Dear Miss Manners...

Dear Miss Manners,

I believe myself to be a good conversationalist. I am witty and fairly intelligent. I am by no means living the most exciting life, but my days are always eventful. Why is it then, that whenever I pick up the phone and willingly make a long distance call to my mom and sister's home (they live together) they carry on conversations with one another (sometimes mom will even talk to her dog) while I am on the line! I listen to their ramblings about their days - from furniture shopping to dog's peeing on the floor - yet when it is my turn to talk about my day, they tune me out as if I'm not speaking at all! There is literally dead air at times.

So Miss Manners, how does one address such inconsiderate behavior and why, oh why, am I going up there to visit them?

Sincerely,
Long Distance Loser