This Page

Post a Comment

Here's the story of a girl who moved and the company who didn't cancel the gal's cable service when directed to.

Remember how I was in the midst of a massive work project right up until the move.  Well, during my very few minutes of downtime, I made all the move arrangements - canceling Electric, Telephone AND Satellite TV.  I also arranged new service of electric, gas, telephone and cable to the Philly apartment.  Now I'm a smart gal and I will toot my own horn thankyouverymuch.  However, guess what I find out when reconciling my bank accounts - DirecTV took it upon themselves to charge out $141.65 to my bank account for service up until NOVEMBER!  What the @*@*!*!*!  They "disconnected service"   Well - DOH - that should have been done in SEPTEMBER WHEN I ORDERED IT, specifically SEPTEMBER 15th! 

I call today and speak with two very competent CSRS who seem to have the right info and immediately get me over to the proper manager after holding for 23 minutes.  I'm routed to a Marie/Mae or whatever she wants to call herself and this gal has the NERVE to tell me "Well I need to see what's disputed".  HELLO - the whole effin' amount. I should have only paid a prorated amount for 11 days since my last payment on September 4th.  

So - smartazz Mae tells me "You work in law - you can send us a formal dispute correspondence to our PO Box and they can handle it from there."  First of all, yes, I do work in Law - so that means I want a signature and someone to hold liable for receiving the correspondence or a fax number.  See, when you inevitably will drop the ball again, I want someone's head.  I'm not stupid.  And then, compounding the drama, Mae snottily remarks, "Well there IS an early termination fee"  Early termination my butt!  I MOVED and I had been a DirecTV customer for over 4 years.  Hell, now that I think about it - I think it was close to 5 or 6 years.

Manager Mae turns out to SUPERVISOR Mae and clearly has a chip on her shoulder.  That chip got worse when she was told to find someone higher than her - even after angrily remarking "There's no manager available!"  Well, FIND ONE because I don't believe that Mae was the highest in the food chain on that call center floor.  Turns out I was right and, on the line comes April - a manager.  April is just as frustrated as me because DirecTV won't give them an address or fax number of the dispute idiots.  Plus their website is down so finding a legal contact is impossible.  So, after much apologizing, she and I were calmly trying to find an adequate resolution and after she put me on hold for another 7 minutes to see what she could do, I hear her come back on the line with "Ms. Lys" and then the dreaded DISCONNECT. 

ARG!!!!!!!  ARE YOU FREAKIN' KIDDING ME?

So I have to call back - and start to tell my story for the 4th time and, CSRs - take note - NEVER tell a customer "I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL!" because that is when I lost it - throat was ripped out at the unfortunate CSR who uttered that phrase and I told him - "FIND APRIL or a MANAGER.  Do not, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD put me back in touch with MAE!"

And, after 17 minutes, KEVIN a SUPERVISOR gets on the phone and - yet again - DISCONNECT as he's speaking. 

I finally had a come to Jesus chat with Joanne, a very sweet CSR and told her that if a manager doesn't get on the line soon, I'm about to go to the executives with this drama because DirecTV should have NEVER pulled this crap in the first place.  I know they are all about customer retention but c'mon already - I MOVED and into a COMCAST footprint.  I CANCELLED MY SERVICE.  

Again, I was put on hold and subsequently routed to a ROSE in some call center in the Philippines.  SO I had to go through the arguing AGAIN.  Even better was Rose telling me "Well, you get routed to managers all over the world".  So, the bell in my head goes off - we're dealing with outsourcing (you know how I detest companies that doe that).  And as she remarks "Well we mailed you a hard copy bill on Sept. 17th and Oct. 17th.  You know how the mail system is"  Well "ROSE", the mail system in my country - while not perfect - knows a FORWARDING ADDRESS plus I gave it to DIRECTV's girl on Sept. 4th when she tried to get me to stay with the company.  However Rose tells me that the note was only about payment and not the disconnect.  Now irate and boiling, I insisted on transferring to a manager in the states.  And, again during the transfer - you guessed it - a disconnect.  And their website is down and their office is closed now until the morning. 

However, know that in the AM, I will have a nice chat with USAA who will be made aware of this drama and a request for reversal of the charge will be put in if need be because I did NOT authorize DirecTV to use my debit card on November 16th, nor was authorization implied for ANY future use when I made a payment with said card on Sept. 4th.  And I will have a chat with the people in the DirecTV US offices when they open for the correct info as well as a hard copy of the bills.  And the legal dispute will begin because, as I was only supposed to be billed for 11 days of service, by their error and oversight, I was charged for 2 MONTHS of service.  Somehow 11 days does not equal $141.65.

