Disillusionment
As I mentioned earlier, Slag and I have been coping as best we can with real life of late. It’s not really accurate to say that real life hasn’t been going our way. That implies a sort of unlucky randomness to the bad things that are happening. No, this feels more planned and deliberate. It feels like real life has been giving us a big ol’ finger.
(Before I get started I should say that I know that there are far worse things that could be happening to us right now. Far worse things are happening to other people even as we speak. I know this. No one has died or been seriously injured here. We aren’t about to divorce (that I know of). Contrary to my earlier predictions, our house hasn’t burned down. But I need to bitch, so humor me, will ya?)
So anyway, lots of crap has been going wrong. Ergo, we are grumpy.
Since most of these things fall into categories of things that Slag feels more responsibility for (e.g. home maintenance, auto repair, his own body), he is grumpier than I am. I’m not complaining about the grumpiness. He would be entitled to be grumpy if any one of these things happened. Having all of them happen at once, along with having a back that makes it impossible for him to sit in a chair for more than five minutes gives him carte blanche to be grumpy for the next year as far as I’m concerned. I’ve taken to trying to soothe him with foot massages and tequila, with minimal success.
As for me, I’m mostly feeling guilty.
The majority of the stress is related to the piss-poor customer support and appallingly bad repair facilities of the company that manufactured and sold the computer that Slag bought a couple of months ago. He’s spent hours and hours on the phone talking with people on the other side of the globe. He’s been lied to, stood up, put on hold and hung up on, transferred and hung up on, and generally subjected to lines of bullshit so preposterous that I couldn’t believe my own ears. I’m talking bad customer support on an epic scale. Complete incompetence. BALD FACE LYING.
After said computer returned to us from the repair shop for the THIRD time, it would not boot. As in, nothing happened when you pressed the power button. WOULD. NOT. BOOT. And the case was bent. And there was a ball bearing rolling around loose inside the case (which may explain why it wouldn’t boot). After much cajoling, the company graciously agreed to take back the steaming pile of crap they sold him and sent him back 85% of the price he paid for the computer, not including the tax of course. The net result is we’re out a little less than $500 and have……nothing. Not one thing to show for it. Except some serious resentment.
So why would I feel guilty about any of this? Why, because I am an EMPLOYEE of the company that sold him this defective computer. That’s right. I work for them. I am a cog in the big corporate machine that has made our lives miserable for the last two months. Dear lord, I am not part of the solution. I must be part of the problem! FUCK.
Turns out all that corporate crap they feed us about quality and customers being our top priority is just that, crap. Not one person we dealt with in all this was interested in whether or not we were happy or had been treated fairly or had a computer that worked. Not one. Not even the special “customer advocate” who was assigned to Slag’s case after I submitted a customer case on an exclusive, “unavailable to the outside world” website for employees only. No, on the rare occasions that we could actually get this “customer advocate” on the phone, all we got from her was attitude and long explanations about why our problems were not that serious.
I’m appalled, dumb-founded. I’m humiliated. I’m having a hard time wrapping my mind around the last couple of months. And it isn’t lost on me that this company pays my freaking mortgage. And, even more, it really pisses me off that I’m feeling apprehensive about even posting this, because this company does, after all, give me a paycheck every two weeks. But, hey, the truth is the truth. Plus, I think I’m still anonymous enough that no one would be able to identify me, even if they wanted to. (Yeah, I’m naïve like that.)
So Slag is in the process of buying another computer from my employer’s biggest competitor. And I am looking for a hole to crawl into and hide, where I plan to spend most of my time sucking my thumb while I rock back and forth in the fetal position.
(Before I get started I should say that I know that there are far worse things that could be happening to us right now. Far worse things are happening to other people even as we speak. I know this. No one has died or been seriously injured here. We aren’t about to divorce (that I know of). Contrary to my earlier predictions, our house hasn’t burned down. But I need to bitch, so humor me, will ya?)
So anyway, lots of crap has been going wrong. Ergo, we are grumpy.
Since most of these things fall into categories of things that Slag feels more responsibility for (e.g. home maintenance, auto repair, his own body), he is grumpier than I am. I’m not complaining about the grumpiness. He would be entitled to be grumpy if any one of these things happened. Having all of them happen at once, along with having a back that makes it impossible for him to sit in a chair for more than five minutes gives him carte blanche to be grumpy for the next year as far as I’m concerned. I’ve taken to trying to soothe him with foot massages and tequila, with minimal success.
As for me, I’m mostly feeling guilty.
The majority of the stress is related to the piss-poor customer support and appallingly bad repair facilities of the company that manufactured and sold the computer that Slag bought a couple of months ago. He’s spent hours and hours on the phone talking with people on the other side of the globe. He’s been lied to, stood up, put on hold and hung up on, transferred and hung up on, and generally subjected to lines of bullshit so preposterous that I couldn’t believe my own ears. I’m talking bad customer support on an epic scale. Complete incompetence. BALD FACE LYING.
