Sprint Update

My "case" has been assigned to a person in the "executive" office. She has been working on my case for a week now; today she concluded that the financial collections people should remove my phone number from their records. Gee, I wish I'd thought of that. I received another collection call yesterday, I wonder if it is the last. In no instance will anyone at Sprint admit to ownership of the problem. Everyone is sooooooo cautious -- every phone call is recorded (with my permission).
The thing that gripes me is that all of this has a cost. All this inefficiency is part of what you pay for with your wireless phone service. My executive case worker probably makes $100K a year and with benefits, overhead, etc she probably costs the consumer $200K a year. Maybe she spent 10 hours on my case -- I've had four phone calls from her. That's approximately $1,000 of cost, folks, to save me aggravation from a problem that should never have occurred. Of course, my time and aggravation have no value. I expect to hear at least once more from my Sprint caseworker telling me that the situation has been resolved and that the case is closed. I will be compelled to ask her if Sprint has assumed ownership of the issue, just to hear the weasel words around her answer. Sometimes I get a kick out of jousting with windmills.

Aux Arcs (Ozark) au Printemps

If Kenny were alive, he'd appreciate my fractured French.

Signs of Spring include:

1. An increase in road kill -- little furry critters are mating and not looking out for cars!
2. Robins pogo on the front lawn.
3. The last of the parking lot snow piles have melted.
4. Tree tops show pregnant promises of buds on the tips of their winter-dead branches.
5. The ice beards have melted from the limestone cliff faces.
6. Kids wear shorts exposing winter white legs.
   
7. Canoes float on the river.
8. Five kids play baseball down the street.
9. The parking lot at the mall is full.
10. I feel like cleaning house (but instead go to the mall).
    

The Company I Keep

My quilting passion has created social connections for me. Here you see the some of the "Buttonhole Babes. " We meet monthly and are just completing a group quilt to donate to the library -- I'll show you a photo when it is done. It's a good group -- real casual, no bylaws, dues, etc. I like it -- I've outgrown structure (unless it is absolutely necessary). I also belong to the local quilt guild which is quite structured -- they have hundreds of members and a large bank account. Alternate years (September 2010, e.g.) they sponsor a quilt show which is a big deal. They also do lots of good works -- provide a lot of support to a local women's shelter, donate hundreds of quilts for various causes, etc.

This group is half of our Tables of Eight. Our church forms groups of eight who meet monthly for a potluck dinner rotating among the members' homes. My turn is in March which should ignite a fury of housecleaning. I'm still waiting for it to kick in.

Here's the other half of the group. Dinner was a yummy Mexican-ish Chicken Casserole. I brought Spanish Rice (never made it before, but it was simple, good, and went well with the main dish). Others supplied appetizers, salad, and dessert. This was the first meeting and I didn't know any of the other folks, but it was fun. I belonged to a similar group in California and enjoyed it. In California, we served wine with dinner, but no liquor was served to the Missouri group. I have gone to a Mexican restaurant with a local Methodist Women's group where booze was enjoyed, so I know it's not an entirely dry organization. I'm unsure about whether I'll serve wine when it's my turn. We'll see.

Upbeat

The best looking boy in the band plays the marimba in competition. This drum line of 20 kids competed last Saturday. Too bad they were evaluated for their performance and not looks. On the same day Logan participated in his first competitive speech event. He performed two pieces -- a comedy dialogue and a poem. Did well on the first and according to him he bombed on the poem. I salute him for being brave enough to do it at all. He is looking forward to the next competition on home turf. I am so proud of them (can you tell?).

I'm peeved

So, what do you think will happen when Mr. Johnson gets this letter?

Bob Johnson
Chief Service Officer
6200 Sprint Pkwy.,
Overland Park, KS 66251

Dear Mr. Johnson,

Each month I receive an automated phone call from Sprint. Sometimes the message requests me to contact Sprint immediately about my wireless account. At other times I am advised my wireless service is about to be discontinued unless payment is received. These calls do not give me the opportunity to speak to a live person; I am required to enter my Sprint wireless number or account number to pursue the call.

I do not have a Sprint account. I am not a Sprint customer. I consider the calls from Sprint to be a form of harassment and I’ve grown weary of receiving them.

Today, I called Sprint customer service, spent half an hour on the phone, and went through four levels of “pass the buck.” I am told nothing can be done. I don’t believe that. I’ve been told I must continue to suffer this embarrassment and inconvenience.

I am providing you with my home phone number at the bottom of this letter. This is the number that receives the calls. I know it is possible to search a database and correct this problem. However, your customer service agent Bryan, serial number IT 255118, tells me my only course of action is to contact the National Do Not Call Registry. I refuse to take action exceeding the scope of the problem.