Also, DirecTV - EPIC fail because for someone who always touted how great you were even during the hurricanes, your customer service - horrid.  For something so simple as a disconnect, your people couldn't even do that right. 

This fight is FAR from over...

Labels: Guilty of Idiocy, Inquiring Minds, Moving In Stilettos, Outsourcing, Wha Da Hell

Posted by Lys :: 1:29 AM :: 1 comments

Post a Comment

---------------oOo---------------

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Adventures In Moving: Living In A Sports Town...

Living in Philly has taught me the importance of Sunday being a day of rest - specifically for all things Eagles, Phillies and Flyers.  The complex is abuzz with activity with football jerseys, high fives and screams of "C'mon - let's GO!" and that's just from the gals trying to get their men out to the sports bar to see the game.  One of the unspoken fashion mantras of this town is gals do wear sports jerseys/tshirts and they do come in pink.

I head out to walk the dog and my neighbors are often out at the same time I am - the commercial breaks.  When people are screamin' - good or bad, you know it's game related.  And if you are in a restaurant or club or even walkin' down the street in the Italian Market when there is a game on, there are TVs everywhere - and people drop what they are doing to find out the score and to talk about how good (or bad) the players are doing.  Don't even get me started on the FaceBook crap talkin' that goes on with my Philly/NY/Boston pals.

Yes, the trials of livin' in a sports town.   Now if only I could understand football...

Labels: Moving In Stilettos, Philly

Posted by Lys :: 11:50 PM :: 0 comments

Post a Comment

---------------oOo---------------

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Adventures At The Social Security Office...

One of my issues in trying to become a legal responsible resident of Pennsylvania includes getting a proper drivers' license.  Granted my Florida one doesn't expire until 2010, however per Commonwealth rules, you must have a new license within 60 days of establishing residency.  Easy Peasy - right?  WRONG!  The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania doesn't make it so simple as turning in your new license and showing your lease/bill/etc. to show you live here - they also demand your Social Security Card be shown.  Ummmm... however, much like the title to my car, the SS Card is MISSING!  I'm sure I'll find it when I've gotten my replacement but I haven't seen it in years since I moved to Orlando. *sigh*

The only way to get the replacement card is to make a visit to my local SSA Office closest to my address.  The one that the SSA sent me to was in the heart of Germantown.  For those of you that aren't familiar with the Philly landscape, Germantown is not a favorable area - my gal Suz is a police officer in that district and the stories she tells me "Oh we had a stabbing/There was a shooting/Oh I have to testify at a murder trial" blah blah blah.  You get the picture.  Suz is in court almost every day and at night she's patrolling the streets of Germantown.  Needless to say, when I was looking for an apartment, Suz was the one to yay or nay a place.

So, my dad joked that I should go earlier in the morning because "the riff raff are still sleeping".  Sure - not a problem.  I figured it would be simple and that would be it.  4 hours later, my viewpoint on society has changed.  I'm now convinced that I need to channel my inner Suze Orman and save for my retirement because I am convinced there will be NOTHING for me when I retire.  The conversations I heard were such perfect blog fodder that I figured you might enjoy/shake your head or start praying for society as a whole...

I'm convinced that a day at the SSA is like a prison lunchroom with people trading tips on how to best the system.  Now, before we get "political", let me just say that I have friends who have been on the system and have used it to help when they were in a tough spot and now they are on their own.  That's not the point of this post.  I fully support the system for those that need it. 

However, I was privy to a conversation to two women who were quite loud and that I have never been so thankful to hear my number called so I could leave them without telling both of them to "grow the eff up".  One of the woman, a badly bottled blonde, couldn't have been more than 26.  She would only work 15 hours a week so she couldn't lose her SSA benefits.  According to her, she's bi-polar and couldn't work more than 15 hours because of that.  To make it even more "head shake worthy", she wouldn't accept responsibility for losing her prior job because she was caught SMOKING CRACK when she should have been teaching.  She was a headstart teacher in Northeast Philly.  Ummmmm..  The other woman is "diabetic" and she couldn't work because she had diabetes therefore she needed a SSA check while her boyfriend who wasn't her husband had a good paying job.  Are you effin' kiddin' me?  Seriously.  There was a woman to the right of me who decided she would just change her baby's diaper in full view of everyone where the baby let out a howl and a half because, well it was COLD.  There were people who go there daily and it was like a lunchroom catch up with everyone.  There were retired veterans who actually NEEDED benefits that people wouldn't move to let them sit.  The sense of entitlement that was around the room just pissed me the hell off.  And when my number was called out of order to get my replacement card, I heard people chattering behind me going "That ain't fair.  They should call my number."  I almost turned around to tell her "Bitch PLEASE - I'm here for a replacement card - NOT TO MILK THE SYSTEM like your funky azz".  And the people that work there - there was one woman who needed to be "retrained" as she copped major attitude with everyone, kept taking breaks and I'm convinced she was on the internet or something as she would wait before taking another person - no initiative.  There were 4 windows and only two open.  Boy was I thankful that after the 3.5 hour that they opened up a third window.

