happy 1st birthday mont (and zoe)...
April 15, 2008
Time for that monthly entry, calm down, I know you're all excited to read it!
For the first time ever I wrote a letter of complaint. I'm usually one who's pretty cool, calm and collected but this time I was cheesed off enough to write something. The letter was to Optus is regards to their cable service in the South-Eastern suburbs. Since early February international access would spasmodically cease but sites/services within Australia would be fine. Access would drop for a few minutes at a time ranging to several hours and would occur on an almost daily basis. Optus have been very reliable since I connected in 2000 and the loss of international access didn't really bother me...but the fact nothing was put on their Service Status page (like they were denying liability) and technical support denied it was happening pissed me off no end. The issue was discussed in length on Whirlpool and Optus continued to lie: that there wasn't a problem, they're fixing the problem and they've solved the problem...but the problems still existed! Currently only have a "we'll get back to you letter" in response to mine so I'm waiting patiently for an explanation. If the explanation sucks I'll write to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman. If they were honest from the start I wouldn't care but this shit pisses me off.
Monty celebrated his first birthday last week and we held a party for him and his sister Zoe. We managed to hold them both still long enough to take a photo of them wearing party hats and enjoying their cup-cakes! Yeah, pretty silly I know but it's good fun! We used to do the same with Goldie on her birthdays minus the party hat. I will add photos when I can.
I mentioned my upgrade to Vista (Ultimate 64bit) in my news thingy a couple of weeks ago and as expected I reverted back to XP several days later. The Operating System was fine and most things worked without too many dramas but my HDTV card failed to work. No point in forking out $230 on a card when it can't be used. It was meant to support all versions of Vista and XP. Damn it! Oh well, back in my XP comfort zone now!
Mega storm in Melbourne last week caused a few headaches. Fortunately no read dramas here apart from a larger tree falling on our joint lemon tree and losing power for about five hours. It's not until power is lost do you realise how much we take it for granted. Even with power out reaching for the light switch is almost instinctive. I was able to enjoy an hour or so Internet access through my laptop and mobile but then both batteries went flat...it was now like being a caveman! Dinner was cooked using gas and I enjoyed a candlelight dinner with my dad!!! We still had the radio informing us of what was happening in the world and how we weren't alone in our loss of power. Bugger growing up in the 1800s - what the hell did they do at night? Stand around the piano singing songs? A couple of days ago was informed that one of my friends who lives near Greensborough had a tree crash through her roof apparently causing substantial damage...I thought I was inconvenienced.
Went to a wedding last Saturday week...very enjoyable! The groom is from Argentina and his folks didn't come over so he set up his laptop, video camera and streamed the ceremony back home. I will have to scrounge photos from the others as I didn't take my camera. Thankfully it wasn't one of those religious ceremonies that tend to go on forever! The wedding was at Summerfields Country Estate in Bittern. The last wedding I attended was also there, also for an Aussie girl marrying her 'foreign' partner! The bucks night was a few days earlier...I won't write what we got up to!!!
It only happens a few times per year but it's that time again where I genuinely feel like a grumpy bugger and the slightest thing pisses me off for days on end. It's always girls that make me this way, I'd go out and have a great time then I'd return home and reflect on the day/night and I'll inevitably find something that was said or done that makes me feel like shit for the next week. Then a get a SMS out of the blue from a girl I worked with almost a decade ago pretending that we're still best of friends...shit like that pisses me off even more because I already feel used and it's a case of "you must want something too?"!!! So it's best nobody talks to me this week!
I have nothing else to report. It's now 2:15am I'm going to bed now, and I'm not proof-reading!
Update: Have since received two follow-up calls from Optus in regards to my complaint. The first was from a technician who explained the problems to me (it was obviously a router issue but I just played dumb). At the end of his ramblings I let it be known that I wasn't particularly after a credit but more an explanation, to which he offered a credit anyway but I'd need to speak to customer service to get one as he was only a tech. Received another call a few days later from someone who deals exclusively with complaints, she called to see if the first call answered all my questions and whether I was satisfied...I was satisfied just hearing them finally admit there was a problem. She went on to say "As a valued Optusnet customer we're prepared to offer you a $350 credit on your account". At this point I nearly choked as a $50 credit would've been more than enough!!! Trying to hide my excitement I agreed to the credit and thanked her for her time and assistance. That credit basically means I won't have to pay an internet bill for five months!!! Lesson learned: complain more often!!! Hmm...what else can I write a letter about???
This diary entry is linked to the photo album: Monty's First
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