Mothers and daughters - WTF??

My mother needs me. Really, much more than she should. Her first marriage to my dad was over before I was 4. Before my 6th birthday, she married my stepfather thinking (I presume) that the opposite end of the testosterone-spectrum was where happiness would lie.

She was wrong.

So she is now one of those women who has nothing to talk about except the doings of her family. Phone calls are a laundry list of why she's annoyed with my brothers, the latest hurtful episode with my stepfather, blah, blah, blah. I've told her I want to hear about her - what is SHE doing. Has she gone out for coffee? Been to a movie? Read a good book?

I live in another province, so I am only available by phone. The pattern goes like this: She calls. Sometimes she leaves a message. I've told her that we have call display, and that if she calls 4 times it'll show up so she may as well talk to the machine. Okay, so if she actually does leave a message it's something like "Hi, it's me. Give a call when you get a chance." And then invariably, she calls me back. It's incredibly fucking annoying.

I'm not a phone person, and she seems to be taken aback the times she calls and I say I just don't feel like talking....to anyone. If I was someone you knew, wouldn't you rather I call you back? Would indicate that I was ready to chat wouldn't it???