I do believe that there are people who are disabled and need SSA benefits.  However, I don't feel that bipolar, depression and diabetes counts as reasons to not work.  If you take your meds, there is hope, right?  I can say that never again will I ever go to the SSA Germantown office and, quite frankly, I'm now convinced that society has "issues."

Labels: Moving In Stilettos, Philly, Random Mess, Wha Da Hell

Posted by Lys :: 1:38 PM :: 1 comments

Post a Comment

---------------oOo---------------

Monday, October 05, 2009

GUILTY OF IDIOCY: Altamonte Animal Hospital...

One of the stories from the move was a sad one - and one that left me shocked and still, to this day, very annoyed.

My pug, Mr. Wiggles is a character - of that there is no doubt.  He does tend to be very hyper and "wiggly" when he sees people initially but that's just how he is. 

When I left for Philly, I asked for sedatives for both him and Shadow as it would be a long drive and I wanted them to be calm.  Shadow had been sedated for her flight to Florida so I didn't think much of it.

The day of the move, we waited until about half an hour before we left to give the pets their meds.  Shadow was prescribed a 1/4 of a 10 mg. tablet of Acepromazine.  Wiggy was prescribed a full 25 mg. tablet of Acepromazine.  Shadow took her tablet with little incident.  However, Wiggy spit his out twice.  Finally, with the bribe of cheese, he took it and my dad took him for his last walk.  I was told it would take 30 minutes for it to take effect.  Well, within minutes, Wiggy promptly convulsed, lost control of bodily function and basically collapsed and couldn't walk. 

WHAT THE @*#@*@*@?!?!  I called the Altamonte Animal Hospital only be told I could "drop him off".  Listen here dummy - I'm leaving to MOVE TO PHILADELPHIA TODAY and you want me to DROP HIM OFF?!?!?  ARE YOU NUCKIN' FUTZ?!?!?!  Not to mention, after this incident I didn't trust them with a pen, let alone my dog.  She told me that it was my option to leave with him sick but I really should just "drop him off."  I about lost my mind.

As I sat with Wiggy, I started googling results of Acepromazine with pugs.  He kept lookin' at me with the saddest eyes and would try to walk but couldn't move his back legs.  Thankfully, he threw up the pill and still would go in and out of sleep.

I texted Rifleman asking him for a vet suggestion in Philly.  If they told me to bring him back to the Altamonte vet, I would - but I was far from pleased.  He came back immediately with the spot he takes his dog to - Wissahickon Animal Hospital which is right near the new apartment. 

Thankfully, Jen from the Wissahickon Animal Hospital talked me off of a ledge, got me calm and told me that he should be fine, especially if he threw up the pill.  That was the first step.  Secondly, she said that apparently he had a reaction to it but interestingly enough, the vet prescribed him 25 mg. for a 20 lb. dog.  That was enough to sedate a 100 lb. dog.  Some vets prescribe 1 mg. per pound but considering that they did one quarter of a 10 mg. tablet for my 12 lb. cat, shouldn't they have done the same for my DOG?  Jen made an appointment for me to bring in Wiggy after the move and told me it was safe to leave in an hour or so just to keep an eye on him and call if there were any problems.  During my phone convo, Wiggy woke up and haltingly started walking over to my dad for comfort.  That was the best sign ever!

I tossed their pills in the bag, vowing to never use them again.  During the drive, Wiggy had a couple seizures but would quickly snap out of it.  Can I tell you the immense amount of guilt I had for even sedating the little guy in the first place???

While I was driving through Georgia, my cell phone rang and on the other line was the Altamonte Animal Clinic's office manager wanting to talk about the incident.  I didn't hold my tongue at all - they overdosed my DOG!  We went back and forth a bit but she told me that the Vet was at liberty to prescribe a 25 mg. dose for Wiggy since it was his prerogative and Wiggy was so hyper.  While I understand that, I felt I should have been consulted first as I would have to drive with him and he had never been sedated with that before.  As his parent/owner, in the end, I didn't see how they could prescribe only a quarter of a 10mg. tablet for my 12 lb. cat yet a FULL 25 mg. tablet for my 20 lb. pug.  Plus - while they only see the hyper "initial" side of him, they don't see the quasi-calm guy I live with when the excitement of seeing people is over.

