Finally Things Are Getting Back to Normal... As Normal as They Ever Are

I really do have a legitimate reason for my absence this time.... I was without the trusty MacBook Pro for 47 days.... Might have been longer. The repair alone took 40 days. That was a nightmare. The local repair facility is completely incompetent let me tell you. And they couldn't even get the model right... They seem to think I have a 17" MacBook Pro. It was downhill from there. Granted I would have been pretty happy if I had come home with a 17" MacBook Pro in the end. Mind you their incompetence did benefit me. Took it in there since it wasn't powering on. Might have had something to do with mass amounts of water being dumped on it. Let me put it to this way when we put it on it's side on the dishwasher to dry off there was water running off the side of the dishwasher. So it was pretty much soaked. Any ways it was completely cleaned before it went in. But we had no idea what to predict when the unit was powered on. With my PDA when it went through the wash (yes me, electronics, and water are quite familiar *lol*) for a few weeks I could still see the water in the screen. But they didn't check it when it went in and just ordered the part. So there was no way for them to prove it went in with liquid damage. As a result Apple issued a CS code to cover the repair. Then the part wasn't ordered. Had to get Customer Relations involved to get the repair completed. Now their own policy is that if it's not done in a timely fashion (typically 14 days) then the computer will be replaced. But even after having Apple conclude that it did not go in with liquid damage CR went right back to blaming me for it. So no replacement. Get the part in and then the display woldn't close. They claim it was due to corrosion. They were really milking the liquid damage to cover up for their own incompetence.... or to get extra money from Apple. Their conclusion was that a new bottom case was required. I have seen the service manual for the computer and the bottom case just houses all of the components but the display does not connect to it at all. Now the issue they were having with the case just required the screws to be adjusted.... not for a whole new bottom case. And even when I did get the computer back the case is separating. There is a gap in several places between the trackpad area and the bottom case. When asked they continued to say it was because of corrsion and that they did the best they could. If this is their best I am kind of concerned. After all they were supposed to completely repair it... since it is now under warranty specs... or at least it is supposed to be. Apple's policy on liquid damage is to replace the logic board which was never done. Oh and it was returned with an optical drive failure. About 50% of the disks burned fail. And if that wasn't enough it was returned without the power adapter which magically they couldn't find and had to order a new one. So from the day I took the computer in until the day I had it home and powered up was 40 days.

During that time I really wasn't on the computer. I don't like using the Windows computer nearly as much. Partially becuse it's Windows but it's also not a laptop so it's not as convenient. I will say that there were some positive aspects to not having the computer. I didn't feel like I was on overload all the time.... I was able to get away from technology. I would come home from work and actually watch the TV shows instead of just having them on as background noise. Azrael was getting plenty of attention as well. Pretty sure I was eating better too. Now I have the computer back and it's back to life as usual.

During my absence I also got really sick. Missed almost a week at work. Each day it was a new symptom so I never really knew what I was dealing with. The first day it felt like the flu with the full body pain. Then the next day it was like bronchitis and then the day after I looked like a cocaine addict since I was blowing my nose so much. I stumbled into work and was so pale. I was pretty much hallucinating and had no comprehension of what I was saying. The only reason I was even there is so I wouldn't need a doctor's note to come back. I made it until it would be considered a leave early and not a sick day and then went home. It was rough. Glad it's over adn I am back to being relatively healthy.

At about the same time I got sick all the overtime got canceled. Based on low quality scores we were put on a reduced queue so we are taking fewer of the calls. About half the reps had to go through a remedial training and were put on action plans to bring up their quality scores. I had managed to avoid that. Then about a week ago I had a really bad call that the client was listening to... And even though I don't agree with the way it was scored my team leader won't fight to get it changed. So instant action plan for me... and no more time off the phones to assist agents with their calls. It sucks... and even if I get off the action plan I still won't get any off phone time until the summer. So a real lack of motivation there.... That was the one thing I looked forward to. I can understand if it was a trend.... but really it was just one call. We have all had bad calls.... anyone that has worked at a call center that is.

