That's Comcastic! (Part 3)

The following is an email I sent to Melissa, a representative of Comcast that left a comment on my blog regarding the initial issue I had (That's Comcastic! (Part 1):

Melissa,

I received the following comment from you on my blog (http://shelfintheroom.blogspot.com)(to refresh your memory):

comcastcares3 said...
Hello Nicholas,I read your blog. I can certainly help you get your modem issue straighted out without the long hold times. Please email me at We_Can_Help@cable.comcast.com.Kind Regards,Melissa M.Comcast Customer ConnectNational Customer Operations

I was able to get the problem resolved by speaking to a representative over the phone in the billing department a few minutes after speaking to Charlie via the online chat. The results of my conversation with the billing representative can be found here: http://shelfintheroom.blogspot.com/2008/07/thats-comcastic-part-2.html

I appreciate that you were able to track down my issue and offer your help with it. Things like that go a LONG way in my book. Kudos.

Now, that _IS_ Comcastic!

Brandon loves the nipple lights

This is a picture of my brother, Brandon, showing us his "O" face whilst fondling these newly installed "Nipple Lights."

FYI, this is what a "Nipple Light" is. It's any light fixture that looks like the following:

That's Comcastic! (Part 2)

So I call into Comcast and eventually get routed to a billing agent.
I know where this is going, so after he did the account verification, I tell him that I'm getting charged for the rental of the modem and I own it.

I immediately brace for impact.

Billing guy: "Ok, I can get that switched out for you."

He goes quiet for a second and says that it's switched.

Nick: "Uhmm.. Ok? Does that automatically give me credit for the months that I've been charged for it?"

Billing guy: "No, but I'll credit that for you right now. You were charged 6 times. So, a credit for 18 dollars is due. Ok, that's done. Is there anything else I can do?"

Nick: "... No.. Thank you very much"
.....................
So meanwhile, the window for the original chat with Charlie is still open.
...
Nicholas>You're kidding, right?

Nicholas>Hello?

[/Insert conversation over the phone with the billing department]

Nicholas>I just got that credited. They didn't even ask for proof that I owned it. I guess they're not idiots in the billing department.

Nicholas>Charlie, you're the worst customer service rep I've talked to. Ever.
...................
There was no response. So I ended the session. Thankfully a little survey popped up after that asked me if my problem was resolved and whether the representative was helpful. Hopefully someone over there will recieve that information and do something about it.

Kekeke.

That's Comcastic! (Part 1)

My Chat log with Comcast's "Customer Service"

Issue:I'm still getting charged for a Modem rental. The installer took the modem that I was renting on the 3rd day I had service.

user Nicholas_ has entered room

analyst Charlie has entered room

Charlie>Hello Nicholas_, Thank you for contacting Comcast Live Chat Support. My name is Charlie. Please give me one moment to review your information.

Charlie>Good afternoon

Nicholas>Good afternoon.

Charlie>Please verify account ownership by providing a) the 4 digit PIN number or b) the complete 16-digit account number or c) the last amount paid on this account and the date of that payment. Thank you.

Nicholas>xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Charlie>Thank you for that verification information. Please fax a copy of the receipt for your modem to 1-800-544-9223 so your account may be properly credited for your owned modem.

Nicholas>I purchased that modem like 3 years ago.

Nicholas>How about you fax me a copy of the reciept of where Comcast purchased it.

Charlie>Actually I see in reviewing the notes on your account that you have been asked before for the receipt for your modem. Without documentation I am not able to reverse that charge.

Nicholas>Then Comcast is going to purchase the modem from me. That is MY property. If comcast can show me a reciept of when they purchased the modem, then I'll gladly pay the rental. I am NOT renting the modem.. I OWN it.. I do not have the reciept because I purchased the modem YEARS ago (as I already mentioned).

Charlie>Please call 1-800-COMCAST (266-2278) and speak directly with a Billing agent or go to the local office and have this adjustment approved. Without documentation I am unable to reverse that charge.

Nicholas>What is the point of having online customer support if you're unable to help? Do you have a supervisor that I can chat to?

Nicholas>Or if he won't chat with me, how about you have him give me a call on the phone.

Nicholas>Why should I have to wait on hold forever to try to speak to a supervisor when it's Comcast's mistake, NOT mine?

Charlie>Please call 1-800-COMCAST (266-2278) and sepak with a Billing Agent.

