dear "doctor"...

[falnfenix]

no, i can't make the network in your area work. we don't control it. no, i'm not lazy or sleeping on the job, our department doesn't control it. no, i'm not slacking off on my job. yes, i had just called them before you called us, and they said it hadn't been working. sure, i'll happily give you their number. yes, i'm aware it's my job to be a liaison between you and... (customer hangs up)

hanging up on me, then calling back and cursing at me and claiming i lied (when they had fixed it while i was on the phone being berated by you the first time around), only aggravates YOUR situation, as you will be reported. again. for the...what, 5th time in a year?

no love, hope you stick yourself and have a panic attack (or just yank that pole out of your ass),

_falnfenix_

Comments

[amynnah.livejournal.com]

...I completely sympathize with you... :(

[falnfenix]

fortunately we've already taken action within our dept against her...since she's a frequent offender (constant abuse and belligerence), this will not look good on her.

[jecook]

Shit, that kind of crap would be curb-stomped the first time around by the director of the IT department. We don't take that sort of crap.

fortuantely, I've never seen that actually happen, so...

*hands you booze*

[falnfenix]

well, the wonderful thing about this is how we handle the abuse. she's been reported before. numerous times. UNfortunately it takes awhile for someone to be released from their employment (though that works in my favor should i fuck up...); fortunately, she works for one of the toughest docs in the department, and he WILL hang her out to dry if he hears about this.

he's paying for our services, and she's making him look bad. that's not good. :)

[swwinchester.livejournal.com]

*sighs, laughs* Just as long as she didn't play the race card that one of my ... clients pulled on myself and my staff today, I suppose it's all good.

Although I did enjoy my final discussion with that one today - she's ... pulled lots and lots of bad things, including bitching because we wouldn't perform a service we don't perform for anyone, and claiming we were racists who would do that for a white person if they asked.

Closing call - me starting off in the most calm, professional tone I am capable of assuming - "I'm sorry, but I can't accept your request. We will no longer be able to accept your custom due to your repeated verbal abuse of our employees. This is a phone number for one of our competitors. I suggest you call them in the morning to arrange services via them."

"You lazy racist son of a _______! You shouldn't be in a service industry if you are going to treat your customers this way! What the ____ is wrong with you! You-"

*shift of tone to evil and condescending* "Ma'am, I've been as nice and professional as I can be. I'm going to say this only one time, clearly, and using simple words to ensure I am not misunderstood. Due to your actions against our staff, you cannot come to this -chain- anymore. Not just my branch, not just this district, but to any location in the chain. This was decided by management way over my head. Notations are on your file NATION-WIDE regarding this. We have you on video and audio mistreating our staffers. Now, with that said, go fuck with someone else. We're done with you. That is all." *click, from my end*

... Funny how I was surrounded by store management when I took that call, at my going-away party. They all heard me handle her in a nice, professional manner. And just like they told corporate 5 minutes later - I didn't curse once, I was perfectly respectful. I merely advised her that she was no longer a customer of ours as per -insert bigwig's name-.

*smiles* Ahh, I will -miss- that crew. Good people to the end. ^_^

[falnfenix]

thankfully she knows better than to pull the race card...especially when she's white and female (and not much older than me) herself.

she's just a ridiculous cunt, and has proven herself such repeatedly. she used to curse at us, and has made our on-campus folks' lives overly difficult overall. when a manager from IT is talking to the man who pays her salary, you know something's gone bad for her.

sounds like you had fun with that one. you always wished you could do the same with those at the evil blue shirt of doom, if i recall correctly...it's good to know you found an industry where they'll actually back up their employees for once.

[swwinchester.livejournal.com]

... who says I didn't do that on occasion at the old box? You know I have limits for dealing with human stupidity, and not a lot of those guys would talk -against- me when it came right down to it. ^_^;;

And I wouldn't say I'm in an INDUSTRY that will back it's staffers. The fact is that I'm in a position where I'm nearly indispensable (this was my last day there before I move, but I still have to go back to finish giving a training course on Monday ...). I'm in a STORE that backs it's workers if they're doing their jobs.

Trust me when I say this - at any other branch in the district, she would have gotten her way, and been a 'highly valued customer' who we 'didn't go the extra mile to help' - and thus would have gotten a few people on OUR end fired, along with a $50 gift card for her trouble. Only because OTHER CUSTOMERS complained to corporate about her actions in the store (in front of children) on that one occasion did she get that notation in her file.

