When Push Comes to Snap

For about 4 years now I have been with Cogeco for both my internet and for my TV. I didn't complain each time they charged me a reconnection fee when I moved (can't you give me one freebie?). I barely even complained when I didn't have my digital cable channels for 6 months and it took repeated service calls to get it fixed. I didn't even complain when I got a notice telling me that they were going to start charging for overages. After all I knew my bandwidth limit was 60 GB. The thought of leaving them just didn't cross my mind. After all it has always been reliable and cable does provide much better speeds then DSL does. Since they were giving me until June 1 before making me pay for overages I decided to make use of that fact. After all I had several Blu-rays with digital copies waiting to be downloaded... software updates.... and, of course, the torrents. And yeah maybe I did go a little overboard. Downloaded/Uploaded 179 GB in April and was on my way to exceeding that in May. And then... without any warning or even a notification they cut off my internet. Not even any hint as far as how long I would be without the service for. They claimed there may have been a violation of the terms of service but they have no proof that I was doing anything other then downloading a LOT of legal files... or making use of the online storage web sites to back up my files before they cracked down. As a side note a friend of mine downloaded a terabyte this month and was not cut off... So what exactly makes them decide who gets cut off and who doesn't? Clearly it's not uniform where once you reach a certain point that's it.

So any ways... the moment I realized they cut me off... and weren't going to tell me how long it was for was the moment I decided to cancel all my services with them and go elsewhere. Maybe that is a little bit of the Scorpio in me.... but there are companies that still offer unlimited bandwidth and cost about the same. Okay so I had to trade in speed but still. No worrying about being cut off... or that I will be charged extra. Peace of mind. And as for the TV I am doing without for the summer as most shows are done for the season. I will just download the ones that I do want to watch. Once September hits then I will either continue on and keep saving the $60 a month or if I really want the TV back then I will likely go with Bell TV.

As for Cogeco when I called in to cancel not only did they not show any empathy whatsoever, or offer to look into how long my internet was going to be out for, but they didn't even make a save effort. Guess they really didn't want the $123 that I was paying each month. Then they sent me another bill, even though I had just paid the last bill and now had a $0 balance. Oh and along with that bill was a notification that my rates were increasing for each service. While making the decision to leave Cogeco I was still thinking about the possibility of going back to them. Based on the fact they did not seem to value my business I would be hard pressed to ever go back to them... or even recommend them to anyone.

What am I Paying for?

The other day I was out running errands. Like to get them done before my days off. The guy from Cogeco called... Not the tech support guy but from their CR department or corporate or whatever. He asked me how I was doing and my response was, "I'd be doing better if my cable was working." Alan was under the impression that they had resolved the issue when they were out back on the 9th. He was a little surprised to discover that they had come out twice and given me the same answer that they gave me almost two years ago... that it was a problem between my apartment and the 8th floor. Well it's one thing to tell me that... but they did nothing about it. No follow-up or anything. I just hadn't gotten around to calling and harassing them yet. So I was promised an answer within 48 hours.

Low and behold tech support calls me the next day. First she explains that it's a problem with damaged cable between my apartment and the 8th floor. I know that already. So then she launches into this long winded explanation of how they will likely have to re-wire it and how they're not sure how they will get that done... as if I'm inconveniencing them. I pay $120 month for cable and internet... Really I just want what I am paying for. It's not like I damaged the cables or caused this. So yes I am sorry that it means extra work for you but it's not my problem. So then she had to arrange a time for a repair guy and the supervisor to come out to "assess it." So that means I have to make sure that I am off my call and home as soon as possible. It means that I have to be home all morning... So they're not the only ones that are inconvenienced. And I already know that this won't be the end of it. They still have to identify exactly what needs to be done in order to rectify it. Then come back and do it.

I highly doubt that they are even going to offer any type of compensation over the whole thing. Likely I will have to fight them for it. At least that's what I am predicting. I don't like fighting all that much... especially in a case like this where the compensation should be automatic. First, and foremost though, I'd like it to be fixed... so I can watch all the channels that I am paying for and record all my shows.

