Life and Death are Simply Wearing Me Out!

Things on the apartment search are moving quickly, too quickly to keep up with. Two of the

apartments found on Craigslist have already been taken, am waiting to hear about 2 others. Learned that moving in with someone with pets would be borderline acceptable.  No cats, birds, ferrets, etc.  Only dogs that are primarily indoor pets, are clean, will stay off my bed, etc., will be considered

Another evaluation by the PT folks today, one more tomorrow, and now they’re talking about allowing me to return to my 2nd. floor apartment temporarily as I continue to search for one on the ground level.

The catch is that I’d be allowed up and down the stairs once daily and my occupational therapy would be limited.  Though in what ways I do not know.

My case manager is doing her damnedest to keep me in the medicaid link so that I am eligible for additional long term home health aid. She spent half her day on the phone on my behalf today.  Every time I see her my personal file, usually tucked under her arm, gets thicker and thicker. 

Medicaid sent a 1/4 inch thick survey/questionnaire to Linda that she was supposed to complete and return before this weekend. Problem is that she has no access to most of the requested documents while most of other info seems to have nothing to do with her role as my POA.  Gave it all to the Case Manager, Suzanne today. She didn’t bat an eyelash. I would have been bonkers in that situation. 

If I am released from here soon, the first thing on my gay agenda is updating, sorting, and reformatting all the medical documents, then put them all in one easy-to-reach place for quick access. 

The second thing is to prepare the paperwork to make Linda the Executor of my estate. I thought that was one of the documents we took care of 3 weeks ago, but that wasn’t the case. POA ends when my life does.  Clearly, that’s not good enough.

Gather more data about assisted living opportunities and their costs.  Seems this is one of those loose ended gambits that varies from state to state, usually with the person needing assisted living getting virtually fucked (and not in a nice way) due to loopholes and financial shell games.

A new Cell Phone Carrier.  If this current experience has shown me anything it’s that good cell coverage is important in critical situations like this. I need a more reliable carrier and I find that Verizon is the best around.   Though their level of suckitude is beyond measure, they do have to most reliable network around here. Granted, I’ll be paying over half again what I’m paying now, but what I am paying didn’t produce a signal or wifi for texting. Time to bite the bullet.

Probably the most pressing issue about being back in my own space is the inability to clean, do laundry, mop, dust, scrub, change sheets, etc., on my own. I know it will be almost impossible now, but Linda has told me not to worry. If the Home Health person doesn’t do it, she will see that it gets done, somehow.

Having been laid up for a month I have no idea what I can and cannot do for myself anymore or how much stamina I will have when sprung initially.  Still, Linda says I am not to worry.  So I won’t worry. Well, maybe just a little.

There were two huge dark chocolate bars waiting for me when I woke up this morning. No note or card. Just one 60% cacao and the other 85% - 100 grams each.The have to be from one of the nurses, but from the night crew from last evening or someone from the day crew today. And, no one will tell me.

I’ll find out sooner or later - or not. Meanwhile I will enjoy the chocolate and thank the Universe that such a kind person thought of me.

And so it goes.

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Neutrality Caturday

Kitteh has the right idea.

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Sunrise, Summer’s Return, and Slow DSL.

Still fighting this upper respiratory infection and occasional elevated temperature, but after spending all of Thursday & Friday cooped up behind

closed doors, Neupogen shots and medicating as prescribed, I had to bust out.

Watching the sunrise always lifts me up and although it was still cloudy from the overnight storms, it made for a magnificent show off the east coast over the Atlantic. There were few people around, a few folks in slickers walking their dogs, some cyclists and a runner or two. The die-hards!

I sat in peace and enjoyed my iced coffee just happy to be out and among the living. I walked the entire length of the boardwalk (a mile) before heading back home.  It was getting hotter by the minute making it difficult to breathe. It began to sprinkle again, as another storm was on the way. 

As I arrived, Verizon trucks were parking up and down the street.  They’ve been doing lots of work in town, especially, improving and updating wiring in the old bungalows on streets like mine. Since I’ve been having speed issues with my DSL lately, I stopped a friendly looking chap and asked if their work could be causing interference with my upload and download speeds. 