Charlie>Thank you for choosing Comcast as your Cable television provider. Should you have additional questions, please feel free to chat back with one of our Online Customer Support Specialists 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at http://www.comcastsupport.com/chat

Nicholas>You're kidding, right?

Nicholas>Hello?
....................
And there was never any response. Wiskey Tango Foxtrot mother effer?!

Swamp coolers...

If it weren't getting up to 85 degrees in my house when the Swamp Cooler is running on high all day, I would throw that stupid thing off the roof and burn it. But instead, I'm going to pay 500+ dollars (after the home warantee! coverage) to get it replaced. Grr.

Gas prices

I don't get it. Gas prices are rediculous. So, oil hits $150 a barrell, and gas sky-rockets it's way to over $4.15 in my area (for Unleaded Regular). Gas has now dropped down below $125 a barrel. Logic tells us that gas will drop by 20% (3.32 a gallon). But yet.. It has not. Wiskey Tango Foxtrot mother effer?!

Goatee No More

The goatee is gone... For now.

Mekenzie Marie Belshe

My neice has finally arrived!

It has been a long 9 months for my sister-in-law, Amanda, but come yesterday evening, Mekenzie decided that enough was enough.
Amanda had a few contractions through out the day, 20 or more minutes apart, and not consistant. During the evening hours, in fact, she wasn't having any, and thought it would be another night before the little one would arrive. Then, out of the blue, the contractions hit.
By the time they could get her out to the car, they were already at 4 minutes apart. They got her to the hospital and broke her water within the hour.
Little Mekenzie Marie Belshe joined us at 1:55 AM July 25, 2008. 7 lbs 9 oz and 21 inches long. Quite tall, but otherwise average and healthy. Welcome, Mekenzie!

My awesome neighbor

Here's the picture of my neighbor's window. Both of their front windows look like this, but you really can't tell the difference between the 2 so I didn't post the picture of the other window. I think this was the window that their next door neighbor's mini grill was thrown through. Notice the card board decor they have chosen to go with. It adds a bit of mystique to this quaint home in the heart of West Valley City.

Insurance and Medical Billing

What a freaking headache. Need I say more? Probably not, but here goes:

Our little story starts back in November of 2006. Trisha is having some medical problems that involve her Lap-Band and her Gall bladder. Her Dr. determines that she needs to get her gall bladder removed and her lap-band replaced. I immediately know that the insurance is going to throw a fit, so I decide to make sure everything is planned out for billing before the surgery so the insurance has no reason to screw up. I was naive to think that by having them agree to something before hand would prevent the billing nightmare.
The insurance will not pay for the lap band, nor anything to do with the lap-band, but because it would be cheaper for the hospital/Dr. to do the surgery at the same time, they will pay half of the hospital expense, the Dr. expense related to the gall-bladder removal and half of the anesthesiologist. I still have to pay 3000 to the Dr, 4000 to the hospital, and 450 to the anesthesiologist. It sucks, but it needed to be done.
November, she has the surgery. She is in pain and has to get used to some new eating habits, but everything goes well. We pre-paid for everything but the Dr. where we are doing a payment plan to pay him off over a year period of time.
December 2006, we receive the bills from the hospital. Balance due: $4800. Ha ha ha! Those medical billing guys are SO funny! They forgot about our deal! So the rigmarole begins.
The insurance denied the claim. Plus, the discount wasn't factored in. I ask them to re-consider the claim.
Beginning of January 2007, we receive the bill. Balance due: $0. Yay! They did their jobs.
Middle of January 2007, we receive another bill. Balance due: $4800. Boo! They suck at their jobs.
Calls are made, supervisors are talked to, promises are made to make everything better.
End of January 2007, we receive another bill. Balance due: $4800. C'mon guys.
Calls are made, supervisors are talked to, notes are read and researched. Promises are made.
Middle of February 2007, we receive another bill. Balance due: -$2800. WaHOO! they are AWESOME!
A week later, we receive a check for $2800 bucks! Woot!
The same day we receive the check, I receive a call saying that a stop payment has been placed on the check. Boo!
Calls are made. Supervisors are talked to. Promises are made.
End of February 2007, I receive another bill. Balance due, $0. It's about time. They got it right.
April 2007, I receive another bill. Balance due, $4800. Aww.. C'mon.. How did that happen?!
Calls are made. Supervisors are talked to. Promises are made.
May 2007, I receive another bill. Balance due, $0. For heaven's SAKE! They say that this is the correct bill and I have nothing to worry about. Everything is settled.
May 2008, I receive another bill. Balance due: $4800 bucks. You've got to be kidding me.. Right?
Calls are made, supervisors are talked to, promises are made.
Middle of May 2008, calls confirming that balance is at $0 and that this whole thing was a mistake. Promises are made.
June 2008, I receive another bill. Balance due: $4800 bucks. I don't even know what to say at this point.
Calls are made. Supervisors are yelled at. Research is underway.
Middle of June 2008, I receive a phone call that everything is finally resolved and that I won't be seeing any more bills ever. I asked for a final bill showing the $0 balance. Promises are made.
End of July 2008. I still have not received that bill.
...
The really funny thing is that this isn't the only medical billing problem that I've had since this time. I'm still trying to get some other stuff paid for by an insurance company I had a year ago, and another bill has been paid, but the provider can't find proof of the check coming in, even though the insurance company provided proof of the check.
...
Why can't they just get their crap together and do it right the first time?

