name and maiden name. When I had asked she told me to mind my own business, it was nothing to do with me.

Eileen

[retiaw]

I found this interesting, like the previous message, I never knew my Grandparent, except my Maternal Granddad, so it was always Granddad. As for the Autodial phone calls, well I take great pleasure in informing the caller that autodialling is now illegal in the UK, it circumvents the privacy laws. I must admit I temper my responses to these callers, after all they didn't set up the system, their bosses arranged it for them.

Back to grandparents, I've yet to become one although I surely ought to be one at 61 and 1/2. Son get a move on. :)

[MarkJ]

I call my mother in law Grandma! It stems from when my daughters were young - and has just remained. It causes problems at hospitals etc when I refer to her as Grandma though!

My maternal grandparents were Nana and Grandad. My paternal grandparents were both deceased before I was born, but my Great Grandmother was still alive - she was referred to as Granny. One of Granny's sister in laws was referred to as Granny Hicks - I have a rather strange family on my fathers side due to the death of both of my paternal grandparents. The children were distributed to various family relations - my father to the aforementioned Granny Hicks.

Mark

[Pam Downes]

In conversation to distinguish between the two, my grans were 'Toby's gran' and 'Lyddie's gran', because one had a dog called Toby and the other had a daughter called Lydia.
So you can probably guess why my children's grandmothers were called 'Nanny dog' and 'Nanny bike'. :D
Pam

[Ladkyis]

My maternal grandparents were granny and Pop/grandpop -not sure why except that his youngest son called him pop so I called him grandpop.

My paternal ones were Nanna and Grancha - there are 35 of us cousins on this side and we all called them the same.

My grand children all call me grandma except for the youngest who insists on calling me Marmar and will tell her mother "not Grandma her is Marmar". She calls my husband "My Bampa" and tells all who will listen that she is "Bampa's Gorgeous".

She also told her mother off "No Mummy don't ner, ner, ner, ner, ner my Bampa!"

[norfolkdude]

I didnt call mine ..they were deaf so wouldnt of heard me ..:D

[gizmo]

When my first child was little she couldn't say grandad properly and called them 'Gandi', now they are teenagers they are called grandad A (alfie) and grandad B (Bill) on the christmas list. They have always called my mom 'nanny' but my husband calls her the dragon (and gets away with it), :D he likes nothing more than taking her out in the car so he can tell her to belt up!

[joette]

Always Granny &Grandpa-Granny said if it was good enough for the Queen Mum it was good enough for her.
Interestingly my Grandparents married to each other were my Dad's Mum & Mum's Dad.
My Mum's Mum although dead from when I was a babyI still refer to as Granny Peggy & Dad's Dad as Grandpa Scott.(his surname) he died when my Dad was a teen.
My sister couldn't master Grandpa & he was Pampa or Grandfather Jimmy as she grew.
My Mother has always adressed talked of her parents as Mother & Father.

In fact she was quite perplexed when her youngest brother who was about 12 when his Mother died refered to his "Mum"
"Who are you talking about"? she asked
As his step-mother he always refered to Granny as "Maw" or "Rosie"- I think you can tell the relationship was at times strained.

[Davran]

I had a Nana and Poppa and a Grandma (the other grandfather died when my father was 13, so never knew him).

My mother, Rene (pronounced Reeny), has ggrandchildren who call her Greeny, which is quite nice!

[Sunpat]

My mother and stepfather each had a car so my daughter named her grandmother "Granny Two Cars".
Sunpat

[HelenVSmith]

Hi

I dmit I have a "popular" surname (other people call it common!) of SMITH.

However I am currently having a battle with the Australian Federal and Queensland State Governments about the fact that they have decided in their infintie wisdom that I am the Helen Violet Smith who has two male children and a husband.

We share the same name and unfortunately the same birthdate. We don't share the same address or birthplace, I am not married and I don't have any children but that doesn't seem to matter to the two respective Government departments and I have been fighting this one for over six months!


It almost makes me want to chaneg my name.

Helen

[vic1]

my maternal g/parents were nanny and granda my paternal gran and grandad . My real problems started with my kids they had 4 grand parents and 4 great grand parents we had nana and grandad S , nain and grandcher, nan and granda and gran and old grandad - my great gran died only months before other wise things would really have got confusing. a freind of mine called her grandparents muma and grampy or pops depending on what they wanted in fact we all called her muma- my daughter isd trying to get her daughter to call my partner grumpy - i keep telling her it's supposed to be a name not a description:D

[tony vines]

When our grandson started talking and taking an active part in web cams between Hong Kong and here in the UK he couldn't get his tongue round Granny so called her "Gummie" instead. She thought it was a hoot.