The look on his face said it all, but he regurgitated the company line about speeds varying due to traffic, the plan you have and blah, blah, blah. He did affirm that my phone service had probably been disrupted over the last month or two(which would disrupt the DSL as well), and that I should call the business office to file a complaint;  there may be some compensation for my being inconvenienced. I thought I’d been promised this already, but have not seen proof on the monthly statements.

The fact that they’re working on a weekend was surprising, but the weather has been stormy and hot,  I assume they are on some sort of schedule to get the job finished.

The work being done here is wiring many older homes for the first time for high speed and television services. Many of the bungalows have been sold or changed hands within families and they want to have all the channels of the stoopid available here that they’re running away from at home.  Makes perfect sense.  Not!

There is a lot of infrastructure work to be done and Verizon’s man said they’d likely to be in the area into the next month or more. So, I can look forward to more disruptions in both phone and internet service for a while.  

We pay the highest prices for the poorest quality service in the western world and there’s no end in sight. And the whole idea of bundling all services into a single package with one company seems absolutely insane to me, especially after the Comcast fiasco of a few weeks ago when a few thousand customers lost all services for a few days.  This is 2014 and there is no reason for that to happen outside of a natural disaster. 

Lungs refreshed, filled with good salt air, I opened the windows again for a few hours to do the same for the apartment. Until the heat became too oppressive. Feeling energetic, I made a warm potato salad, one of friend Peter’s great recipes, and enjoyed it with my lunch.

The cough remains annoying and I am tired now.  A good kind of tired. For what it’s worth, I found out the world is still out there, as is the ocean, and I can rest easy this evening. 

And so it goes.

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Netflix vs. Verizon

As mentioned many times in the past, I do not have a television service - neither cable, nor satellite service.  It’s just too expensive; a waste of time and money. If I had that extra $65.00 monthly, I'd sit and watch it. If you get my drift.

I get news from the Web, (The Guardian, BBC, Raw Story, NYT, TPM, Think Progress, etc.), watch movies on DVD and enjoy documentaries and music videos via YouTube, and I’m pretty happy with that setup. I also have Amazon Prime, but never used it and never learned how.

Then when I got sick last Fall, some folks suggested that I sign up for Netflix to keep up with all the new TV shows and movies that I couldn’t give a tinker’s damn about. 

They persisted, going so far as to offer to pay for a subscription so I wouldn’t be bored.  I was not bored. I was sick! Besides, the (slow) DSL I have is a standard, set price service for folks like me and I didn’t think the streaming would work to my advantage.  It's slow, but again, I can't afford another $65.00 for the super fastest service, either.

Well, imagine my surprise when I found this in the news this week.  Seems Verizon is pulling their gimme-gimme-greed number and Netflix isn’t taking their shit lying down.  BTW, I didn’t write the headline. 

Netflix Couldn't Give a Sh*t About Verizon's Feelings, Releases Letter Criticizing Their Speeds
Netflix and Verizon have been going back and forth with each other over data speeds on the network.
Just last week, Netflix started posting notifications on their service whenever data speeds starting slowing, with a message putting the blame on the Internet service provider, and not them (see above). Verizon had a problem with this, and the company sent Netflix a cease and desist letter. 

Now, in a letter obtained by Quartz, Netflix general counsel David Hyman had a bone to pick with the ISP (emphasis added): 

Dear Randy,
I am in receipt of your letter dated June 5, 2014. 

Your interpretation mischaracterizes our messaging. The message you cite to in your letter merely lets our consumers know that the Verizon network is crowded. We have determined this by examining the difference between the speed at which the Verizon network handles Netflix traffic at peak versus non-peak times. The messaging is part of our ongoing transparency efforts to let consumers know their Netflix experience is being affected by congestion on their broadband provider’s network. We are testing this type of messaging across the US with multiple providers. 

Furthermore, your attempt to shift blame for our customers’ experience on the Verizon network “squarely to Netflix itself” disregards Verizon’s responsibility to provide its customers with the service it has promised them. Verizon sells residential Internet access to its customers. In fact, it is my understanding that Verizon actually upsells customers to higher speed packages based on improved access to video services, including Netflix. 

