Dr. Phil Taking Charge

Mr. President, Beer Me!

Nobama is having beers with hotheaded Sergeant Crowley and oversensitive Professor Gates at the White House. You know, after he made a mountain of a mole hill by sticking his foot in his mouth. And not even a good beer. A Bud, for Chrissake. And not even an American beer, the presumable intended display of patriotism. Budweiser is the latest acquisition of InBev, the European beer giant that owns Hoegaarden and Leffe. Oh, how much more respect I'd have for the prez if he were to pop open a Leffe dark, setting a much-needed example for the rest of the country. And Gates, who reportedly doesn't even like beer, has ordered a Red Stripe. Seriously? A Jamaican lager? Is he making a statement? In the words of our State Departmant after a post-01/22/09 Israeli political action, "This is NOT helpful. " At least Crowley had the wisdom, this time around, to ask for a Blue Moon. It might be a mass-produced craft brew, but it's a start. Hopefully "race relations" can take a cue.

Optimum Cable: Part II

Flashback…7/19: A very helpful customer service rep in Cablevision’s Disconnect Department, Justin, commiserates and assures me someone will definitely come out on Saturday, 7/25, between 11 am and 2 pm. Leaves his number to call, promising he’s the only one there.
7/25: 11:30 am: I place a call to the heavily accented dispatcher, who says no appointment is scheduled.
Noon: Cablevision customer service rep Binderman assures me someone will, of course, come out by 2 pm and call before he/she comes.
2 pm: I call heavily accented dispatcher, asking to confirm the status. On hold for 5 mins. When she returns, she asks if I want to cancel my appointment. When I laugh and say no, she assures someone is coming.
3 pm: Dispatcher places me on hold for 10 mins, never returns, I hang up.
3:10 pm: Different dispatcher takes 10 mins to understand my phone number and address, helpfully gives me customer service number for Cablevision.
4 pm: Pleasant rep Ilene apologizes as their computers are down, promises to call back within hour.
4:15 pm: True to her word, Ilene calls back. As I recount my harrowing tale of woe, including the Internet disruption from Tuesday, Ilene suggests that my appointment for cable box pickup was probably cancelled when the Internet problem was resolved. Her voice is so pleasant that this sounds completely reasonable. My request for account credit is denied as no appointment was technically scheduled for Saturday. She gingerly asks if I’d like to make another appointment.
4:35 pm: I arrive at 1095 E. 45th Street and relieve myself of the cable box.

Angela!

If you're wondering why your kid is coming home from school with a speech impediment, you can thank Tony Danza.

Optimum Cable

7/10: Call placed to cancel cable TV. Cable guy to pick up box. Celebration, high 5s all around.
7/17: Appointment to pick up box confirmed with Cablevision.
7/18: 10 AM--First lateness courtesy call from Cablevision.
11 AM--Second apology call, guy claimed to be on way over
12:30 PM--My call dropped several times, switchboard operator apologizes
1-2 PM: More apologies, dropped calls
2:30 PM: Cable guy claimed to have shown up, cut my lines (despite service already being canceled. Work order claimed to say nothing about box pickup. I ask for account credit.
7/19: Robocall from Cablevision auto-surveys my customer satisfaction. “Ridiculous” not one of the options, “Poor” option is disabled!
7/20: New appointment for box pickup made for 7/25.
7/21: My Internet is disconnected though only TV service has been canceled.

TBC…

Epic Return

Just to prove the defeatist Whyduck wrong, this blog is hereby resurrected! Content TK, but for now, enjoy the empty promise!