What does it mean when the number you call is not in service?

Ugh, that “number not in service” message. Seriously, is there anything more annoying? It’s like a little digital slap in the face. Especially when you really need to reach someone. Like that time I was trying to call my grandma on her birthday – talk about a sinking feeling! I frantically checked the number, convinced I had messed it up – I’ve been known to transpose digits, you know? Happens to the best of us, right? But nope, it was right. So then I started wondering, did she forget to pay her phone bill? (Grandma’s a bit scatterbrained, bless her heart). Or maybe there’s some kind of outage in her area? Who knows. The worst part is that nagging little voice in the back of your head whispering, “What if they changed their number and just…forgot to tell you?” Talk about feeling out of the loop. It just leaves you hanging there, doesn’t it? All frustrated and wondering what to do next. It’s like a tiny little communication black hole.