Verizon’s unwillingness to augment its access ports to major Internet backbone providers is squarely Verizon’s fault. As an ISP, you sell your customers a connection to the Internet. To ensure that these customers get the level of service they pay you for, it is your responsibility to make sure your network, including your interconnection points, have sufficient capacity to accommodate the data requests made by those customers. 

To try to shift blame to us for performance issues arising from interconnection congestion is like blaming drivers on a bridge for traffic jams when you’re the one who decided to leave three lanes closed during rush hour.

Read the rest of his letter and the entire article HERE.

I’ll stick with DVDs and YouTube, thanks.

And so it goes.

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Say It Ain't So, Verizon!

Back in the day when there was only one telephone company (a monopoly, I'll grant you that) the Bell System developed an infrastructure of lines throughout the hurricane-prone areas of the country, then carried that development to the rest of the eastern seaboard. When hurricanes hit anywhere the single communication link one could rely on was the land-line telephone. Everyone I know in NOLA, for example, may have a cell phone and a cordless phone in the home for convenience, but look in any closet and you will find an old fashioned wired phone for emergencies.  BTW, I still have one in the closet. An old "trimline" number. It came in handy during Sandy last year.

During a big storm, the electric power can be out for days or weeks, cordless phones (run on batteries even though the base is connected to the land-line) are useless, as are cellphones when the towers go down (electricity, again) leaving people stranded with no connection to the outside world. This is when those old phones come out, get plugged in, and will work 99% of the time. After a major hurricane I was able to reach most everyone because they had these old phones. 

Now, Verizon wants to change all that.  Thinking of higher profits rather than customer service and safety, they want to do away with the copper wire, high maintenance system and force everyone into the wireless market.  They're starting small, as you will read below, but the plans are in the works for the rest of the country. To my mind, Voice Link is an unreliable alternative.

Southern friends should take particular note of this.

MANTOLOKING, N.J. — Hurricane Sandy devastated this barrier island community of multimillion-dollar homes, but in Peter Flihan’s view, Verizon Communications has delivered a second blow: the telecommunications giant did not rebuild the landlines destroyed in the storm, and traditional telephone service here has now gone the way of the telegraph. 

“Verizon decides then and there to step on us,” said Mr. Flihan, 75, a retired toy designer and marketer. Verizon said it was too expensive to replace Mantoloking’s traditional copper-line phone network — the kind that has connected America for more than a century — and instead installed Voice Link, a wireless service it insisted was better. 

Verizon’s move on this sliver of land is a look into the not-too-distant future, a foreshadowing of nearly all telephone service across the United States. The traditional landline is not expected to last the decade in a country where nearly 40 percent of households use only wireless phones. Even now, less than 10 percent of households have only a landline phone, according to government data that counts cable-based phone service in that category. 

The changing landscape has Verizon, AT&T and other phone companies itching to rid themselves of the cost of maintaining their vast copper-wire networks and instead offer wireless and fiber-optic lines like FiOS and U-verse, even though the new services often fail during a blackout. 

“The vision I have is we are going into the copper plant areas and every place we have FiOS, we are going to kill the copper,” Lowell C. McAdam, Verizon’s chairman and chief executive, said last year. Robert W. Quinn Jr., AT&T’s senior vice president for federal regulatory issues, said the death of the old network was inevitable. “We’re scavenging for replacement parts to be able to fix the stuff when it breaks,” he said at an industry conference in Maryland last week. “That’s why it’s going to happen.” 

The Federal Communications Commission has long agreed. In its National Broadband Plan, published in 2010, the F.C.C. said that requiring certain carriers to maintain plain old telephone service “is not sustainable” and could siphon investments away from new networks. 

“The challenge for the country,” the F.C.C. said, is to ensure “a smooth transition for Americans who use traditional phone service and for the businesses that provide it.” 

But as far as Mr. Flihan and others in New Jersey are concerned, that transition from a reliable service — one that has given them a sense of security all their lives — is not smooth at all. An array of state-sanctioned consumer advocacy groups, as well as AARP, have petitioned regulators to disallow the replacement of Mantoloking’s copper lines with Voice Link. 

