Discourteous For The Dead

(My grandmother passed away last year, and I have been living in her house temporarily for the past few months. Her phone number must have been a hot target for scammers and telemarketers because I still get multiple calls weekly from unknown numbers asking to speak to her. I usually respond with “She doesn’t live here anymore,” to avoid any awkwardness, and that’s usually enough to get them to go away. Then, there was this caller…)

Caller: “Hello, this is a courtesy call. Can I please speak to [Grandmother]?”

Me: “I’m sorry, she doesn’t live here anymore.”

Caller: “Okay, well this is a courtesy call for [Grandmother]. Is she the homeowner?”

Me: “No, she—”

Caller: “This is [impressively bad mispronunciation of my street address], correct?”

Me: “Yes…”

Caller: “Okay, please let me speak to the homeowner, [Grandmother].”

Me: “I’m sorry, but [Grandmother] actually passed away almost a year ago.”

(At this point, I was expecting a surprised tone, shocked silence, or maybe even an apology, but the caller didn’t miss a beat.)

Caller: “Then can I speak to [Grandfather], [Grandmother]’s husband? Again, this is a courtesy call.”

Me: “That would be difficult, as he passed away twelve years ago now.”

Caller: *again, without missing a beat* “Okay, I’ll try again later. This is just a courtesy call.” *click*

(She has yet to call back. That was the least courteous “courtesy call” I have ever received!)