Exhaling

Behold!

My wall this morning.

My wall tonight.

The new TV, purchased at 10:32 this morning, installed at 7:30 tonight.

Take THAT, Big Box Store!

First stop this morning was Walmart, where I couldn’t find anyone to assist me and didn’t see anything I could get up the stairs on my own, or figure out how to hook up.

A worker passing by asked, “How’s your morning going?”

“Confusing. Do you deliver and install?”

Electronics not being her area of expertise, she flagged down a young man who’d not yet clocked in but who graciously rounded up a pamphlet for a company I could contact, adding “People don’t usually ask for delivery here. We haven’t used this company for two years”.

I thanked him but, because that didn’t sound very reassuring, headed for Costco.

Still not finding anything manageable by me, I pulled out the cellphone to call daughter to see if she and her partner could come help me pick out a TV, get it upstairs and installed when, all of a sudden, an angel of an associate in a red jacket appeared and asked “May I help you?”

“Yes, please. Do you deliver and install?”

“We partner with an Express Delivery Service.”

“How long does it take?”

“I don’t know. Depends on how busy he is, but here’s his card. Give him a call?”

I called on the spot.

“We can deliver today or tomorrow. Select your TV and call me back with when you want it delivered”.

I like the sound of that.

After red jacket explained to me the difference between LED, HD, Smart, I opted for a 40 inch simple uncomplicated HD and Costco put it on hold for Express to pick up.

Calling Express Service back to schedule tomorrow, he tells me “We can do it tonight, if you like”.

I very much like, and didn’t even bother to ask how much he charges.

Didn’t matter. The fact that there are still businesses that do right by its customers was worth what turned out to be only $75, plus of course I tipped the two guys for taking the time to walk me through the set-up steps.

Telling them of my experience with Big Box, they indicated they’re getting a lot of business because of dissatisfaction with Big Box. One customer was jacked around some 30 days on delivery before he gave up and went to Costco.

As for that Big Box store, at the bottom of the email verifying a refund had been processed were the words, “We value you as a customer, and we hope to see you again soon.”

I don’t think so, and the many negative Yelp reviews I read -- as I was adding my own negative review to the list, demonstrated just how little you value your customers.

Still Waiting to Exhale

The television purchased on the 15^th, from the Big Box store, was due to arrive today, between 9:00 and 12:00 noon – “They’ll call you when in route”, sales said.

Shortly after 9:00 this morning, I get the call, “I’ll be arriving between 10:00 and noon”.

Great!

The old TV is hanging in there but, because it takes 30 minutes to power up in the morning, and it began to look like it wasn’t going to turn on at all, I’ve been leaving it on 24/7, turning the sound off at night.

I figured that can’t be good but, expecting the replacement to arrive in six days, I opted to risk it.

Delivery calls me again around 11:00 – “I’m stuck in traffic in Victorville. It doesn’t look like I’m going to make it, and I have other appointments here in Victorville. Are you home most mornings? … I’ll try to get there tomorrow or Saturday”.

My first thought was … I didn’t book the appointment for most mornings. I booked it for today, and it’s already been a six-day wait.

My second thought was … Cancel.

Instead, I accepted his, “I’ll call you tomorrow and let you know.”

However, on the drive to pick up a package at Amazon Locker ─ Toffee, because I can no longer trust the postal delivery service to get it right … yet again, I began to fume and told myself that when Delivery called tomorrow and said it wouldn’t be until Saturday, that I’d tell him to cancel.

Arriving back at the complex, I get an email that delivery has automatically been rescheduled to the 27^th between 10:00 and 2:00.

That’s freaking ridiculous! – two weeks to get a television delivered and set up.

I cancelled.

Big Box will get no more of my business …… ever!

I’ve got time remaining on the Nerd Squad computer service but, once that expires, I’ll send my repairs to Office Depot.

The plan now is to head to Walmart or Costco tomorrow, and look for something small that I can get up stairs and setup all by myself.

The having to drive out-of-the-area to an Amazon Locker is due to the fact mail is once again being misdelivered. The regular mail carrier is female, and she’s been doing such a good job of making sure the key to the lock box for packages goes in the correct mail box, that I personally told her how much I appreciated her getting it right, that the guy before her – the one who retired, who said, “I don’t make mistakes” was constantly putting the key in the wrong box and whichever resident was the recipient of his mistake wasn’t honest, they kept my packages.