Not only will Voice Link not work if the power fails — a backup battery provides two hours of talking time, hardly reassuring to people battered by Sandy — but Verizon warns Voice Link users that calls to 911 under normal conditions might not go through because of network congestion. Medical devices that require periodic tests over phone lines, like many pacemakers, cannot transmit over Voice Link. Fax machines do not work over most wireless phone networks, including Voice Link. Neither do many home security systems, which depend on a copper phone line to connect to a response center. 

“They told us this was the greatest thing in the world,” Mr. Flihan said. But he estimates that roughly 25 percent of the calls he makes through the Verizon Voice Link service do not go through the first time he dials, or sometimes the second or third. Occasionally, the call is interrupted by clicking sounds, and sometimes a third party’s voice can be heard on the line, Mr. Flihan said.

The Gray Lady has the story HERE.

And so it goes.

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Taking My Own Advice

OK, I know I said I was hunkering down for the duration of the holiday  week, but  thought I would made a quick shopping run early (about 6:30)...then I walked outside.

Dew covered everything, dripping off tree leaves, cars, and buildings. The air was too thick to take a deep breath. Not a good omen.

Left the car parked where it was, decided against the trip, turned on my heels, headed back up the stairs.  Once inside, shed the street clothes, already feeling moist, made a coffee and set about clearing and cleaning the counter-tops in the kitchen.

Plugged in the Kindle, unplugged the cell phone, had a nice breakfast and decided my initial advice (to stick close to home) was the best.

Felt no rush, cleaned the bathroom, shredded old documents, rearranged the files in the cabinet, put the ironing board and iron away, tidied up the living room (though I don't know why, no one ever visits), and checked the freezer for dinner possibilities.  Leftovers and a salad will be the quickest, coolest option.  Don't want to use either oven - microwave use will be short and sweet.

Discovered that the V-tech cordless phone/answering device was fried by last weekend's storms (not that anyone calls or leaves messages), so plugged in the corded phone as a precaution until I purchase another similar unit. I cannot afford the Verizon voice-mail monthly fee; the answering machine works fine for my needs and adds only a few dollars to the total price.  A one-time cost. In any event, that will wait until next week.

It's well over 90' again, humidity is high, and dark clouds are rolling in, so there won't be any outdoor activities today.  No, not even laundry, which means only going out the door, down the stairs, and into the laundry room below the apartment.

Truth is, I am more tired than I thought.

Light lunch and a Sazerac will make the afternoon cool and comfortable. After that, it's all up for grabs. Cheers!

PS:  As I finished typing that last sentence, a torrential rainstorm hit the area.  Rain coming straight down - no thunder, no wind at all.

And so it goes.
*

LAN & WiFi. Who, Me?

What?  Yes, really.  What?

I will soon find out since I just ordered a wireless router this afternoon (to be delivered in a day or 2) and will attempt, before your very eyes (maybe not) to install and create my very own local network. LAN stands for Local Area Network.  Am I smart, or what? I will need it to use the Kindle and, if I can ever afford one, a laptop.

I was going to purchase the router locally, but the local salesfolks  (ahem!) seemed clueless about specific details. That's why I went online and glad I did.  The router being pushed by local stores, a D-Link had few, and pretty bad reviews (I don't like complications) so I found a Netgear (well known from my previous life) that had over 900 reviews; over 800 were happy customers and the cost was $30. less, with free shipping.  What could I lose?  Don't tell me, I know...$50.00!  That I don't have right now.

And I wonder if my DSL connection will be fast enough to handle a network.  I'll find out soon enough.

A friend was supposed to do the deed, but with the season upon us, we are being pressed into service and our scheduled days off are not compatible.  He told me what I needed and what had to be done,  and if I cannot finish the install myself, (or you smell smoke!) I will give him a key and he promised to fix whatever I may f**kup.

Now I can focus on the Kindle model I want and order it by the end of May. The charge won't appear on the credit card statement until the June billing date, so I ought to be home free on that one.

I am very excited about all of this - setting up the network, exploring the wonders of the Kindle - stretching my knowledge of scary technology that I have been unable to afford and thereby not interested in understanding it's advantages.  Why bother to learn about a technology if you can't afford to use and enjoy it?