Wideo Games

By the way, I call video games, wideo games. It's a Nickism. It wasn't a typo.

The Joys of Living in West Valley City

Let's do a little bit of time traveling here.

Date: 7/20/08
Time: 2:55 AM

[Trisha wakes Nick up and asks me if the door is locked.]

Nick: Huh? The door? Uhmm.. Yeah, I think.
Trisha: Will you make sure?
Nick: No.. Why? Ugh.. It's like 2 in the morning.
Trisha: It's almost 3, and the stupid neighbors are at it again.
Nick: Ugh. I'm sure it's fine... Zzzzz...
[popping][yelling]
Nick: Ok.. I'll make sure it's locked...
[Nick goes to the door and makes sure that the door is locked. It is. Looks out the front window. Sees some guys running around on the sidewalk]
Nick: ...Effing neighbors.
[Nick returns to bed]
Nick: Zzzzz...
[popping][yelling][thuds][yelling]
Nick: You've got to be effing kidding me. This is getting rediculous. I'm gunna go tell them to shut up.
[Nick looks out the front window and sees more guys running around, up and down the stairs]
[Lady downstairs screams]

Lady: Get them out of the apartment! Oh my GOD!
[...]
[Nick returns to the bedroom to dispatch his
weapon.]
Nick: Trisha... Where's my phone?
Trisha: It's right here.. Why?
Nick: I don't know what's going on, but I'm calling the cops. I'm so sick of this crap.
[Nick calls the cops and returns to the front window, weapon in hand]
[Lots of thuds][Screams]
[Still on hold...]
[Still on hold...]
[Still on hold...]
[5 minutes into the hold]
Dispatch: 911 emergency, what is the nature of your emergency?
Nick: There's some sort of fist fight going on outside my condo.
Dispatch: What is your full address?
[Nick gives full address]
Dispatch: You say they are fighting?
Nick: Yeah. I hear people yelling at each other and people punching each other.
[Someone yells, oh $4!7.. The cops!]
Dispatch: Did anyone say anything about weapons?
[8 guys pile into 2 cars and drive away]
Nick: Not that I can hear. I haven't heard any gunfire. Yet...
[Cops arrive]
Nick: The police officer has arrived now, thanks.
[Hangs up] (Note: The police had been called ~30 minutes prior to me calling)
[Nick returns his weapon to it's holster and goes outside to investigate]




So there I was. 3:10 AM or so, standing outside my Condo. The police are talking to one guy who looks a bit dazed. 2 ladies are standing on the sidewalk. I stand next to them. They're standing about 3 feet from a guy laying on the grass. His arms are strewn above his head. It's dark. Is he breathing? It's hard to see... Yes.. He's breathing.. Ok.. Good.. I'm not staring at a dead guy. I bet he wishes he was dead. His faces is bashed in. He's bleeding. Ouch.


It's hard to filter through drunk ramblings of those who were truly involved. First you have the 2 guys that got beat up. One of them is obviously drunk, he's bleeding, but he's standing. So maybe not that drunk. The other guy is the one who is laying on the ground moaning and crying. He obviously took the majority of the beating.

There's the lady in the condo below us. She was the one that screamed for them to get out of the apartment. I'm still not sure what she was referring to, but I thought she was getting robbed.
And then there's the whiny beeyawtch that is renting the apartment on the floor below us. This is the 8th time that the police have been dispatched to our complex in the past month or so. It had never happened, to my knowledge, prior to her move in about a month ago since the time we moved in (February). I don't think she gets involved in the fights, at least not directly, but it's the company she keeps.

