4:39 a.m.

The phone rang at 4:39 a.m. this morning.

"Hello?"

"Hello ..." [and then the computer generated voice cuts in] "please enter the code 4 - 9 - 5"

What? I'm not about to enter any codes. It's dark and I don't even know which button will hang up on this crank caller. I hang up. The phone rings again. I don't even bother to say hello, just "I'm not entering any codes!" This time I'm asked for a different code. I hang up.

Can you believe it? The phone rings a third time. Now I'm pissed. I answer but do not say a word. Computer asks for a code again and still I do not speak. A few moments later, the computer voice says "the calling party has hung up." Good riddance. I leave the phone off the hook a few minutes longer so he'll get a busy signal and move on to his next intended victim.

Was this one of those phone scams? If I had entered the code, would the caller have been able to make long distance calls on my dime? Would he have been able to charge things to my phone bill? Who knows?

7:05 p.m. Wow, I'm impressed. Had a message from Verizon when I got home. They monitor fraudulent activity and called to tell me that they noticed the three phone calls, originating from the Phillipines. It sound like it was an attempt to place a collect call, so they've placed a block on those types of calls to my phone line.