We are creatures of repetition and the more we use a technology the more we learn from it and can move forward to the next new change. I am so far behind right now.

When there is some new thing to be learned, I love change!

And so it goes.
*

Some Translation, Please.

A few bits to remember as the election season gets under our skin.
And so it goes.
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New Doctor, Ultrasound, & Blood Work

The appointment with the new doctor (PCP) was this morning and, as usual, I was more than a little nervous. A history of rejection is a major part of the problem. Having downloaded and completed all the necessary paperwork, I put it all neatly in a folder and took off. Ah, to be calm and relaxed.

To my surprise, the receptionist was cheerful and bubbly. She commented that I was one of the few people who actually followed directions and completed the paperwork properly.  I received her blessing. It also saved valuable office time. Score one for me!

The next surprise occurred as I was called into the office for a pre-exam, first visit interview.  Turned out to be Shelly from my previous doctor's office. We hugged and I immediately felt more relaxed. We played catchup while she updated my profile with info tidbits all doctors require, for some reason. She then guided me to the exam room where I waited to meet the new doctor.

Our meeting was warm and cordial, as he asked another 10 thousand questions about my life, medical history, medications, whys, whens, wherefores, and vitamins.  He asked why I had seen so many specialists before the Polymyositis diagnosis; I retold the story as best I could remember.  He smiled and said, "everyone wanted their bit. You had full insurance coverage back then."  I knew exactly what he meant.

He gave me the once-over and digital exam and proclaimed my prostate health, then felt the lump in my abdomen (which looks like I am about to give birth to an ALIEN), asking about its history.  I related what I could remember. He suggested an ultra-sound ASAP to determine the cause and asked Shelly to make a few calls.

I was not charged a co-pay for the visit. Perhaps I will be billed later.

In a matter of minutes I was on my way to the imaging center (one that cuts a break for those without insurance) where they checked me in with my Photo ID, and Medicare Card before I was ushered in to the imaging room. When the radiologist and technician were satisfied with the images, I was ushered out to the reception area where I was told that my out-of-pocket co-pay would be $56.00. They offered the choice of paying on the spot, or billing me.  I chose to pay by credit card since I won't get the bill for another month, anyway.

I have an order for blood work, (the usual screenings) which I will probably have done before work on Thursday or Friday - since it requires a 12+ hour fasting period.

So, another "unknown" is lifted from my shoulders - the bp is slightly elevated (probably stress), all other vitals are OK. I am grateful for that, at least.

And so it goes.
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Weekend's End

As I walked to work yesterday I noticed roofing shingles, garbage cans, tree limbs and other debris cluttering the streets, in some cases blocking traffic movement entirely. It was all gone when I walked home.  Not a sign of where the transformer exploded the night before, either.  It only impacted the north side of the town.  Lucky us.

Didn't check the mailbox on Friday and when I got home last evening the poor thing was bulging to bursting. Stuffed it into a bag and went up to the apartment. Most was information about the Medicare supplemental insurance plans that now number 14, received in the last 3 weeks. I didn't realize so many companies had their grubby fingers in the business. 

Opening the door, I noticed that a large painting had come crashing down from its place on the wall.  Seems those stick-on picture hooks aren't as good as they're cracked up to be.  There are 4 other paintings/photos hung in the same manner, I guess it's only a matter of time for them, too. At least the paintings are glass-free, so only frames require replacement.  Not so for the photos and watercolors.

There was a message from Verizon on the answering machine, too.  Seems the fed has added a new fee for both phone and DSL usage.  I guess they need the extra money for wiretapping, dont'cha know. 

Everything is still this Sunday morning.  Only the cardinals are raising a racket outside. A walk on the boardwalk will be a nice way to start the work day.

More later.
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I'm Back! Well, Only Just.

I must be a resident of the City of Rehoboth Beach. My polling place information card arrived in the mailbox today! I guess it's true.

Regular readers may be surprised by this, but I came to realize (late, of course) that there are only 2 three-prong outlets in the apartment - one in the living room, the other in the bathroom - and I was too tired to face traffic to get to Lowe's for more after a long day at work. There was a voicemail waiting from Verizon informing me that the DSL was up and running.  Not to be deterred, I checked out extension cords and telephone cables and came up with a makeshift solution for the evening. Plugged the surge protector into the living room outlet, connected the computer, monitor, mouse and DSL modem to it, then ran a 25 ft. phone cable from the bedroom to the modem.  Worked immediately and I cannot detect a difference in the speed.