She's from an Indian reservation in New Mexico. She has 12 siblings (not sure if her parents are included in the 12). Most of them brothers, from what I could gather. Anyway. She has a couple of her brothers staying with her. It seems that they have some sort of bloodlust. They party late, and loud. They drink. They fight. They have drunk guys throw grills through their front windows, and smash their heads through the other windows. They have an intimate relationship with the local police. And it sucks for us...

Returning to the scene of the beating. I'm able to derive some of the story from the arguing and the alcohol. The guy laying on the ground went drinking with some friends at a club. He got in an argument with his ride on the way home, so he walked home part of the way. He got somewhere close to the complex, and got into some argument with the guys who are renting the other unit. I still don't know where that argument took place.

Anyway, the guy felt threatened, plus he was drunk. So he did what any sensible drunk person would do. He went to his condo and retrieved an 18-inch mini-bat. He proceeds to break the windows of one of the guy's cars.

I'm guessing that the popping sound was the hitting of the windows and breaking of glass. While I didn't notice the car when I looked out the window, apparently he broke all of the windows. The 8 guys didn't take too kindly to that gesture, so they chased after him. He ran away, and then came back, or something along those lines. He had jumped the fence a couple times is all I know.

Anyway, they caught up with him at some point and beat him with a broomstick that had been broken in half. By this time, the guy's friend had returned. He wasn't beat up as bad, but he probably tried to break up the fight.

Then, the cops came. 30 minutes after they arrived, they took the guy on the ground to the hospital via ambulance. I was pretty pissed that it took the ambulance so long. The lady downstairs had advised the police officer that the guy on the ground had some medical issues that were worrisome. He had his kidneys replaced. Twice. So, he's not in good health. Why he was drinking is beyond me, but apparently, he very rarely drinks. I guess this is just one more reason why he shouldn't.

The cops pulled over 1 of the cars full of idiots that left the scene. They brought 3 of them back in the cop car. I'm guessing that the driver got a DUI and got the car impounded, but I'm not entirely sure. They questioned them for a while, then had them call someone to pick them up. No one was arrested.

So, with all of this happening, while I don't feel personally threatened, like they're going to target me, that doesn't mean that they're not going to come back some night and break my car windows because they don't know which car is his. Or come back and break the front windows of his unit. Either way, that affects me.

I've called the HOA to find out what can be done to get that lady evicted, but it's complicated. She is renting from a management company that owns 2 units in our complex. Apparently they own several from all over, but they kind of act as an investment/renting brokerage. The HOA contacted them and advised them of what was going on, and that some action needed to be taken. The management company pushed back and is refusing to take responsibility, even though they own the unit, and are ultimately responsible. In the end, they also did some shady/illegal things with the purchase of that unit a couple months back. So, the HOA is going to fine them for all of the past incidents. They will have to pay for them, or have a lien put against the property. After a lien has been esablished, they can do other things legally. It's just a long drawn out process. The windows in their unit have been broken out for 3 weeks now.

Hopefully they move out, or things get better.

We'll see.

I'll keep you posted.

Pens

I am obsessed with nice pens. They often get stolen, however. Grr.

Then, Now and Yet To Come...

20 Years Ago

1. I don't recall the dates specifically, but I was either going, gone to, or just returned from Hawaii with my family. I was so young that I don't remember much about it. I only remember being "abandoned" by my brothers at the hotel. They were screwing around on the elevators and didn't want me to come, so they left me on the bottom floor and told me to wait. 30 minutes later my brother sheepishly came and got me.

2. I got grounded for the first time right around this time. My friend Bryson and I were throwing rocks from the gutter up into the flower bed of my neighbor's house. For some reason, he went to go investigate a rock he had thrown, and I didn't notice. I threw the next rock and beaned him right in the forehead.

3. I had my first "not real" kiss. It was the (older) next door neighbor Holly Diefendorfer . We kissed under water in her kiddie pool.

10 Years Ago

1. I was in 9th grade at Kearns Jr. High.

2. I was lead stage-crew guy, and loved it. Too bad Mr. Carling was the teacher. What an ass.

3. I "modemed" on a daily basis to Lowerlights and Chatterbox (http://www.lowerlights.com/). That was really the start of my "growing up online." Most of my friends were found through Lowerlights.

5 Years Ago
1. I served a mission in Columbus, Ohio. I lived in Whitehall, Reynoldsburg and London. I came home after 11 months due to depression. Boo.