Lately, however, she’s not been the one delivering. I had a key put in my mailbox to a package which was not mine. I walked it over to the resident.

All was made clear when I saw one of the other mail carriers sorting while talking on his cellphone. I should have taken a photo and mailed it to the post office with a complaint about how this is why the errors are being made, but didn’t think of doing so until days later when a resident was honest enough to walk over a package meant for me, but the key was left in his mailbox.

So, the plan for me now is not to order anything that has to go through U.S. Postal Service for delivery, which pretty much leaves me with Amazon, because I can have it sent to a Toffee Locker.

The only thing I have no control over, in bypassing the postal service, is when I’ve qualified for a Virtual 5K and the medal is mailed through U.S. Mail. If the package, or the key to the locker in which the medal is placed doesn’t make it to my mailbox, then I’m SOL.

Oh, and by the way, right after Delivery said he was stuck in traffic in Victorville, I logged into CalTrans Traffic Report of freeways out of Victorville to San Bernardino and saw no major hiccups. He just didn’t feel like driving this far.

Waiting to Exhale

Picking up the repaired laptop Saturday afternoon at Big Box was a complete reversal to the drop-off experience.

With three Nerd Squad guys on duty, there was no one in line. I walked right up to the counter and was served straight away.

Learned the problem with automatic updates freezing the laptop wasn’t unique to me. Nerd Guy said they’re working on ten laptops with automatic update related problems, some of which are black screens.

I asked about removing updates altogether. He said it’s not encouraged but, under the circumstances, might be best until Windows 10 gets its act together.  After the removal, he cautioned, “They’re off now, but might come back”. Sure enough, later that evening …

Thus far, I’ve been able to circumvent this, but eventually I imagine the updates will circumvent my circumventing.

Sigh!

At least I’ve got a backup laptop to tide me over should things go south again, but now the television is failing. Turn it off at night and it takes 20/30 minutes to power up in the morning before the picture appears on the screen.

It’s been doing that for a while now, but requiring only 10 minutes for the hard drive to power up. Now up to 30 minutes is signaling the TV is on its last leg so, while at Big Box picking up, I ordered a new one, to be delivered and set up on Thursday. Nothing fancy, just a simple no frills easy to operate – or so I requested and was told.

So, though I’ll never buy another computer from Big Box, because of that long wait to check-in for repair, I have no choice but to give them my television business because I can’t get one upstairs on my own and have no confidence I can do a proper setup.

So here I am holding my breath, hoping the updates don't freeze the laptop again, hoping my old TV hangs on until the new one arrives, hoping the new TV gives me no grief, and hoping for an end to technological snafus so I can relax and exhale.

At least the A/C situation has been resolved, even though A/C is not now needed.

The weather was so nice Saturday that, heading to Big Box to pick-up the laptop, I drove the scenic street route. About a block away from the site of the original McDonald’s, now a museum, I saw smoke.

Oh No, thought I. It’s on fire!

The smoke turned out to be a BBQ Pit. A banner indicated it was an event in celebration of the 75^th Anniversary of the fast food chain.

Since it’s McDonalds, I’m assuming it was burgers on the grill.

Done and Done

Woke up Wednesday to a nonfunctioning laptop.

Guess the laptop’s feelings were hurt when I blogged a day or so previously that I didn’t much care for it.

Actually though, when I logged out the night before, Windows did its automatic update thing. Next morning, the laptop would not boot up.

Good job with those updates Windows People.

Off I went to the Big Box store, arriving at 9:30 to see if they could get the laptop working.

Too early.

Too anxious.

Big Box wasn’t to open until 10, so I drove around looking for a Starbucks in vain because the GPS kept leading me in loops and once to a dead end street.

Arriving back at Big Box 10:00 sharp – coffee less, I get in line for Nerd Support and got scheduled an 11:00 appointment – a one hour wait.

That’s new.

Use to be you got in line, walked up to a Nerd in a row of Nerds when called; the Nerd fixed the issue on-the-spot or logged the laptop in for service, two/three days later you got a call to pick up.

Quick, fast, organized.

Did not like this new procedure, and I wasn’t the only customer to voice dislike.

At any rate, 11:00 came and went. Just when I was considering walking out, I was called up to the one Nerd girl manning the Service side. (There were two manning the Return side).

Big Box is beginning to look a lot like Circuit City did just before it went under.

The Nerd girl typed in my laptop problem, logged the laptop in for service, said I’ll get a call to pick up in 2/3 days.

WHAT?!

