SAN ANTONIO, TX – They seem to show up when you least expect, then sit on your doorstep waiting to be welcomed into your home.
The unannounced guest, also known as the Yellow Pages directory, seems more and more like a stranger these days.
"I don't know what it is. Am I supposed to know?," asked Marissa Rodriguez during a recent outing for coffee at The Pearl Brewery.
At first glance, the millennial did not recognize the thick book of phone numbers.
After being told its name, though, she recalled childhood memories of using it once or twice.
"I remember looking up for the pizza, like, 'Where's Papa John's?' I was, like, 13, maybe,” she said.
However, others who also were born after the invention of the internet hadn’t had that exposure.
One after another, students on their way to Hawthorne Academy one morning looked at the big book as if it were a dinosaur.
But fifth grader Zachary Avitua knew right away how to use.
“If you're looking to call someone, you search through the pages to find their number,” he said. “I've seen them. My grandma has a few."
Tony Garcia has used more than a few phone books in his day, but this grandfather says those days are in the past.
"I use it once in a while. Not very often though. Just, like, if I'm looking for a plumber,” Garcia said.
In the informal survey, the use and knowledge of the former go-to guides appeared to be directly related to age—the older the person, the more likely they were to reach for the old book.
"My mother does. She's an elderly lady and she doesn't have a cell phone or doesn't use a PC,” said Gavin Nichols. “It's not all that helpful. I guess it's more of an advertising vehicle."
KSAT 12 News made several attempts to reach the makers of the Yellow Pages, both by phone and email, to find out why the books are still printed and distributed.
The company, however, did not respond.