2. Moved in to David's parent's house and slept on a fold out couch for a couple months, then the floor for a couple more. I bought their old car, which shall forever be known as the Ghetro. It was a ghetto Geo Metro.

3. I started working at DirecTV. Ugh.

3 Years Ago
1. I got married to the love of my life, Trisha! We got married in the Salt Lake Temple after having met 5 months prior. I must be from Utah.

2. We moved into the Mark Twain apartments in Taylorsville. Surprisingly we never got robbed, nor shot at. Our cars didn't even get broken into. Ironically, Trisha's car got broken into at my parent's house in Murray, where we would never have expected it.

3. I started working at Mstar. (http://www.mstar.com/) I started at 7 bucks an hour doing technical support for the WebSentinel product. After a couple months of only working for 2 hours a day (playing games and looking for another job the remainder of the time), they started getting busy with the UTOPIA project. I started working in order support to make sure installs were completed.

4. We got a cute little Shi-tzu named Mosley. He had a hard time potty training because both Trisha and I were working. We had him for a year and a half and then decided to give him to a friend of Trisha's who had 3 little girls that could play with him. He's much happier now. We visit him occasionally.

1 Year Ago

1. I started looking for a new job because Mstar had just moved down to Orem. The drive (being 45 minutes each way) and the company running out of money were the main factors leading to me looking. I didn't really find anything worth accepting, however.

2. We moved in with Trisha's parents (in their basement). After seeing Trisha's sister live there for almost a year prior to us moving in, we were really worried that it was going to be a horrible living situation. It turned out to be ok. I kept to myself, and the basement was 10 degrees cooler than anywhere else, so I was in heaven.

3. Trisha was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. It sucks. She is always in pain and it has made things difficult for her. I wish I could just take her pain away, but I feel helpless.

So Far This Year

1. We bought a condo in West Valley City. It's a bit ugly on the outside, but the inside is upgraded and nice. Finally we are living on our own again. After 2+ years of living with other people, it was about time that we were on our own.

2. We got new cars! I got an 2006 Nissan Altima. Very nice. Trisha got a 2007 Suzuki Forenza. It's nice to have nice things again. Both of our cars were starting to fall apart.

3. I got laid off at Mstar. It wasn't much of a surprise, but I was pretty upset about it initially. It was just really bad timing... (refer to So Far This Year, Number 1 and 2.)

4. Started a job with a VoIP provider in Lindon, Utah called Alianza (http://www.alianza.com/). I'm a Sales Engineer. I assist the sale's guys to prove to potential customers that our product works and that it will work in their network environment. I love it. It's the perfect fit for me as far as my desire to be both technical and professional. The people that work here are especially awesome. The work environment is unlike any I have ever seen. Free snacks and drinks and I travel occasionally. It's been fun.

Today

1. Trisha woke up with me and made me breakfast. It was really nice. I had 2 egg-McMuffin type things that she made. She also made me a lunch. This is a part of our effort to save as much money as possible because Trisha is no longer working full time. It has been a bit of a strain on us financially, but we're going to make it work.

2. I started a blog, and I wrote this blog.

Tomorrow

1. I want to go to the shooting range to get in some more practice with my 9mm. I need to be more comfortable with handling it in high pressure situations. There was recently a bad fist fight outside of my condo and based on the commotion, I thought someone was getting robbed. I dispatched my weapon, and realized that it has been too long since I've used it, so I need to go use it again.

In the Next Year

1. I'll start back up with school at Western Governor's University (http://www.wgu.edu/).

2. I would like to start making progress about getting out of debt. It has been a challenge for us, and it's certainly not getting any better.

3. I hope to be able to go to Lake Powell later this summer. We'll see if I can get the time off. Not to mention the money required to go. It's not looking good.

Shelf in the Room

Welcome to the Shelf in the Room blog. The name of this blog is paying homage to my favorite band, Days of the New. I probably won't be writing about them much, however.
I've blogged before on livejournal, but I haven't done that in a long time. A friend of mine has started a couple of blogs and kind of inspired me to get back into it. I originally wanted to start an "A picture a day" blog, but I know that I can't follow through with that. I'll try to update daily, but we'll see how long that lasts. ;)
If I would have done the APAD blog style, I should have started last week though, cuz I've had something worth taking a picture of every night for the past week! I especially wished I would have had a picture of the 8 cop cars, ambulance and fire truck out in front of my condo on Sunday morning. For the 8th time in about a month, the cops were called because of a neighbor that just moved in. More on that later.