You can leave but you can't really leave

[Kathy (ImOut)]

Fluffy,

This is so bizarre that you posted this thread today. I got home from being out and listened to the 2 messages I had on the machine. Husband's got an eye appointment. Check.

Message #2: Amanda (I think was the name) from Flag calling to verify our address. WTF? No one "has" our number. Yes, you can find it on the internet - my husband found it.

I still haven't done anything. Husband is at a business dinner and wants to hear the message himself before we do anything.

But I've missed a few "private caller" on my cell phone over the last week or two - just didn't hear the phone ring, but no messages left on the cell phone.

When I got the message, I logged on to ESMB to see older threads about this, and instead I get a brand new thread about the CofS calling to "verify your address".

It's nice to know I'm not alone. Thanks, all, for being here.

[sandygirl]

We got the call yesterday.

Funny thing is we went through this "mailing list update" scam a few months ago. I even posted about it. Anyways I got a grandma (very sweet) last time and even after I explained I was no longer interested in the church she tried to sell me the basics to stay connected to source.

Then we even got MORE mailings including my maiden name which I haven't used for 15 years~!

Anyways, two weeks ago on a Sunday nite about 10 we got a "private caller" message. I didn't want to answer but I was so pissed about my kids being woken up on a school nite that I answered.

It was a NOT a sweet grandma but a real bitch. I let her have it about waking up my kids and calling again even after I asked to NOT be called.

I felt so upset afterwards that I had a lousy nite's sleep. I feel bad about a lot of it but all I have to do is really think about how things were before I left and I KNOW it is over for me. It is kindof like losing a marriage or an important relationship and there is a lot of untapped grief. But think of the hell staff and public are going through in there right now!

[gomorrhan]

I do think about that. I suspect strongly that my daughter is a Sea Ogre.

[happynow]

I've been getting lots of calls at work. http://www.forum.exscn.net/images/smilies/angry.gif

Somebody gave somebody my work phone number after
I've been successfully hidden for years. I acted like I wasn't
who they were looking for. That was kinda fun.
Of course I feel sorry for the poor schmucks who are probably
getting beaten for not getting their stats up but whatever.
Hopefully they'll snap out of it someday and realize what pests
they were like I finally did.
I'm so happy to not have an agenda anymore and just love
people for who they are. Man, that's nice.

[Alanzo]

I've been getting lots of calls at work. http://www.forum.exscn.net/images/smilies/angry.gif

Somebody gave somebody my work phone number after
I've been successfully hidden for years. I acted like I wasn't
who they were looking for. That was kinda fun.
Of course I feel sorry for the poor schmucks who are probably
getting beaten for not getting their stats up but whatever.
Hopefully they'll snap out of it someday and realize what pests
they were like I finally did.
I'm so happy to not have an agenda anymore and just love
people for who they are. Man, that's nice.

Welcome, happynow.

I hope you are!

[Free to shine]

I understand this - completely.

They've given up on me. Sometimes I get a sad feeling that they have. I know it's irrational and I'd probably FREAK OUT if anyone tried to recover me at this stage, but just knowing that they've given up kind of makes me a bit sad (just a little bit).

I think it's the same kind of sadness that happens when a marriage fails and you finally acknowledge it. You don't want to go back there, but when the ex (husband or wife) finally hooks up with someone else and you realise you have been replaced, or "erased" it's a loss. You still don't want that person back but it's sad nevertheless.

I really, really understand.

I am also here say that feeling does go. It really does.

Now I have empathy for those who need to be part of that group, and happiness, real happiness, that I do not.

[Voltaire's Child]

Wow. A real blitzkrieg of calls. And some of them were so rude to you guys. Yes, that's the ticket all right (sarcasm)- try to sell something and be rude to your potential customer.

Not sure how many of those of you who posted on this thread are declared. It very much appears that they are even calling people who are declared and are ignoring that fact. That's against policy, of course. But if I were running things (besides not having high prices or freeloader debts or institutional living or disconnection or or or ...) I wouldn't have this "IJC is your only contact" thing. I wonder if, somehow, they've changed THAT rule, too. DM changes everything eventually, if it suits him. So maybe they aren't ignoring declares,if any, in people they want to call. Maybe they know damn well and are just desperate.

It's a shrinking cult. It could have been- maybe not the fastest growing religion in the US - but it could have been a truly thriving self help corporation with decent "stats" if they would have stopped crapping on people while making more and more demands from them and saying they wanted to help those people.

[Cat's Squirrel]

Wow. A real blitzkrieg of calls. And some of them were so rude to you guys. Yes, that's the ticket all right (sarcasm)- try to sell something and be rude to your potential customer.

Not sure how many of those of you who posted on this thread are declared. It very much appears that they are even calling people who are declared and are ignoring that fact. That's against policy, of course. But if I were running things (besides not having high prices or freeloader debts or institutional living or disconnection or or or ...) I wouldn't have this "IJC is your only contact" thing. I wonder if, somehow, they've changed THAT rule, too. DM changes everything eventually, if it suits him. So maybe they aren't ignoring declares,if any, in people they want to call. Maybe they know damn well and are just desperate.

It's a shrinking cult. It could have been- maybe not the fastest growing religion in the US - but it could have been a truly thriving self help corporation with decent "stats" if they would have stopped crapping on people while making more and more demands from them and saying they wanted to help those people.

Yeah, if it's true that they're targeting declared members then it looks like they're getting desperate. I should feel sorry for them but they do nothing to help themselves.

[Kathy (ImOut)]

Fluffy,

I'm declared and they called me on my "private" (home) number. Not my cell phone number that hasn't changed since leaving.

I know they called someone several months ago, that's been declared for something like 25 years. And they contacted that person thru a number that isn't even in his name and maybe only a handful of people (non-churchies) knew he was at that number. That was too bizarre.

[alex]

I suspect that the church has hired outside people do dig up numbers.

I got a call the other day that suffered a technical glitch, and the people on the other side didnt hang up, but continued to make calls and I could hear them calling number after number asking for a name at that number. It was from a number I would suspect being "church" but the people I could hear in the background and the one caller who had failed to disconnect from me didnt sound like scientologists....

(I hadnt answered but was screening on my answering machine....)

Perhaps the church has paid some phone pros to revitalize the cf?

alex