Friday 3/2/2012

My internet speed is down AGAIN.  I continue to have to call Qwest/CenturySucks to get it fixed.  Today, I called corporate.  I asked the executive whatever dude to look at how many times I have had to call for this same issue, over and over.  Wow, he states, several times in the last MONTH alone!  Yes, but your company thinks it's perfectly acceptable that "well all you have to do when it's doing that is call in", as if I WANT to have to call in several times a month.

I then ask about the reduced rate internet service that is guaranteed price with no contract for 5 years.  Yes, he states, but you have internet only, you don't have phone service with us.  To get that promotion, you have to get a home phone line as well.  I told him the reason WHY I got rid of their home phone service: it didn't work, either and I continuously had to call them to come out and "repair" it, which never lasted very long and then, kablaam, right back a square one.

Oh.  He then starts talking about how he COULD offer me a reduced rate, but I would have to agree to a 1 year contract.  I never heard with the reduced rate was, because I couldn't believe he was asking me to sign a contract for service that barely works!  FIX THE SERVICE and then we'll talk about contracts with reduced rates, was my reply.  Why haven't I already switched over to another company as I stated I was going to before?

2 reasons.  First I haven't had the time and second because I really don't have "spare" money right now to buy another modem.  Cox makes you either buy their modem or you can go buy your own, but you also have to buy a separate router.  The Century Link Motorola 3347 is a modem and router combined together. When the service works, it works really well.  Well, he says, I can have a level 2 service technician call you back and try to deal with this situation.  Okay, whatever.  At least I was able to bypass all that Philippines junk some extremely calloused, indifferent people who could care less whether your service works or not.

But, for yucks, I am going to call Cox today and see if I can get any better deal than what they have offered me.  They will give a new modem for free, I think, if you bundle service with them, ie: internet and cable.  Not interested in their cable.  If I am going up to the mountains this summer, I want the option of having tv up there.  I don't watch that much, but I do watch some tv.  Cox cable ain't running through there and the only option is satellite.  I am considering switching to Dish Network, though.  I am sick of paying extremely high monthly bill for satellite TV just because Direct TV thinks I should.  I have to go to extreme measures - frequently enough - to get the discounts I am getting renewed.  They are now telling me that regardless, I am going to be paying an extra almost $5 per month because they are raising their rates.

Cox is, as usual, immovable in their rates.  You either get extremely slow connection at 3mpbs or you jump to 18mpbs at $53.95 per month - there is no speed rate service in between.  Just got done with a live chat agent and they told me oh well, no biggies after I stated that if you couldn't offer something in between, I would not be doing business with your company.  I could call them and ask for something better, but something tells me it would be a complete waste of time.  I will either have to live with the service I have or pay mores to Cox.  I would like my monthly expenses to go DOWN, not up, thanks.  I'm not sure Dish Network is going to be all that much better priced, either, but I am going to check it out.

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Rather long interlude.  A higher level service manager called and has already set up for a technician to come out - today actually.  He stated if the tech needed to, he would replace the modem with a newer one.  ????? This is the umpteenth time I've heard differing statements on this particular modem I have.  One person telling me it's a newer model, another telling me it's an older model.  This guy specifically stated it's about 3 to 4 year old technology and there is a better modem available.  So, definitely give this a shot is all I can say about it.  I hate Cox anyway, more than I had Century Link.  I could go into the "service" I once had with them and all of that, but it would take too long and I have already done that on this journal sometime in the past.

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Another long interlude. The vet called.  He was asking for a person named Allen.  Dunno anyone by that name, are you with Qwest (hard to remember that they have changed their name to Century Link).  No, this is so and so with the animal clinic.  Oh, hey doc, this ben b that brought in coco.  We chatted a few minutes - he was starting to talk about MRI's and this and that.  I said no, can't do that.  We're going to continue to give her those antibiotics and hope for the best.  If there is something more serious such as cancer (he came up with all kinds of stuff), then at some point I would have to consider putting her down.  But I am not even close to that point yet, it's only 3 days into the antibiotics and considering she was bleeding profusely just 2 days ago, I would expect that this problem still has some time to heal before we go to any "next" phase, of which I cannot afford anyway.  So that was it, I told him I was force feeding her and about how she was so weak the other day she could barely walk - wanted to see what his reaction to the force feeding was.  No problem with it at all and encouraged me to continue doing so.  Yes, well I have already done that today and will do it again later on.  Twice a day with as much calories and protein and all the stuff in it that I am putting in there should be very good for at least getting some of her energy back.  I am going up to the store in a bit and get some Ensure and buy some more chicken.  I am also going to cook a pot of rice - over cook it so it gets mushy.  That way, I can blend it to a much finer consistency than what the other rice was doing. It was clogging up the turkey baster and making it hard to get much in there.

I did no rice this morning and the liquid was easily filling up the baster.  Takes much less time to get the stuff down her throat that way.  The thing that is at least somewhat good is that she isn't putting up a fight when I am doing this baster routine. She is sometimes clenching her jaw shut, but that's not bad compared to what I was expecting: her attempting to run away and having to hold her down to do it.  No, she isn't doing that at all.  She just lays there and lets me do it.