It is what is is and thankfully Wiggy was okay during his checkup with Dr. Jacobs at the Wissahickon Animal Hospital and absolutely adores everyone there.  HOWEVER, after this drama with Altamonte Animal Clinic and Dr. Hart, I could never recommend Altamonte Animal Hospital again.  This one lapse of judgement on their part could have taken him away permanently.  And being told to "Drop him off" like he was a rejected piece of luggage, that was just poor taste on their part.

Labels: Guilty of Idiocy, Moving In Stilettos, Mr. Wiggles

Posted by Lys :: 1:15 PM :: 5 comments

Post a Comment

---------------oOo---------------

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

The Case of the Toasty Marshmallow...

Picture this - we've been driving since 10 a.m. the day prior; it's 6 a.m. on Saturday and I finally arrive at the new abode. Come into the house, the dog promptly christens the new hallway, I lose my mind for a second, then it's off to crash for a few hours.

Once I woke up, it was time to unload the UHaul from hell. However, one [un]pleasant surprise when I awoke - it was CHILLY! And by chilly I mean just straight up cold. Wiggy, we're not in Florida anymore. So, this gal remembers that her new landlord turned on the AC to get the apartment ready. I decide that the only smart thing to do is turn on the heat and warm up the place.

Well, a couple hours into the heat working, I smelled the faint whiff of something burning. I didn't think much of it until it came along again, off and on as I would go in and out of the house, reminding me of the smell of smores on a campfire. I thought, perhaps, it was just the heating system getting some use after being dormant for a while. Maybe it was a crisp new filter in the vent getting broken in. Or, as my over active imagination was racing with the idea that perhaps the wiring was sparking and me, by turning on the heat in the new apartment, I could have started a fire in the vents and now the apartment would burn down.

The toasty marshmallow smell was quite strong in my bedroom by the vent which was next to the window. I finally panicked and called my new landlord K. and told him my fears. Turns out they were leaving early and maintenance had already left for the day. However, K. paged the maintenance supervisor and then the game of phone tag began. See, I have a plethora of radio towers outside my apartment and I wasn't hearing ONE phone call and things were just driving me nuts. The smell kept getting stronger and now my mind went into overdrive. Finally, upon connecting with John from Maintenance, we discussed the situation as I started to wander the apartment to see where the smell was originating from. I had already turned the heat off prior so now the fact that the smell was VERY strong, the panic was starting to surface. The smell was strong in my bedroom and as I went to the back porch to discuss it quietly with John, I noticed the smell was very strong out on the back porch - where there was no vents. Confused, I looked around and then I spotted it - my neighbors in the building next door were using a charcoal grill with some foil packages on it - most likely containing something with marshmallows.

I laughed and told John that the case was solved. You can imagine my shock when he said "Oh - neighbor XYZ. They aren't supposed to have that type of grill - we'll send out a letter on Monday".

Yeah, that's how this gal started off her new life in her new apartment inadvertently ratting out her new neighbor (who has since moved out due to other issues).

I just will never look at smores the same way again...

Labels: Apt, Moving In Stilettos, Philly, Random Mess

Posted by Lys :: 11:05 PM :: 3 comments

Post a Comment

---------------oOo---------------

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Sometimes A Little Reflection Is Good...

I know I'm super stoked about the upcoming move and looking forward the adventure ahead.  However, I wouldn't be truthful if I didn't think about what brought me here to Orlando in the first place.  I believed in a project so much that I left a good paying job at a major corporation to head forward into the unknown and handle the PR for a group of amazing individuals who, even to this day, I am so proud of.  Regardless of my issues with their management, I always believed in them and do to this day.  Anything that they call me for, you know I'll drop what I'm doing and help them out.  They have all grown up now and I still slip and call them kids, but the memories I have with them and their family is just priceless.  They are fabulous individuals and I adore them.

When times were tough, the people surrounding them became a surrogate family of sorts - and I can't imagine not having MB or Fus around to yip with.  They understood my frustration - Fus and her family let me spread my wings PR wise and handle things for the label, giving me major experience and huge learning opportunities.  I was able to reconnect with industry people from my past and revive those relationships, take on new clients and explore different genres.  I learned that sometimes you just have to branch out and have faith that the road you are on is the right one.  I also learned to rely on instinct and if something doesn't seem right or you just know it doesn't fit in your plan, then get rid of it.  I learned that some people are just downright snakes and your instinct won't lie to you.