The good news is that I still have a job. I have heard on a number of occasions instances where the client hears a bad call and the agent no longer has a job. So it could be wose.... I like having gainful employment. Also this month two of my good friends from work have quit. It's making me a little sad. I am happy for them that they are on to bigger and better things but a little bit of me is still selfish and wants them to be there when I come into work since they always brightened the day.

Not much exciting going on in my world... but sometimes that is a good thing. After all I don't really want any more flooding... I am quite content with my life... even if some would say it's boring. And now I think there is a little furry creature that wants some of my attention. I am more then happy to give it to him.

Water, Water Everywhere

So obviously with my last post my concern was with the heat in my apartment. Let's just say that is no longer an issue. But let me back up to the battle with the super to get it resolved. My complaints over the heat seemed to fall on deaf ears. First they said they couldn't find a problem which is all well and good but doesn't explain why it's 12 degrees... Clearly there is a problem with the heat. Complained on the 9th when it was down to about 14 degrees and since the maintenance guy was off all weekend nothing was done. They didn't even override the thermostat to jack up the heat. Fortunately it got a little warmer outside over the weekend so the apartment almost got back to 20 degrees. On the 16th I was back to complaining and no one even checked on it. Complained every day that week. Came home Thursday to find my mini book case that holds the printer was pulled out away from the heater, the curtains had been pulled up and the runner that I had by the front door was in a pile by the front door. But it was now down to 10 degrees. Let's put this in perspective. On my bed I had 2 fleece blankets, 2 normal blankets, the sheets and a down duvet and was shivering while trying to sleep. So Friday morning it was back to complaining.... First they tried to tell me that it was because the curtains were hanging slightly over the heater and it was blocking the heat. Then they tried to tell me that the space heater was too close to the thermostat. The space heater was in the middle of the living room floor so that it was far away from anything that might catch fire and, more importantly, was only on for about 2 hours a day from when I came home at night until I went to bed. Their third reason was that it was caused by the draft coming in from the balcony door. So they wanted to put plastic up over the balcony door to prevent heat loss. Fine... anything that will help. But they hadn't even gone into the bedroom since they had locked the cat in there. Had they done so they would've realized that the bedroom was just as cold, if not colder. So then they were going to put plastic up over that window too. Now this is how shoddy our maintenance men are... Steve was there and they asked him if he wanted to do it. Now he doesn't live in the building... and it's not his responsibility. As we were leaving Steve was commenting that he would likely have to redo it. Now before I continue with the story (since ultimately this becomes a moot point) they got the plastic over the bedroom window and that was it. The balcony door didn't even get done. They didn't think they had enough plastic. Perhaps they should have thought about that... and they got attacked by Azrael. I am discovering that he is protective when I am not there. Or maybe it is just the way they react. Some days it is like having a 3 year old child. He will follow me around. Well they try and lock him in the bedroom and freak when he follows them around... so he attacks. But any ways... their shoddy workmanship really doesn't matter at this point.

So I left and went to work. I worked my normal 12 hour shift and then went to Wal-Mart and grocery shopping after work. After all I was off the next day and wanted to get it done and over with. About the only thing I was thinking was about whether or not they had even gotten the plastic up... whether or not Steve had to redo it... and whether or not it made a difference. So we were taking bets on that. Well I certainly didn't expect what I came home to. I got home at 11:53 p.m. and found a note on my door that said, "Major flood. If you get home before midnight come see us." Well I decided to stop in first and just see how bad it was. Now at first glance it didn't look so bad... of course that is also because I was in the living room. Then I realized that the MacBook Pro was dripping. Then I wanted to cry. And then I saw the bedroom. It was immediately clear that I couldn't sleep there. The bed was covered in water and ceiling dust.