Bent Out of Shape

Azrael was making new friends today... sort of. I am beginning to think that I should sabotage my cable more often. He really likes to play with the cable guy. I am starting to think that I should try and find cable guy.... or someone that wears a tool belt. Wait that sounds kind of bad. But for as much as Azrael wanted to visit him and make a new friend he was a little bent out of shape. For one his morning routine got interrupted. If I ever thought that I was obsessive with routines I think he has me beat. Azrael was also territorial and likely could smell his cat as well. Makes me think twice about bringing in another cat. His payback was to turn the cable guys jacket into a bed while he was here. One of the tools that the cable guy was using was to check frequencies and it had a high pitched sound that just drove Azrael absolutely nuts. I thought he'd go hide in my room.... but instead he ran straight for the cable guy and started hissing. At least he didn't outright attack him. After he left I almost felt like I had to be the therapist and reassure him.

As far as the cable goes... Well they reset the cable box so hopefully they fixed my issues with recording. Kind of irritating to set it to record a show and then not have the show record. The fact my digital channels are inconsistent still hasn't been resolved. There is an issue with the cables somewhere between my apartment and the 8th floor. But they are supposed to be coming back tomorrow morning to test it out and get it fixed... or escalate it if necessary. This has been an issue pretty well since I moved in here. I'm thinking this is repair guy #4. So not holding any hopes on it actually being resolved. I just have to hope that I get off work on time tomorrow morning.

Army Recruiting

I was just watching the show "Murder" on Spike and noticed an awful lot of Army ads. At first I thought I was just noticing it more because I had just read an article in Adbuster comparing the recruiting ads of the Canadian, British and American military. Then it dawned on me. Spike TV is geared towards males, especially young males. So the army is just using their advertising dollars to target the best demographic. I'm not sure how effective it is but hey I can always watch Spike and avoid watching commercials for maxi pads complete with the blue liquid.

Azrael's Bed

Azrael really is my photogenic child.... What is it with cats and electronics? I know they are nice and warm. I didn't know he was sleeping on it until after my cable went on the fritz. I get off the phone with Cogeco and then I look at the cable box and there is Azrael curled up on it. I was starting to wonder if he might be the reason my cable was acting up. Turns out he wasn't.

Maybe it's just me but I can't see that as being comfortable. It's a hard metal box. But then he's a cat and can sleep anywhere. It's what they do best. I thought I'd get a few pictures while he was curled up there earlier this evening. If he's not there quite often I'll find him on top of the TV or on my PC. Right now he is on top of the TV.

And every time I see him on the cable box I think back to a story I heard years ago when I was at work. The original iMac was the small, all-in-one computer. Great design and marketing gimmick. The only problem with the all in one is that it means the heating vents for the entire system are in the monitor. Now I am not sure if this story is true or just an urban legend but it could happen.... The story is that the cat would sleep on top of the monitor, which of course blocks off the heating vents for the computer. As you can imagine this would cause the computer to overheat. So as the story goes the computer did overheat and caught on fire, killing the cat. So I do get concerned when Azrael curls up on the computer or the cable box. The TV he is sleeping on is not turned on so I'm not worried about that one.

I think his ears were burning.... He just came running out of the bedroom wanting attention. Lately Azrael really likes to be mauled. I think he believes he is the center of attention and the world revolves around him.

Cogeco

Back in September I ordered the UFC PPV event... might be the last UFC PPV event I order. There's nothing wrong with them... but I can't afford to be spending $50 a month on them. It would be one thing if they were every couple of months or so. Any ways... that was a mini-tangent. At the same time I was having issue with my digital cable and they had to send someone out. The image was pixelated and barely watchable. I called within 10 minutes of the even starting because of it and they said they were going to credit the account. They never did. I got billed for it. So today I called about that. They refused to give me the money back claiming there was no notice on the account and no information about that call. So... because they don't document it I am out $50? Nice... how's that for customer service. Good thing I watched the event then since I had to pay for it. Kind of frustrating...