[falnfenix]

eh, i don't recall you saying you had, just that you wished you had...and i DO remember some of those managers were useless. sortof like mine at this point. (wee)

eh, you have a point.

moving, eh? good luck and all that. it's about time you got your ass out of there. dare i ask if you're leaving the state (finally)?

[swwinchester.livejournal.com]

*nods* Leaving it behind, going far away. Looking forward to it, as well. Got some good friends where I'm going, had a lot of good times out there. Should be an interesting adventure, to say the least.

Only downside is that, of course, I'm doing this JUST as relations in my family are improving back to 'somewhat normal'. *shrugs* Ahh well. It's not too long of a drive to make if I need to. ^_^

[falnfenix]

good for you. it's about bloody time.

[swwinchester.livejournal.com]

Yes, well. I've spent a few years quietly laying the groundwork (You know me, I tend to prepare contingency plans -way- in advance, and usually without letting too many people know what exactly I'm preparing for - to the point that what is going on right now should have been a 'crisis situation', and instead was merely "Oh, so I have to move the plans up a few months. No big deal, that.")

Now I'm in the final steps to finish this step of the operation ... then onto the next step ... and the next step.

"Once you climb the mountain, more mountains." ^_^;;

[falnfenix]

ahh...gotcha. you always did seem to have that sort of thing in mind. not many have that ability, and spend their lives flailing around, just barely keeping ahead of the current.

you have to admit, though, this progression has been a long time coming. ;)

[swwinchester.livejournal.com]

... you knew me for how long? You know I have a knack for logistics and long-range planning, especially of the 'disaster handling' variety. Hon, 3 days after we first met I knew exactly what steps I'd need to take to arrive in your area in the event of an emergency, and was ready to execute on those at 1 hour's notice at all times. I never had to actually do that, but it was always something I was prepared for. I've been told my real calling is in disaster response logistics, but I'm kinda enjoying the current work I'm doing. ^_^;;

As for the long time coming ... well, yeah. I tend to use positions of relative security to lay the ground work for moves of relative insecurity. What's going on now is one of about a half-dozen plans I had groundwork on, and it's the most effective one for the moment and the situation that I find myself presented with. Funny thing is that the only other 'really good' plan that still has all of it's roots in place would have put me in your back yard, effectively. (That plan is actually still the fall back in case something goes massively wrong with this one. That also reminds me, I have to call another friend in your neck of the woods. She wanted me to pop by while I was still on the east coast, so I might do that before I swing off of it on a more or less permanent basis ...)

As much as my ... current situation SUCKED, it was stable and reasonably secure as a platform for planning the next move (and preparing fall backs in the event of an issue). The fact that so many things went wrong and required more immediate attention while I was here didn't exactly help me prepare all of the needed groundwork to shift out, of course. ^_^

[falnfenix]

heh, yes, we've had the majority of this conversation before. :) i take it you got the Taurus running?

i believe i know of the friend in question. i've heard she has a decent apartment from others who've hung out with her. had you ended up here, at the very least you'd be used to paying exorbitant cost of living type prices. things definitely aren't getting cheaper, though there are plenty of decent apartments on that side of town. i'd considered living out that way, for a time. there are some fairly nice places...and some really sketchy parts of town. i still prefer the east side of the city, though. it's as decent as the northern area, but without the ridiculous housing costs.

dude, sucked is an understatement. they shoved you in a closet like they wanted to forget you existed, fed you crap food, and she never seemed to really be terribly polite. i assume they've forced you out (you don't have to agree or disagree, here...), and they're doing you a favor. maybe now you'll be able to live like a human for once, eh?

[swwinchester.livejournal.com]

Mmm. My landing plan there involves some family in the area, actually. Not quite in the city, but close enough as makes no odds. ^_^;;

You may well know the friend in question - I know she's got a nice place. ^_^;;

And yes, the ford is ... nearly functional. There's a few small matters I have to go and take care of in my new state of residence this weekend to make it road-legal again (tags, registration, etc), but it'll serve to get me and what little I have to take with me there, and get me around out there for a little while. Then I need to get a reasonably good car that can survive 3-4 trips per year back over the mountains. Ol' Ford may have 2 such runs left in it ... and I need to be able to react within 1 hour's notice should Mom need me back here ASAP. ^_^;

As for here - it's not great, but it's not as bad as it looks, really. I'd say that living here gave me a wonderful perspective on survival - I can now literally go anywhere and carve a reasonably comfortable space out of it. This has served me well several times over, and is likely to continue to serve me well.