It cannot be incumbent upon me to resolve a problem originating with and perpetuated by Sprint.

In exchange for a quick resolution of this problem, no more phone calls about past due bills from Sprint, a letter of apology from your office, and training delivered to your customer service employees on how to deal with this problem, I will consider the issue closed.

The Happiest Day of My Life

. . . was February 26, 1964. Patricia Colleen and Kevin Michael were born at 7:22 and 7:26 P.M.
6 pounds 10-1/2 ounces and 6 pounds 4 ounces. Perfect in every way. Still are.

A Few of My Favorite Things

• The Snooze Button -- Even though I'm a morning person, I hate to wake up to an alarm. I like to hit the snooze button and get up before it goes off, feeling like I'm in charge, not the bloody clock. (Am I a control freak??!!)
  
• A Full Night's Sleep -- a rare event. I tend to worry about the world and things I have no control over like could Sarah Palin really get elected President? Or what will happen to Africa? Why don't middle-easterners participate in the Winter Olympics (could it be they have no snow?)?
• Weather Events -- I love snow -- I feel like a kid on Christmas when I wake up to a fresh snowfall and the world is white, the road is unplowed, and no cars have left their mark. On the other hand, people who fuss about their untrammeled snow and don't let the kids play in it annoy me. I love downpours, watching the rain from a snug smug place like inside my warm and dry house or my car sitting on high ground. I like to watch the river rise and am amazed when the dam becomes swamped. Tornado warnings thrill me. I don't wish harm to anyone, but I get very excited hunkering down in the cellar listening to the stormcasts on the radio, daring to go out every once in a while to check on the storm's progress. I'm thrilled by thunderstorms with lightning strikes so close the house shudders, and lightning so constant you can read by it. Sometimes I go outside and randomly click away with my little point and shoot camera hoping to be able to catch a photo of lightning bolts in the sky (so far, no luck). I even like ice storms. I stay well-provisioned with food, batteries, flashlights, and blankets so we can remain house-bound for several days if necessary. I follow the weather reports religiously and try to read the sky. Along with the weather, I love watching the seasons unfold -- Missouri is a great place for all of this.
• A Sandwich Made by Anyone Else--doesn't matter how simple, what kind of bread. Plain peanut butter and jelly on white bread, bologna, stuff I would never crave or fix for myself somehow becomes gourmet fare when presented to me ready to eat.
  
• The "A" Vegetables -- asparagus, artichokes, and avocados. That would be my favorite birthday meal (you could toss in Dungeness crab, fresh San Francisco sour dough bread and a nice glass of white wine and finish it with strawberry shortcake made with homemade biscuits and real whipped cream).
• My Birthday -- no matter my age, I am still a little girl on my birthday. Presents no longer matter, but I feel like a princess all day long. I thank my mother for this -- she had five kids, but she always made a big deal of each our birthdays. She told me in later years that she felt the mother should also be celebrated on a child's birthday. I agree. After she was widowed and we were both single women, we alternated the responsibility for celebrating my birthday. One year I would choose the restaurant and pick up the tab and the next year it was her turn.
  
• Our Local High School -- astounds me. Many extra-curricular activities involve bringing kids in on buses from other schools (or busing them out if the event is held somewhere else): Basketball (girls and boys) volleyball, wrestling, football, band, choir, speech, ROTC, and I'm sure there are others. Every night of the week (except Sunday -- after all, this is the buckle of the bible belt) school buses from all over southwest Missouri idle in the parking lot. These activities call for a tremendous commitment on the part of the teachers who sponsor the events. Teacher salaries are very low here (of course, employment opportunities are fairly limited, too) so support of these activities is a real sacrifice and there are some very special people involved. Parent participation is extremely high as well.
• Textiles -- I love fabric. The texture, the colors, the feel of it, the smell, the way it drapes, folds, cuts, takes the needle, everything about it appeals to me. If I had it all to do over, I would follow a path paved with cloth. I'd weave, spin, dye, and have my hands on the glorious stuff all day long.
• Having Ben and Logan in my life I grieve for Robin every day yet I am so grateful for the wonderful children she left behind. Life without them is unthinkable. The rhythm of our lives gives me peace. I love morning when I wake them up so they can go to school and I realize anew they are with me -- we are a family. Watching them grow astounds me -- I suppose it would be more surprising if they didn't, but I still marvel over inch they add to their height, each increase in shoe size, that their pants become too short on a regular basis, etc. Nothing is ordinary -- all is extraordinary.