Digital Cable: The Final Chapter

So I called the cable company today. Digital cable is about the same price as analog cable... It's just having the receiver that is more expensive. Either way I figured I'd see what they would do for me since I had to have 3 service calls and was not getting the channels I was paying for. They're giving me a credit for the rental of the cable box. $20 + tax is still better then paying full price. It's not like I really missed all that much when it wasn't working. I do have PVR after all. So I was just recordin the shows any ways. There were only a couple of shows I missed out on. And I got a credit for the UFC fight as well since it wasn't crystal clear. So all in all I got about $70 in credits for the experience. And now my cable is back. So it's all good. Hopefully no more service calls in the near future.

Digital Cable

So the cable guy was back out today.... Well I guess I can't really say he was "back out" since it was a different guy. He was here for about an hour, when the average service call is about 35 minutes. He checked all the lines and ended up putting an amplifier on the line to boost the signal. So far so good. We'll see in a few days if I am still getting all the channels. For once Azrael was not sleeping on the cable box. Normally Azrael is not all that social except with me. He won't visit other people. But when the cable guy was here he was being much more social. He was even pawing at the tools hanging on his belt. It's funny because the only other person that Azrael will visit is Adam. Otherwise he is just a mama's boy. Maybe I should've found out if the cable guy was single *lol* I do know he likes Nascar, went to the race in Michigan, plays hockey and is a volunteer firefighter. What can I say he was here for an hour. But hey the digital cable is working again. And tomorrow I am going to be calling Cogeco about getting a credit on my account. So that is some good news. It's working... and I will get some money back since I've been paying for digital cable and haven't been getting it.

Tears of Frustration

I think everything is catching up with me. When it rains it pours and it has just been one thing after another. Everyone has a breaking point where they just can't take any more. My issues with the cable are relatively minor but when you add that to everything else that has been going on it just compounds the frustration.

Issues at work are a little more serious. Let's recap how it works... My team has 24 agents currently. Normally there are 2 performance coaches on a team. We do the call evaluations (one per agent per week), answer questions, training sessions, team meetings, trend analyses, etc. Translation: We do a lot of work. Oh and we also take calls for 3 hours a day. So with only one person doing that job it is extremely difficult. My team manager sent out an email telling the agents not to ask me questions.. but that doesn't seem to stop some of them. Some agents are really good at making my job easy.... and others are a pain in the ass. I don't have time to baby sit them. So if I am there the entire week and work extremely hard I somehow manage to get it done. After all I asked for help and didn't get it. I was on vacation at the beginning of this week. And I told the quality manager the issues I was having. She called an emergency meeting to discuss things... since the teams are not all the same. Some have a much smaller number. Everyone agreed that they would help out. I went on vacation and when I came back only one of my agents had been listened to. Two agents had been missed for the week, which quickly turned into three. I just about lost it when I came back into work. They told me the work would be done... that I didn't have anything to worry about. My agents knew no one had filled in. It did not demonstrate teamwork very well. In total 4 evaluations were not done this week. As a team that means our mandate was not met. Now we get a pass since I did everything possible to get it covered and it didn't get done. But overall it's not me that gets penalized. It's the agents. This is their time for coaching. It is when we listen to the calls that we might notice trends and be able to give pointers. It's also a chance to let them know what they're doing well. This week witll be more of the same. I'm just going under the assumption that I am doing it all myself and am planning the week accordingly. It's going to be difficult since I have meetings on 2 of those days but I'll do whatever I need to in order to get things done.

The big one is obviously my student loan. I was just going to say finances... but it was not for my student loan and my ongoing battle with the national student loan center financially I would be okay. Since it has taken so long for them to make a decision the Royal Bank took out my payment. As a result I am about to bounce a $25 payment... which will end up costing me $75. With $6 in my bank account there is nothing I can do about it. But it is definitely frustrating. Had they not taken the payment I would've ben fine. Their inefficiencies and incompetencies just keeps costing me more and more money unecessarily. Plus this week I have a chiropractor appointment and don't have the money to pay for it. So I got caught up on bills only to be put back into the red. Is it ever going to end? After 5 months of fighting the student loan center I am not sure how much more I can take. I feel like I am backed into a corner with no way out. Talk about frustration.

