I hate caller ID.

I've never paid for the service, but when my workplace phone system was upgraded, we all got it.

In some respects, it's been fun to have. When my mom calls, I can pick up the phone and say, "Hello, Muddah," and we both get a quick laugh.

Recently, the phone has been displaying a name, if possible, with the phone number.

Last week, a good friend of mine called me at work from his cell phone, a number I would have recognized anyway. However, due to the extra information on my phone's display, I picked up the phone and said, "Hello there, wireless caller!"

But, in other ways, it makes me nervous.

Today, I received an incoming call from my great-aunt's home. She loves me dearly, but she never calls me at work. And, she's been under the weather lately. So, the first thing that popped into my head when I saw the number was that something bad had happened.

Luckily, I was wrong, and it was just my mother, calling me to tell me something. She had stopped to check in on her aunt during the course of her daily errands. Crisis averted.

And, even if it was a crisis, I think I can handle waiting until the person on the other end of the line can confirm it to me.

Now, I understand that caller ID may be helpful for screening calls from people we don't want to talk to -- and telemarketers. The former is not really an issue for me. For the latter, I have a simple test: If the person can't properly pronounce my name, I am not home.

Besides, caller ID takes away the joy I feel when I pick up the phone and find there's someone there who I haven't seen or spoken to in a long time on the other end.

Maybe that's why I don't have it at home. I also don't have call waiting. Or cable television.

On the other hand: Maybe I'm just cheap.