enfinblue's Bluey (credit to Fifi for the nickname!) Diaryland Diary

"I am seeking, I am striving, I am in it with all my heart." -Vinc3nt V@n Gogh

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Die kochen auch nur mit Wasser

Oh good god, schickens!

(I can't steal Fifi's "cats," can I?)

So..I'm a bit drunk, so you'll forgive me.

We had our curling afternoon. Since I couldn't curl, I ordered one beer when I got there. I figured that I deserved it and that I might as well enjoy myself. This is particularly true since it was a navy curling rink (Do we even HAVE a navy at this point? Did we ever have a navy after the Brits? *Well, yes, those were the guys who bought old submarines from the ROyal Navy, on one of which there was a fire and a dude was killed a couple of years ago, I do recall), there were no cute men there, and I had to listen to the agent there telling me where the CANNONS are kept and how Obama when he is here next week for all of five hours will get a 21 gun salute (I highly doubt it, somehow).

(The beer was deserved because after French class, upon returning to the office, I had found that the senior economist had screwed me over again over something, only he wasn't in the office to complain to. I sent him an email, which I regret now, since now we're going to have to discuss tomorrow. He's honestly not worth discussing anything with. Don't worry - it was a gentle email. This was pre-beer. I HATE THAT GUY.)

Anyhow. So there is this manager at work with whom I click. He's married and it's not a romantic thing, but I think our personalities click. So he was playing and at one of the intermissions he came out and bought me another beer.

It doesn't hurt that he is deathly handsome and very "sympa." I like people like that (Duh...what's not to like?). I was thinking at work afterwards that what i like about that guy is that whereas my boss is a wonder boy, I mean a wonder boy, this successful man is one of those people who are brilliant but still on one's level. He's what I think the Germans sum up perfectly with "Die kochen auch nur mit Wasser." (They also boil with water.)

I got drunk on two beers. I'm a lightweight. No doubt about it. Sort of fun though, except for sort of slurring my words in front of my boss upon our return to the office. Oops. I won a "best spectator" prize for my sign that I held up to one of the chiefs as he curled: Choke! (The navy man told me that that is an official curling term. Who knew?) I got a pez dispenser of a sort that dispenses chocolate jelly beans out of the bum of a reindeer. Kind of what I deserved.

Otherwise, the boss sent me an email today with a link that my promotion has gone through. I forgot that it would be posted on the web for all to see, for a week, sort of like, "If anyone here has any objections, speak now or forever hold your peace."

Let's hope that the peace is held.

Otherwise, I had to buy a phone at lunch as my home phone is dead (before curling, beer). I went to the major telephone company outlet. Bad move. They have the WORLD'S STUPIDEST CUSTOMER SERVICE AGENTS. I am now understanding why they are losing business.

(This strikes me as a sort of a teranika story, only I won't tell it as well as she would have.)

So I looked at the phones by myself initially. Then a customer service girl came up to me. "Did you know that these phones are on for half price?"

I told her that I wanted the cheapest phone (assuming that since they were a specialty store and the phones started at $40 that they would function and last reasonably well), since I hardly ever use the phone and just don't care about it. I asked her sme questions about differences between the lowest in price and the second and third lowest in price. She couldn't give me much information that was useful, so I simply picked the cheapest phone on the wall (cordless).

The agent then proceeded to ring it up (in the most odious way possible, including taking my details so that they can send me reams of additional junk mail - it reminded me of Mr. B3an tediously wrapping Alan Rickm@n's potential mistress's xmas gift whilst his wife was browsing metres away in Love Actu@lly (worth seeing, if only for Bill Nighy's faded rock dude)). At the end of the transaction she charged me the original price for the phone.

So then I asked, "I thought that these phones were half price (this one was $40)."

"This one isn't half price."

"Oh. So why don't I get that higher end model that is $75, since it will be cheaper than the $40 phone in the end, anyhow?"

So she proceeds to go and find me one of those phones. She eventually finds one, struggles to pack it up, and then comes back to the cash.

"That will be $75 (plus tax) please."

I'm starting to give her slightly squinty eyes at this point. And may I say that I am incredibly patient and kindly to sales people, although firm to very annoying and pushy ones.

"Hmm... I thought we had agreed that this phone was half price and that it is $75 at the original price."

Agent is looking confused.

Apparently there is some routing device for your cell phone that you MUST buy with it also, that also costs $75, which was not stated anywhere and which was not apparent on the wall.

She's looking at me as though I have rocks in my head.

(Trying not to get exasperated.) "I thought it was clear that I wanted the cheapest phone on the wall. I don't even have a cell phone, so I don't need the additional device."

She wasn't reacting normally to this at all. I mean, she wasn't trying to sell me a cell phone. She wasn't trying to convince me of the utility of the device...

"But it's half price. You said you wanted half price."

"Um. Just give me the original $40 phone if you don't mind. (Silently, to myself: just kill me now. I hate technology. I hate stores. Down with teenagers. I hate monopolies (well, it's no longer a monopoly, since I have telephone through my cable line anyway).)"

I think that that's all my griping for now. I think I need a cup of herbal tea (and a whole lot more rest to deal with the senior asshole tomorrow).

:) Postscript: I just opened the phone and plugged it in. In the package were THREE different colours of rims for the phone AND the stand (so that you can change colours). Our society. Waste. Plastic. Just kill me now. Really. I think I'm eventually going to grow my hair wild, ditch the phone altogether, and start making whale noises - really loud, mournful ones - to communicate. Have you ever seen the movie Whal3 Music?

6:24 p.m. - 2009-02-11

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