More Cable Problems

Some days it really sucks that cable companies have such a monopoly. I can't get satellite where I am because my apartment is on the wrong side of the building. But digital cable is not turning out to be all it's cracked up to be. Supposed to be this amazing quality, crystal clear and you get all kinds of channels. It worked fine in my last apartment. But I've had nothing but problems since I moved in. At first I didn't think much of it since I could just record the shows I wanted to. Then it got progressively worse. They sent a technician out to the house back at the end of August and almost 2 months later it still hasn't been fixed properly. And each time they send someone out that means that I have to be home... so now I have to give up my days off to wait around for them to show up. Not to mention the fact the first guy was supposed to come back with an amplifier and never showed up again. I still don't have the amplifier. According to the diagnostics from the receiver the signal loss is huge, and that's for the channels that I am getting. I did find out what happens when a sporting event is blacked out. Rather then give you an error message it just freezes the image of the previous channel. So a) I am not getting my digital channels, b) I have to make sure I am available on Sunday when they send the technician out, and c) I am paying for digital cable and am not getting what I paid for. Guess it's about time I call the billing support for Cogeco cable and have a few words with them. See what type of compensation I can get for my troubles.

Cable Company

So the cable company came out today. Turns out it's not the cables I am using or the cable box. I was starting to wonder since Azrael hd turned the receiver into a nice bed. I am pretty sure the cat furr does not help things. The cable guy got here and that's exactly where he was. Azrael does seem to find the strangest places to sleep. And it's not like the receiver is a nice, warm spot - like my monitor. Looks like it's actually the building. It's the actual cable lines going into the building that are causing a problem. I am getting a poor signal. They are coming back tomorrow to see what they can do. But in the meantime I am now paying for channels that I am not even getting. I get the analog channels but am paying for digital. How does that work?

Isolation

I always seemed to have it in my head that isolation was a bad thing. We're always taught that social interaction is a good thing and the image of a hermit is not an appealing one. When I was preparing for my vacation I was dreading being asked what I was planning to do for my vacation. They seemed to expect me to have some big plans... like actually leaving the city... etc. But that isn't what I wanted. I wanted the time off to just get away. Sure, I am still online... but my computer is also on the table between me and the TV. Kind of hard to get away. Aside from my dinner with Pat... and Steve's phone call... I haven't spoken to anyone. I've left my apartment to go to the store a few times (more then I'd like actually) and that's been in. And before anyone says that it's no fun... and I should have done more... the point is that I didn't want to. I wanted the time to myself. I wanted the chance to just be... to relax... and not answer to anyone. Just me and Azrael. I now understand Adam's need or isolation and wanting to be alone. It's not a bad thing... just not for everyone. Either way when I go back to work I'll be a lot more relaxed then I had been and that was exactly what I needed!

Back Online

So after a month without the internet I am back online. I managed to survive without it. In some ways it was harder being without the cable TV then it was the internet. But I had movies to watch and was in the middle of my move. Today, the guy from Cogoeco was here to connect it. Probably his easist job of the day. I already had everything connected. It just needed to be activated. Now I am back to the Ultimate Fighter and catching up with the online world.

Customer Service

I just had a weird experience. I just had Cogeco call me because I am moving and hadn't sent them a change of address. They really wanted to make sure that I got it done and taken care of so that I didn't lose my internet or my cable TV in the meantime. I am still impressed by it. I was about to send the notification but wasn't sure exactly which day I'd be moving in. Until yesterday I wasn't even sure which apartment it would be. I only handed in my notice 2 weeks ago. How's that for customer service? So now there won't be any interuption of service and April 2 the Cogeco guy will be installing the cable in the new apartment. That was easy. I didn't even have to do anything... other then provide the apartment number.