Anyway, I finished the move this morning before work before returning the key to the landlady and shedding a few tears with her. We're both moving on. I'd known that she was my angel these past three years, but I didn't know that I was also hers. Both of us getting over broken marriages, I can't imagine being an angel in the state I was in back then. If I overlooked anything I am sure she'll call.

I am having my first martini in the new place, and will prepare a first meal, too. Tomorrow is the only day off and I am sure you can guess what is at the top of the to-do list. Yes, three-prong outlets!!! There are also a few leads for furniture at thrift and consignment stores in the area.  I'll check them out and see what I come up with.

The sheets are on the bed, more boxes emptied and ready for the recycle center, which is actually the top item on the list, but closely followed by the damned outlets. I hope I remember how to replace them. Without cable or other service, I have That's Entertainment running in the background to keep me going.

This building is old and there are things requiring adjusted thinking (see outlets above) nothing that can't be worked around in the future. Whatever. For now I am thrilled to be close to the Atlantic and work; not dodging tourists in traffic; and the possibility of getting out more socially. We'll see.

For now, I want to furnish the place sparsely with things that strike my fancy.  My fancy what, I don't know, but I'll know it when I see it.


BTW, thanks to everyone for the good wishes, comments, and offer of a home blessing.  I am overwhelmed.

And so it goes.


Image by friend Ron. Click to embiggen.
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Move Planning on the Fly

For some strange reason things have been falling into place regarding the final days of the move. Seemingly, without thinking about it too much, I have planned pretty well as to what to take to the new place, when, and what to leave behind as I get the place cleaned and ready to vacate - hopefully by Tuesday.

Cabinets are empty and clean, bathroom is too, except for shaving and showering stuff for the next two days. Stainless steel kitchen sink is sparkling this evening. The bathroom fixtures are clean; only a vacuum and mop are needed by Tuesday.

Taking things day to day and keeping the few necessities required as I continue to sleep in the old place has worked out quite well, so far.

Took half of the refrigerated items to the new place this morning - leaving behind a few things I will need - and leaving the other half for tomorrow. More clothes, food, artwork, and file cabinet moved today, too.  I spent 2 hours putting things away in cabinets, refrigerator, closet, and linen closet. Took flattened boxes to recycle center and marveled at the progress made it the past week doing this daily routine. This offhand planning is working and I am enjoying the process and progress.

Tomorrow the TV, stand, and DVD player find their place in the apartment, along with the rest of the clothes, knives, utensils, and remaining refrigerated foods.

Feeling good and the martini hit the spot. Some more light packing and a viewing of "The Story of Us" on History - one last time. All plugs are pulled tomorrow.

I'll be offline for a day or two. If you are so inclined, please keep me in prayer.

And so it goes.
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Posting, Packing & Perspective

Sorry for the light personal postings, but lots going on right now. Packing, making lists of needs for the move and the new space, working 6 days a week, and juggling doctor's appts. doesn't leave a lot of free time. Sometimes I have to remind myself to breathe.

A lease application was submitted, accepted, and the lease signed. I was given a set of keys and may begin moving personal things in as soon as the power company approves the request for service - about 4 or 5 working days - after the 15th (the current tenant is moving out on the 15th, seems he can't wait to get into this new place in Ocean City and that's fine with me.) then schedule movers to bring items (currently in storage) to the apartment before the end of the month.  It's going to get even more hectic with Memorial Day weekend (the kick-off to summer) coming up at the same time. I hope to be ensconced in the new space beforehand. Fortunately, I won't waste a precious free day running around to the utility or phone company offices.
The landlady was informed of the lease application and I updated her today on what's going on, so we'll connect sometime this week . She has been wonderful to me through some of the worst of times, but I suppose it's time for us both to move on. I will miss her and the serenity of this place.

