The phone rings, echoing throughout the dining room. “Ugh,” Paul and I say in unison. I feel myself tense up. My heart begins beating in my throat. I close my eyes and try to will the most menacing machine in my house to stop ringing.

“Do I have to get that?” Paul says before the answering machine picks up.

“I can’t talk to anyone right now,” I reply. We decide to let it go. We’ll call back later.

As an introvert, talking to anyone on the telephone is difficult. Yet, I have a landline and a cell phone. I hate them with every fiber of my being.