DEAR ABBY: I'm a newly retired woman living alone. Today I received a phone call on my landline asking me to participate in a survey. The first question asked was how many people are in my household.
In the past, I didn't live alone and I didn't mind participating in surveys. But calling on my landline makes me worry that person has access to my physical address. And being asked by some stranger for information like my age, the number of people in my household, and whether I have guns in the house, etc. makes me feel very vulnerable.
I told the caller I was not interested in participating and wouldn't give a reason why. There has got to be a better way to conduct surveys. Please let researchers know. -- CAUTIOUS SENIOR
DEAR CAUTIOUS: I'm doing that. But while I'm doing it, I am also advising readers that they are under no obligation to respond to surveys of any type, and that all they have to do if they receive this kind of call is say, "Not interested," and hang up.