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August 08, 2007
God Have Mercy on Their Souls
Since retiring a few weeks ago, my dad has been immersing himself in the joys of day-to-day civilian life. It has not been a pretty transition.
Two weeks ago he got his first personal laptop EVER, and needed a full 8 days to figure it all out. Apparently, he wanted to go through the entire set-up process, but got befuddled (if you can call loud sighing and occasional swearing "befuddled) by the fact that the computer kept prompting him to register his programs online, but failed to automatically connect with the internet.
There was also some muttering about a lack of CDs with the associated Microsoft Office--or perhaps it was that it was already pre-installed, but didn't seem to have the registration codes listed anywhere, thus allowing him only 25 uses before locking him out completely.
He and I spent several hours on the phone with the Comcast, and then the Linksys people, trying to get the wireless internet in the house set up properly so that everyone in the house could check email at the same time. It was only after approximately 45 minutes that I was able to wrestle the phone away from him and talk to the customer service person directly. As I followed their simple instructions, I could still hear my dad wondering aloud why it all had to be so complicated.
Today, my dad chose to inflict his rage against the mortgage people, who have somehow contrived to arrange a money transfer to the new bank in such a way that daily interest is being charged by both institutions for the few days in which the money is in transit. The money isn't the issue--it's more the fact that, to quote a certain incensed man in our house, "the entire financial industry is set up solely for their benefit, to the detriment of the borrower."
Seems reasonable enough. But when I pointed out that using foul language directed at the customer service person on the other end of the line was unlikely to have any positive effect, he claimed that the goal was not to actually get the bank to waive the charges. It was only "to get him to admit that he's screwing me". The phone call lasted more than an hour, as every line item was reviewed, contested, abandoned, and then revisited anew.
Let this serve as an open warning to all customer service agents worldwide. There is a retired 2-star admiral on the loose. He's used to having a staff deal with these issues, and now is determined to set things right himself. He's on a quest. And he's got nothing but time.
Comments
Hey, maybe this means your family can make viable vacation plans now that the Big A is untethered? Or should we all just run for cover?
Posted by: La at August 8, 2007 08:41 AM
My advice to him is this. Keep an open line of communication to the Captain fo the USS Ronald Regan. If the name alone does not evoke the proper red tape clearing resonse then perhaps a quote from Al Capone will. "In my neighborhood you get farther with a kind word and a gun, than just a kind word."
Posted by: CT at August 8, 2007 01:37 PM
