The phone saga continues...

drama...I don't like drama, I try to avoid it whenever possible. However, it seems that I do nothing but creat a firestorm of shit when it comes to the phone company. I hate them. hate them. Not to annoy and subject myself to any unnecessary terrorist inquiries, but if I could blow up the entity that is known as AT&T, I would. I would eradicate the world of this damn worthless, time-sucking machine. Because GOD KNOWS they certainly aren't making anyone's life any easier. In a whopping 9 minute phone call in which I spoke with 4 different people and said the same thing 4 different times "My name is AW and I need to cancel my home phone service but keep the DSL." the end result was that, because there was a balance on my account (that has already been paid today, mind you, but has not posted to the account) I can't make any changes at this time. But that nice, little worthless girl on the other end of the phone sure thanked me for doing business with AT&T and explained that it's simply a company policy and there's nothing she could do, but she would make a note in the system that when I called back in 24 - 48 hrs there'll be a note of what I want to do. (I really hope she also made a note than I'm a bit difficult, really pissed off, and just surly at the way the company does business.) And did I forget to mention....when I cancel my phone, the charge for my DSL will go up. Isn't that special?

Nevermind that I can get the same price that I'm currently paying if I get my DSL through the cable company - that puts the service through AT&T. "It's just a company policy, the company charges more for customers that don't have the phone too," said by stupid, script-reading tart on the other end of the phone. Clearly. But, because I don't have the notes and can't confirm that the satellite people are still doing what they were doing (and that they are much more helpful on the phone) and we can't exactly go two weeks without any internet in the house, not to mention that they can't do a friggin thing today anyway, I couldn't get the satisfaction of telling them to cancel the entire damn thing.

Oh, but it was confirmed that, while I wait for the payment to post so that I can cancel the service that I tried to cancel a few weeks ago but have now been billed for, I will continue to be billed while they get their shit together. I will also be billed while I wait the 5 days for them to further get their shit together and get done whatever they need to get done to cancel the service. Funny how they can turn it on and off remotely with NO PROBLEM if they're owed money, but they'll hem, haw and stall for 5 days to turn if off for good. Wait, we've been here before, that's called a "hard disconnect". They're just playing for a few weeks when they turn it off on their end.

Seriously?! I just think the entire damn company is a model of how not to keep customers happy, how not to provide good customer service, and how to waste my time. (how I made it through 4 people and came THIS CLOSE to getting my issue solved in less than 10 minutes is UTTERLY BEYOND me - i didn't go through any stupid prompts today and just hit zero when it told me I had to pay first. When i was a fully-paid customer, the process took an hour. Goes back to that great business model again....RETARDED COMPANY)

It is my expectation that by the end of Friday my payment had damn well better be posted, and I will hopefully ONE MORE TIME find the time to call this amazingly annoying company to ONCE AGAIN try to disconnect my phone. And so help me, if I don't get my way - some heads are going to roll. I'll just frigging walk into the 220 building - RIGHT NEXT DOOR - and start bitching. Over 60 years invested in the company - well over 150 if you start looking in my close, immediate circles - 4 buyouts, 4 company name-changes, many shrinking pensions, one layoff, a couple of divorces and one Stage 4 lung cancer. FRIGGING fantastic. Good job, Ma. Way to keep 'em happy.