Pat,
[ ... I go to call the cab to come back (331-6019), call won't go
> through. I wind up getting confused and annoyed (by product
> of my brain aneurysm) my fingers cannot hit the right keys and I sit
> there with re-order after re-order, literally struggling trying to figure
> out why _my_ phone keeps refusing my requests. ... ]
Might I suggest you program the full phone number, e.g. +16203316019, into your phone's memory so that you don't have to worry about it anywhere you go? With the effects of your aneurysm, making use of the phone book may make sense anyways, and it takes almost no effort to add the extra three or four digits. I have yet to find a GSM carrier (even roaming) that doesn't accept that form; I assume it's mandatory in the standard.
I live in a ten-digit dialing area, so all my numbers go in the long way (plus I rarely remember which area code overlay a given person is in, so I can't dial by hand). I switched to using the full E.164 form when I went overseas and found it was the simplest way to call home. Oddly, that's also how SMS messages always come in even though my normal caller ID is only
10/11 digits (depending on roaming) in the US.
Stephen Sprunk "Stupid people surround themselves with smart CCIE #3723 people. Smart people surround themselves with K5SSS smart people who disagree with them." --Aaron Sorkin