Cell phones forum: Help -- Verizon won't allow me to port my number

Here's the deal: I've sworn off two-year contracts with Verizon as long as phones only have one-year warranties. Yeah, I know, they'll be happy to sell me an additional monthly service plan. I've been a Verizon customer for 8 or so years and am long past my contractual obligations. However, I need a new plan to get more monthly minutes; hence the need for a new service plan.

I bought a Motorola RAZR from Amazon for $199.99 (free after $200 in rebates), and signed up for a new one-year contract with Verizon. I followed up the online order with a phone call to confirm that I could port my old number to the new phone; sure, just call Verizon once you get the new phone. When I got the phone, I knew it would be a hassle with Verizon, so I went to the store rather than trying to explain it on the phone. I told them they can drop my old account, whatever they need to do, AFTER they port my old number to the new phone. In fact, I've been to two stores, plus spent more time on the phone with their customer dis-service reps.

Bottom line is, they can't (actually, they won't) do it. The store manager as much as admitted that they'd rather lose a long-time customer to a competitor than port my number. Here are my options as I see them: return the RAZR to Amazon and buy an unlocked phone elsewhere, to which Verizon will port my old number; return the RAZR and buy the same setup from Verizon for $200 more (not an option I will consider); or sign up for the cheapest pay-as-you-go plan with another carrier for a month, to which Verizon will port my number, and then will port my number back from to the new RAZR from Amazon. Can I port my cell phone number to a second (Verizon) land line in my home and then back out to my new cell phone?

Frankly, I'm tired of paying all this money to Verizon every single month, only to have them look down their noses at me and say so what, pay us more or go elsewhere. The only reason for not having gone elsewhere is being able to talk to other Verizon users free of airtime minutes.

I'm open to any suggestions from the forum.