I waited 1-1/2 hours for a 5-minute check-in?

Makes no sense, and I said so.

During the hour and a half of waiting, I did look at other computers. Didn’t see anything I liked and – with the new appointment procedure to check-in, I wouldn’t buy another from Big Box. In fact, I saw that even folks purchasing new puters weren’t able to check them in for the usual setup. They were told they too would have to wait hours for an appointment.

Returning to the complex with a headache, feeling aggravated and pretty well done with poor customer service, having already decided to bypass the next day's Residents’/Management meeting in lieu of going directly to Corporate Boss Lady -- because Head Maintenance Guy was just gonna make excuses in the meeting and lie anyway, I asked the residents who are generally on top of things if any of them had Corporate Boss Lady’s email address – (Before the laptop became inoperable, I’d researched the company’s website but did not find her contact info).

No one had it so I had to show my cards ... I texted Community Manager asking if she could provide that info.

I didn’t say why I was asking, but obviously she had an inkling the manure was about to hit the fan because I could feel her panic coming through the air.

She did not reply. However, less than an hour later, Head Maintenance Guy knocked on my door to say an A/C Guy from a company other than the company originally contacted would be here the following day.

So that was my Wednesday.

On Thursday, an A/C technician arrived at 12 noon. Twenty minutes later, the A/C was operating – no parts necessary.

The A/C Guy said he didn’t know why Maintenance Guy didn’t call him in the first place, as he does repairs for the company and wasn’t going to charge near as much as the outside company that said the entire unit had to be replaced -- when it didn’t. I said it was because Maintenance Guy wasn’t the motivated type and didn’t get motivated until he realized I was about to involve his boss at Corporate.

This obviously not being A/C Guy’s first rodeo with Maintenance Guy, he nodded agreement with the description of his being “unmotivated” and began to laugh, and laughed even harder as he said, “He’s afraid of you now. He was too afraid to escort me up here. He asked T____ (our other Maintenance Guy) if he’d do it”.

That’s hilarious, but more likely, rather than afraid, he's too ashamed for jacking me around to face me.

“Well, tell him don’t be too afraid to come get his portable A/C’s”, said I.

Enjoying the intrigue, A/C Guy was still laughing when he said, “I’ll tell him, but he’ll probably send T___ by himself”.

Then there’s Equifax.

Last two years I requested an annual, they denied me online because some of their data did not match my reality. Instead, I was sent a form request to fill out in order to prove I am who I say I am. But then they have no problem putting me in jeopardy with this breach – essentially giving data away to not me.

Lastly, the laptop is still in the shop.

So how are you posting you ask?

After a 19 day wait for A/C repair and an hour and a half wait to check the laptop into Big Box, I’m done with waiting. After A/C Guy left, I headed to Costco and picked up a new laptop. It’s a brand that has an iffy reputation, but I like it -- and I like it way better than the HP. Besides, no computer is ever going to last as long or live up to that Sony Vaio.

I was thinking of giving the HP to Grandbaby, but have since learned my flash drives do not fit this new laptop.

Why does everything have to be so complicated?

Looks like I’ll have to make room on my station for two laptops. At least when one is in the shop, I’ll have the other to work with.

Liar, Liar

Took a break from scrapbooking and the latest needlepoint project to head down to the office to pick up a new parking sticker. Management is revamping assigned parking to put folks closer to the building in which they reside, and residents of each building had an assigned day to learn of their new spot and pick up a parking sticker.

Today was the pick-up date for those in my building.

On the way out, ran into Next Door Neighbor returning from getting her sticker, and very happy was she. She’s got a sweet handicapped spot in the carport directly across from the end of the walkway.

I’d noticed before that she always parked in a handicapped spot, but don’t know the nature of her disability. It’s not anything visibly obvious, she’s never mentioned a disability, and I’ve never asked.

At any rate, my spot is exactly 100 steps from my front door, and though that sounds like a lot, it’s not actually, when you consider I've got stairs and a roundabout walkway in the mix -- and yes I've counted as I include those steps in my fitness routine.

I like the spot and I’d made it clear to management when all this revamping was announced, and on multiple subsequent occasions that “you’d better not move me”.

They didn’t.

I’m still good.

Not so much with Day 17 of no A/C and, with cooler weather, the inability to open the windows to let in fresh air because the portable A/C's are blocking access, and there’s been no word from management.

So, while in the office, I asked, “Have you people forgotten about me? It is now 17 days with no A/C”.