... at the same time, it will be nice to live like a human again, yes. I can safely say I have a half-idea what it's like to live in a minimum security prison. ^_^;;

I'm just glad that once I get out there, I can refocus my energies on the next few steps of the plan - get my degree, score the job, work hard till I'm 65, then retire comfortably alone to some quiet place where I can devote my time to my hobbies.

[falnfenix]

well, i wouldn't say i KNOW her...just OF her. i'd forgotten you had family 'round here (at least, i'm hoping i'm reading that right, rather than my overfull belly causing me to get all groggy-headed).

hmm. look at Camrys...2000ish. affordable and still reliable as balls...and about the same size as the Ferd. failing that, used Altimas are just as reliable, but a little cheaper. avoid domestics, as those within a reasonable pricerange WILL be utter and complete turds. hell, the only domestic currently available that i'd recommend to anyone is the Cadillac CTS, and lord knows $25k+ is a tad to expensive for a used car. they're damned nice, though.

"not bad as it looks" - yes, with a neglected pair of dogs, one of which has a ridiculous temperament, and a dirty home. if anything, visiting there should have prepared me for the place i lived, for a time. utterly disgusting.

where, pray tell, did this optimism come from? haha...wacky, coming from you. you used to be all sorts of doom and gloom. :) i guess the surroundings really do affect a person's mood.

good luck, dude. you seem to have everything mapped out fairly well. :)

[swwinchester.livejournal.com]

Mmmph. I need something I can rely on for a long, LONG while. I will likely be looking to buy new or 'used off of a short lease' from a dealer, as my travel distance is going -way up- due to 4 or 5 trips yearly back into hell.

You also taught me -very- well the lack of workmanship in the domestic market - it would be a mistake to say I didn't pay attention to you when you were talking about things, just because I seem a bit detached from it all.

As for the optimism ... I'm being realistic. I'm fully happy to admit this place is a shithole and the people living here aren't much better. At the same time? I did gain some valuable things by being here, and I won't ignore that just because of the problems (and there are many). I don't see any reason to point out the negatives when you'll do a wonderful job of that for me.

But yeah. I've got a good map running, and a few serious life decisions were taken care of that are making this whole thing a lot less chaotic (barring someone proving me wrong on one of them).

[falnfenix]

ah, fair enough. just giving my suggestions for both affordable and reliable. you know i'm still a Toyota fangirl at heart - hell, i might end up getting a new Corolla XRS once the toy is paid off (since i plan on pulling it off the road for a serious overhaul...just waiting for that garage to get built, first). the Mazda 3 and 6 are both spectacularly nice cars for their brackets - might want to check them out. a friend has a 3 from last year, and the interior's easily the nicest in its bracket. they offer a hatchback version with tons of trunk space, as well. Hondas i would avoid, but only because of theft issues (and price, and insurance costs...blah). i'd say Subaru, but they're expensive for a fairly new one and they're getting rather ugly. avoid Mitsubishi. Nissan's offerings are nice (hello Altima coupe!), but i'm not a fan of the Sentra. it just feels too big externally, when you really don't get a ton of room. anything smaller than what i've mentioned will have you spectacular fuel economy, but a lack of room...and i'd avoid the Germans (including your once-beloved Mini) for repair costs. sooo spendy... :(

i'm glad i had some positive impact. :P

sorry to dredge up the nasty, just...sooo many bad thoughts about that house and its condition, yknow?

you seem to have a knack with running with what life tosses you - i'm sure you'll come out ahead.

[swwinchester.livejournal.com]

All good advice. Fuel economy is ... rather a big deal, all things considered, so I am willing to sacrifice some space for better MPG. I don't need a huge amount of space to move around a few duffel bags and a passenger, after all. ^_^

And it's not so much dredging up (I still am here right now, after all ...), it's just that I've taken on a habit of pointing out the bright where I know others will point out the dark ... and, of course, highlighting the downside where others see something positive. ^_^;;

As for you having some positive impact - mmmph. I've got plenty to say on that subject, but it's best that we leave it at "You gave me a certain interest in things of the automotive nature, yes" ... and leave the remainder of that topic right where it is.