Of course, when their band broke up and they moved back out West, I stayed here in O-Town and wound up getting the job I have now (and will have til Sept. 4th).  I met some amazing people regardless of someone's telling me to NOT work and that just "things would be taken care of" (thankfully I also learned that some people are full of ish and they just need to be gone!)  I learned responsibility at a level I never really had to before, where I became truly independent and could think for myself.  I embraced my inner bitch and dealt with the drama swiftly, only looking forward.  What would crying do to help me, not a damn thing.  I just had to soldier on. 

I also learned that besides the day to day, I needed a creative outlet, hence me starting Just Because... well, just because and meeting (virtually) some fabulous fabulous people that I would love to have a cocktail or coffee with and just chatter endlessly about fashion, cooking, the weather, anything with :)  I further branched out into honing my cooking skills and then transitioning that over to Cooking in Stilettos and meeting FoodBuzz, another group I just adore.  On the fashion end (because, well, I'm a fashion whore - totally admit that), Reese and I collaborated on Fashionista+ which I'm excited to work on again. 

And, on the personal level, Shadow and I met the one and only Mr. Wiggles who taught me that things I deem urgent, really aren't - at least in a dog's eyes.  I began to laugh again and to not always focus on the minutiae.  I discovered that Loubous and fabulous shoes are, indeed, my crack.  I rebuilt some relationships from the past.  I learned to "edit it down" when it came to my surroundings and address things that normally I would try to hide from and stick my head in the sand.  Sometimes when you just deal with it, it's not as bad as you think it would be.

The past few years have not been easy and the move to Philly just seemed out of my reach. However, once I set my mind to it, the wheels began turning and, in a few weeks, it is a goal I'm about to achieve.  Since 16, I knew I wanted to live there.  In February 2008, that feeling was overwhelming when I was wandering around Center City by 17th Street.  I knew that I needed to be there in the thick of it.  I reconnected with old friends from the past such as OurBuddy, Jas & CK and with them, Reese & Meowmix, some great discussions were had.  It was during one of those Philly jaunts that, by chance, I met Rifleman who would be one of those friends I think will be around for a long time and has gone above and beyond to help me attain this goal.  I discovered that there are, indeed, good hearted people in the world that really do give a ***t.

There are so many other avenues that are opening up left and right that I think Philly will just be a whole new playground and a level up.  I will miss my friends and adopted family here in Orlando - that's for sure but I welcome the future opps.

And when I sit here tonight and think about it, one song comes to mind bringing this full circle -Jett17's track "All Together Now" - because, quite frankly, things are coming together now.  I know where I'm going, where I came from and what I went through and it made me the person I am today and, you know what, I think I kinda like her.

Labels: Deep Thoughts, Memories, Moving In Stilettos, Mr. Wiggles, Philly, Random Mess

Posted by Lys :: 3:14 AM :: 2 comments

Post a Comment

---------------oOo---------------

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Moving In Stilettos: Point to Ponder...

One of the benefits to moving - the decorating starts ALL over again.  Aren't y'all thrilled?  I kid I kid....

Yes, this gal got approved for the apartment that she wanted and I'll be headed the Philly way in the beginning of September.  My move got skewed by a couple weeks but I'll roll with the punches - everything happens for a reason.  All the pieces are falling into place.

And, yes, this will be my kitchen...

And Wiggy's view from the balcony

and a big closet for my shoes, a high ceiling and a hallway for Shadow to run back and forth in her goal to be Wiggy's personal trainer.

Blessed, most definitely.

Labels: Apt., Moving In Stilettos, Philly

Posted by Lys :: 10:49 PM :: 9 comments

Post a Comment

---------------oOo---------------

Tuesday, June 02, 2009

Moving... In Stilettos...

A couple weeks ago, Hellfire aka Kar moved into her brand new home.  During the move, our friends J & SL made a joke "Will Lys be Moving In Stilettos?" 

Hardy Har Har... (for the record, it was sneakers, a Phillies hat and totally dressed down *LOL*) but the idea stuck. 

I've been beyond unhappy with the dorm situation along with a few other situations going on in my life and it's time to take action.  Those close to me know that I will be, indeed, moving in stilettos when the lease is up.

So bear with me while I'm torn in 20 different directions and will be posting but not as in depth as I'd like.  There will be SO much to disclose - just can't do it here on the blog - JUST yet. 

Keep your fingers crossed - the apartment hunt starts now.  Game on because not only does this Cooking In Stilettos wench need a kitchen that rocks, but a closet that is Loubou worthy... Oh - and some nice non-college age neighbors would be cool too.  Why can't a gal have it all, right?

Labels: Goals, Moving, Moving In Stilettos, Random Mess

Posted by Lys :: 10:42 PM :: 3 comments

Post a Comment

---------------oOo---------------