The Community Manager’s face took on a deer-in-the-headlights look.

I’m beginning to really worry about her. She looks frightened, helpless, pitiful.

The Head Maintenance Guy took over and said, “I’ve been calling the guy. He keeps saying he’ll get back to me then he doesn’t, but you’ve got the portable A/C's.”

He can’t possibly be rationalizing my having portable A/C's as being an excuse and end to the problem, thought I.

“Yes, they’re making the situation bearable, but the A/C needs to be fixed. If I were a weaker senior, I’d be dead already.”

That’s me pulling the age card.

“Well, I’ll call him again and, if he doesn’t respond, I’ll call someone else.”

“I should hope so.”

Popping into the Community Room, seeing it was somewhat chaotic because today is Pizza Tuesday and Activity Director was not coordinating the event, I sat down, observed for a while and chatted with The Seer.

When I told her the Head Maintenance Guy said he’d been calling the guy, she blurted out, “That’s a lie. He’s lying to you. He’s done no such thing. He hasn't called anyone.”

All of a sudden, a light went on and I knew she was absolutely correct.

That’s why I call her The Seer, because she seems to see things coming before they happen and has the ability to see through BS when it’s happening.

The Head Maintenance Guy is the young fellow I’ve described in previous blogs as being lazy, slow and unmotivated, so of course I should have known he’d dropped the ball and done nothing.

I personally cannot abide a liar, so it’s time for me to go nuclear.

We’re having a Residents/Management meeting this Thursday and, after the fiasco of the last meeting -- declaring I’d never attend another, I’m taking that declaration back, plan to attend and put the lack of resolution of the A/C on blast.

Hopefully our Community Manager and Assistant Manager can cowgirl up and attend this time but, even if they don’t, I’ll put whoever does show up on the hot seat.

No resolution after that, and I’ll contact their direct supervisor at Corporate.

Office staff does not like the Corporate Boss Lady, they're all afraid of her, but oh well.

Map My Escape

Watching all the devastation in Mexico, Texas and now Florida, I began rethinking the escape plan I’d come up with, back in July of last year, when the area was ablaze with fires.

I’d decided that, should there be an evacuation situation – and there had been one two years before I moved in when a fire on little mountain resulted in evacuation of this senior complex and the multi-family complex next door, that I’d load the car only with that which was important and that which personally mattered most to me:

1.        Cell phone and charger

2.       Fanny pack, with driver’s license, credit cards

3.       Important papers, such as social security/medicare card, title to car

4.       Creative Memory photo albums

5.       Laptop

That list is still valid, except I wouldn’t worry too much about the laptop because the Sony Vaio I had at the time died, has been replaced with a HP Envy, and I’m not as attached to the HP as I was to the Vaio, and would welcome the HPs demise, so I could try again with a different brand.

Not that there’s anything technically wrong with it. I just don’t care much for it.

At any rate, just in case I wouldn’t have time to save my fourteen Creative Memory Albums, seeing all the water damage from the floods and hurricanes, I began looking online into waterproof/fireproof safes that I could use as furniture and keep the albums safe from whatever comes our way.

Even if it’s an earthquake, I felt the albums would be safe and secure in a safe under piles of rubble.

Not seeing anything online that could be used multi-functionally as furniture, and anything that wasn’t either too small or too large, I began thinking --- What’s the quickest way to get those heavy albums down to the car and have decided one of those grocery carts I see the seniors using would work.

I could set it at the bottom of the stairs, run up/down the stairs loading the albums, then push the cart to the car and unload.

Next part of the plan, and not addressed last time, was where to go.

If there weren't so many creeps and criminals in the world, just looking for victims, I could live in the car. That not being a safe bet, a hotel in Long Beach would be okay, but Long Beach is too close to water and, if California is destined to fall into the sea, as some alarmist have prophesized, that’s not where I want to be.

I’m thinking further inland -- a hotel in Palm Springs or Nevada until I get the all clear. But I don't know. More planning to be done.

Made contact with the Writer of Christian Literature this morning – the resident who recently relocated back to Florida.

She’s safe and in an area that’s only getting “heavy rain”.

When I mentioned she’d picked the worst possible time to move back to Florida, she said, “I miscalculated. I thought the hurricane season had passed”.

WHAT!?

She left all this sunshine to move back to an area she knew had a hurricane season?

I can’t imagine. I’d rather take my chances with fires and earthquakes.

Oh, and by the way, today is Day 14 of no A/C.