I knew that I had a small window of time to find a place before the season began, or there would be no hope until October, if even then. This also means I will be out of the realtor's hair, giving the landlady a better shot at selling the house. I received a call from the realtor asking permission to show the place - and my place - this week.  I told him that was OK. This is another reason I am grateful to have found a new place. Privacy. Never an issue before but that all changed when the FOR SALE sign appeared out front.

I guess all things eventually work out for the best. The new place is much nicer than the one I liked before. The appliances are newer, the rooms brighter and the layout is much better than the others. The one drawback is that anyone having to use the bathroom has to do so through the bedroom. But, I don't think it will be such a big deal.  I don't expect many visitors.

Being out-and-about around town and the community again has made a huge difference, as I doubt I would have ever known of these opportunities otherwise. Evidently, most of these rentals are not listed in newspapers or with realtors, but via word of mouth and referrals. It seems I came highly recommended. I am more than flattered.

OK, here's today's dish...

1. Picked up copy of the lease.
2. Drove to DMV to get address changed on driving license. (reason for lease copy.)
3. Dropped off more boxes at the storage unit.
4. Drove to Parking Permit Division to pick up a resident's permit hang-tag so I can park on the street in town without getting ticketed.
5. Romanian friend and co-worker, Eddie, stopped by and filled his Hybrid SUV with boxes and took them to the storage unit. (this way the boxes are out of the apartment and the place will show better.)
6.. Just got off the phone with Verizon transferring phone and DSL service to the new digs on May 25th. (They gave me a new number, but are not certain it will actually be THAT number. (huh?) I will know by the 26th.

Resigned to the possibility that I would never have another place to call my own, all this is quite a shock. I keep pinching myself to insure this isn't a dream. As usual, it's all how you look at things. Putting this into perspective hasn't been easy. I'll learn, albeit slower than others.

The back hurts from lugging boxes, and other stuff. A hot shower followed by a festive Martini and supper, then it's off to bed to rest these weary bones.  Cheers!

And so it goes.
*

Lost Verizon

When I got up for a drink of water during the night I noticed that there was a blinking red LED (instead of the usual green one) next to the Internet label on the high speed modem; while curious, I was sleepy and returned to bed.

By the time this is posted we will have been without Internet access for over 18 hours, or more.

When I got up to welcome the day I noticed the red light was still blinking and when I attempted to log on, discovered that I had no Internet access. Since the modem was still in working order I figured it had to be something to do with Verizon. So, I went to work thinking that all would be better when I got back. Not so.

A quicker than usual call to Verizon informed me of an outage in my area which was to be corrected by 6 pm this evening. It wasn't and isn't. The recording said that if all was not well by the 6 o'clock deadline to call again and leave a message. Having tried this 3 times, it is clear that Verizon has routed all complaints to a dead line. It never gets through to the recording device - the call is dropped.

I'm back, but for how long is anyone's guess.

Tomorrow is the beginning of the Memorial Day holiday weekend and the first day I take advantage of the park and ride into town. We'll see how that goes. Stay tuned.

Have a great and safe holiday weekend.

And so it goes.
*

Some Observations

I’ve been off work since Wednesday, and have pretty much stayed around the apt doing cleaning, installing software on the new box, and other chores.

The DirecTV service was installed two days ago and I’ve also done a bit of TV viewing from time to time.

Not having seen anything on the tube other than movies in many months I was surprised by the sheer numbers of commercials that turn a 90 minute film into a two-hour chunk of TV time. And pretty much the same commercials over and over and over ad nauseum. Male enhancement aids lead the pack on virtually all channels I’ve watched so far, with the exception of the Science and National Geographic channels.

And…Verizon must have already sold my phone number to telemarketers because I’ve received 4 or 5 calls a day and even one so far this morning. So I got online and signed up on the “don’t call” list. I hope that will stop these people that seem to have no specific time to make their calls. The one this morning came in at 7:45! On Sunday. Jeez!

More later.

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Thank You, Thank You

Back in business and ain't it grand wired with a new land line at home. I can breathe again. I can even make phone calls! Imagine that. The five days waiting for the service connection passed quickly and the good looking field technician doing the hook up this morning was easy on the eyes, and more than willing to answer my many questions about high speed Internet service.