After said computer returned to us from the repair shop for the THIRD time, it would not boot. As in, nothing happened when you pressed the power button. WOULD. NOT. BOOT. And the case was bent. And there was a ball bearing rolling around loose inside the case (which may explain why it wouldn’t boot). After much cajoling, the company graciously agreed to take back the steaming pile of crap they sold him and sent him back 85% of the price he paid for the computer, not including the tax of course. The net result is we’re out a little less than $500 and have……nothing. Not one thing to show for it. Except some serious resentment.
So why would I feel guilty about any of this? Why, because I am an EMPLOYEE of the company that sold him this defective computer. That’s right. I work for them. I am a cog in the big corporate machine that has made our lives miserable for the last two months. Dear lord, I am not part of the solution. I must be part of the problem! FUCK.
Turns out all that corporate crap they feed us about quality and customers being our top priority is just that, crap. Not one person we dealt with in all this was interested in whether or not we were happy or had been treated fairly or had a computer that worked. Not one. Not even the special “customer advocate” who was assigned to Slag’s case after I submitted a customer case on an exclusive, “unavailable to the outside world” website for employees only. No, on the rare occasions that we could actually get this “customer advocate” on the phone, all we got from her was attitude and long explanations about why our problems were not that serious.
I’m appalled, dumb-founded. I’m humiliated. I’m having a hard time wrapping my mind around the last couple of months. And it isn’t lost on me that this company pays my freaking mortgage. And, even more, it really pisses me off that I’m feeling apprehensive about even posting this, because this company does, after all, give me a paycheck every two weeks. But, hey, the truth is the truth. Plus, I think I’m still anonymous enough that no one would be able to identify me, even if they wanted to. (Yeah, I’m naïve like that.)
So Slag is in the process of buying another computer from my employer’s biggest competitor. And I am looking for a hole to crawl into and hide, where I plan to spend most of my time sucking my thumb while I rock back and forth in the fetal position.
posted by Jill at 8:40 AM
11 Comments:
This weekend I'm going to make you a drink. But since I can't get it to you, I'll probably have to drink it. But still.
Ouch...working for the company that screwed him....I can understand your frustration and guilt. But really, YOU are not in charge of customer support or technical assistance. If you were, I'm sure things would have gone differently.
Any clues as to the brand (so I'll know what to avoid?) Maybe the letter it starts with? I know of two big computer concerns in your part of the world...
I am beginning to believe that "customer service" is an idea from the past. It no longer exists, period. Your company is just the norm now. It is so frustrating these days to go out into public and try to purchase anything. It seems like no one gives a damn whether their product is high quality anymore. Money is the bottom line.
I am so sorry you guys have to deal with all the crap (especially since it's a company you work for.)
kara, Make sure it's a really strong one, OK?
em, No, I don't do customer support. For some reason I had the idea that I could fix things from "the inside," but no, I'm truly a peon.
stucco, I'd post it here, but I can't risk losing the health insurance. Email me privately and I'll spill the beans. jill4805@hotmail.com.
schmoopie, I think you're right. It's all about the money (and the current stock price).
I have good idea (although I am not sure, by any means) what wondrous computer company it is that has screwed y'all over so righteously, all while paying the mortgage via your paycheck. *sigh* It's probably the same one that sold me this crappy laptop that has had the blue screen of death and those wonderful "fatal errors" since the day I bought it...although, after having "in home support" work on it 4 different times, my costly warranty ran out and said company now tells me "too bad, so sad..you have no warranty left." Ah, the American way at work, huh?
I getcha.
Do I ever!
Did you use a major credit card for said purpose? If so call them to complain... you may get the rest back... sorry you are having woes.. something is in the damned air I swear!
Tell me YOU aren't in charge of customer service! But like schmoopie says, bad customer service seems to have become the norm, so much so that when it's just passable I'm thrilled to death. Oh, and who know "the finger" would be on Wikipedia. That's just bizarre...
Oh, that's a terrible story. And you don't have to feel self-conscious about complaining about something that may seem trivial in light of all the crap that goes on in this horrible world. That's the whole purpose of a blog, isn't it? Uh, isn't it? Oh boy, now I'm feeling self-conscious...
Well, Kee-rist. I hate companies.
But I think you and Slag are actually a pretty cool couple--from foot massages to tequila.
F-ing computer company. I'm sorry you're all tangled up in this.
lotus, Yikes, it sounds like you've had it just as bad as we have. Maybe we should organize a revolt.
cheesy, Interesting strategy. I guess it's too late now to protest, since we already have the 85% refund check. Will definitely file that away for future issues though.
jazz, No no no, I DO NOT do customer support. Having to be nice to pissed-off people for a living would be my worst nightmare.
whippersnapper, That's right! I can bitch all I want. That's what the internet is for! Oh, and porn.
jocelyn, Thanks for your sympathy. We're done with them, but my bad attitude persists. I hate customer support! A pox on them!
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