Random Quotation
“Thank God for the things that I do not own.”
—St. Teresa of Ãvila (1515-1582)
Neither/Nor
By Lester | August 17, 2011
What does the photo above say to you?
My first reaction was confusion: Which way are we supposed to go? Left? Right? Confronted with such a dichotomy, given so little context, how are we to choose? Like the photographer, we stand flatfooted, unable to proceed.
Then another reading occurred to me. In the words of the George of the Jungle theme song, “Watch out for that tree!”
Or, put more simply, “Go around.” There’s no need for utterly committing to a 90-degree turn. It doesn’t have to be “either/or.” One quick jog to the right or left, and we can resume our course straight on.
I suspect there’s a political metaphor in there somewhere.
Topics: Announcements | No Comments »
The Samsung Saga, Act II: Secrets of the UPS
By Lester | August 12, 2011
Yesterday (day 39 of Samsung’s predicted 45 days to receive, repair, and return my Galaxy Tab—see “My Adventures with Samsung Customer Service“), UPS left a note on my door, saying they’d tried to deliver a package but no one was home and it had to be signed for. I can only assume it was my long-lost Galaxy Tab.
Not wanting to risk another day of “Will someone be home to sign for it?” I called UPS’s toll-free number to see what could be done. A very pleasant robot lady pretending to be human led me through the automated options for dealing with UPS. Seriously, their robotic answering machine sounds so natural that, were it not for the faint “beep, boop, biddle, beeps” as it parses your answers, and the complete inability to interrupt and ask a question in return, you’d swear you were talking with a human being.
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Topics: Announcements | No Comments »
A “Get Well Soon” Card for U.S. Healthcare
By Lester | August 10, 2011
So my wife showed up for a doctor’s appointment last week, part of a short series of treatments by a pain specialist, and she was turned away because our health insurance company hadn’t paid for the previous treatments. We owed $3,000.
Surprise!
We called the insurance company, and they said they’d need further details from the doctor before they could release payment. We called the doctor’s office, but he had gone on vacation and no one else on staff would be able to satisfy the insurance company. So we waited a week.
Yesterday, knowing the doctor was back, and facing the prospect of having another appointment canceled, my wife called him again and was shunted immediately to the facility’s billing office. They said even more bills had been returned unpaid by the insurance company, to the tune of $7,000.
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Topics: Announcements, Politics | 2 Comments »