He had to preform some magic rewiring at the junction box down the road, which took an extra 15 minutes. The line is cleaner and static free, so as long as I am saddled with dreaded dial-up that is one less problem to worry about. Yes, it's still slow, though not as slow as the previous connection. Go fig. I haven't been bumped off-line so far. So far!

Still, no downloading of video, or audio files for the time being. Hey, I can wait.

More later.
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Not So Cavalier

My home telephone service has been disconnected. Unbelievable! What more can these people screw up?

Let me explain.

When I was ordered to vacate my previous living space by 7/15, I called Cavalier on 7/10 to have the service moved to the new apartment. I was told it would take up to 2 weeks to move the service and assured that I could retain the original phone number. I gave the Customer Service Rep the current address and the “move service to” address, which she read back to me for accuracy.

As the two-week mark neared I called again to verify that installation would be taking place and that the tech might require my presence to bring the line into the apartment. This was added to the work order. Two days later, I got a call at work from the technician…and this is when things began to unravel.

The address on his work order was the OLD address - this is the same work order that would have been sent to Verizon – meaning that Verizon had reopened the line at the old address. The tech was certain of all this, and he was right. Rick put in another work order for the new address (which could take another two weeks) and added an escalation request in an attempt to get the line in faster.

Didn’t happen.

During this period I spoke with CS reps: Teena, Pat, Tom, Rennie, Tony, Kevin, Rick, Latania, Bernie, Nina, and Trish. These conversations were preceded by 15 – 30 minutes listening to music and Cavalier’s PR spin, “When it needs to be done right, you can count on us.”

Yeah, right!

In early August, a bill arrived for service from 7/1 to 7/31 for the entire month of which I had only used a third. I made another call, and was told disregard the bill, that I would be sent an updated bill, and that because of the mix up and confusion, the “move service” fee would be waved.

Meanwhile back at the ranch, er’ apartment; I get a cell phone call from Rick, the tech that the line would be fired up on Aug. 11 and that he could run the line into the apartment on Aug. 13 one month and three days after the initial request to move the service. Fortunately, I was off that day and available for access, or to answer any questions.

Rick arrived on time and completed every request. He was finished in less than an hour.

Oh, and the phone number had been changed, but at least I had phone service.

A week later I was on the phone with the billing dept. asking if I was still being billed for the old number, and asked when the updated bill would arrive. CS rep. Carol told me any charges would be combined, that the adjusted bill would arrive soon. She again verified the new address and mailing address.

So, a Cavalier bill arrived this weekend and when I opened it was stunned. Not only was I charged for all of July, but late fees had been added, as well as the “outside move service” fee that I had been assured would be waived due to all the confusion…uh huh. Also, the bill was mailed to the OLD address!!! Hello? Anybody there? Never mind.

I placed a call to Cavalier yesterday morning. After hitting a wall with an automated CS voice (I couldn’t get beyond – do you want to make your payment now? – or you can talk to me as if I was a live Rep. Um, no) I said “CANCEL SERVICE”!!! That did it and I was routed to a real live and mouth-breather, I mean, person. I related the entire epic to which she (Tia) was not terribly responsive, and told me she could knock off the move service fee, but that the two months service and late fees would have to be paid. I asked to speak with a supervisor or I would cancel my service. There were no supervisors available at that hour, she said (8:30 am.?) and I would have to call back later. I told her to send me an updated bill with one month’s service deducted, and without the late fees and I would gladly pay that. She said she couldn’t do that and that she would only deduct the “move service” fee. I told her to send the bill and I would take it up with corporate billing next month.

OK, I arrive home last evening and the service is already turned off. I said that I MIGHT cancel service. By refusing to pay the late fees it seems I have become a bad risk, and I have no recourse.

Anyway, I called Verizon this morning to get new service installed ASAP. I got right through to a very helpful CS rep, Tom, who walked me through the exact plan I wanted and could afford at this time. New service will be installed on 9/18 – FIVE days!!! A far cry from TWO WEEKS. Unlimited local calling service that will cost a little more than half of what I paid for Cavalier. This all took place in less than a half hour.

This melodrama has been nothing short of hell. Hello? Hello? Anybody there? Not at Cavalier.

More later.

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