Then it was time to visit the superintendent. The first thing they said is that they couldn't find the cat. Good thing he had greeted me when I came home so I knew he was okay. Otherwise I would've really been freaking out. I knew he was stressed out though. Between the maintenance guy being there and the flood he had been sick. So they told me to go stay in a hotel for the night and bring them the bill. Back to my apartment to survey the damage. The futon was a little damp but in the living room it was really only the computer that had been hit. The bedroom, on the other hand, was a disaster. The humidity level was registering at 90%. It was clear that is where most of the water had gone as well. But there was nothing I could do at that point.... so it was time to find a hotel. That turned out to be a challenge since it was the big hockey weekend in the P.Dot. The only hotel rooms available were at the Quality Inn. Not going to lie... I made the most of the night. I had a jacuzzi suite. I will post pictures once I have them on the computer. It was a nice room... but for the $215 that it cost it better be. Would've been even nicer if I could've just relaxed. At that point I had no idea what I was going to come home to... and just how bad the devestation really was.

I might as well back up here and reveal the cause of the flood. The tenants above me broke up. She had already moved out and he told the super on the Monday that he would be coming back, presumably to finish moving stuff. Well he left the balcony door open about 4" and it caused the pipes to freeze, then split and burst. Jeff took me into the apartment the next day and there was a block of ice in the sink and the bathtub and the water in the toilet had frozen. So they weren't there to notice. I was at work. The guy below me was either not home or was too drunk. I did hear that he was on the fifth floor looking for Ron but was on the wrong end of the hallway. So it was not reported until about 6:00 when the water reached the 3rd floor. Does that tell you how bad it was? In the end the water went all the way to the 5th floor. Supposedly the water was just shooting from the pipes in 603 and then instantly freezing in the air. Jeff also said that when he walked in he was in an inch of water. It took until 10:00 for them to get the pipes fixed and the boilers refired. Now they knew about it at 6:00 and didn't call me at all to let me know.... On one hand that is good because I needed the money but 6 hours would've given me more time to bring in fans, a dehumidifier, and to save what I can. As an interesting note the guy's father did the exact same thing a couple of years ago and it was the super that lost 2 of their bedrooms. Something about that gene pool.

While I was at the hotel Steve came back and put the air conditioner in the tub and started running that to suck some of the water out of the air. Also put in a fan and a dehumidifier and got the mattress off the floor. Then he took the MackBook Pro out of there as well. When I did come back the humidity level was down to about 70%. I don't think it ever really got below that.

I walked home from the hotel. I was going to call mom but I really wanted to be alone and wanted to prolong going home, just a little bit. Besides it wasn't a long walk any ways. I got home and the first thing I did was call the maintenance guy. His recommendation had echoed that of the superintendant... moving to a new apartment. There was no way that I could stay there. So he came by and showed me the 2 apartments that were available. There was one on the 8th floor which, due to an event that happened there the same night of the flood (I'll post about that afterwards) I was a little apprehensive about. Not to mention the fact I am not crazy about heights. Oh and the layout wasn't quite the same either. It was a little narrower. I would've had to rearrange my living room. I think that was because it was right by the stairwell. The only advantage to that one is that it was ready immediately. The other option was on the 4th floor. The drawback is that the only room that was actually ready was the bedroom. They still had a lot of work to do but said it would be ready by Tuesday. It was the better option... Well aside from having to live temporarily in a tropical environment that wasn't exactly paradise. But the bedroom had just been re-carpeted, the floors were being redone with laminate (yay for no more carpets), new kitchen cupboard doors and counter tops were going in, and there was going to be a new sink, mirror and shelving unit in the bathroom. I was quickly sold on that one.

Spent most of my day off doing laundry... 7 hours and $42 later. Still waiting to be reimbursed for that... right along with the reimbursement for the hotel room I might add. I was still pretty much in shock. Then I moved everything that I could from the bedroom. Steve came over after work and moved the big items from the bedroom. I called in sick on Sunday. I just couldn't do it. And I still had a lot of work to do. Had to go to mom's so I could have a shower. For Monday and Tuesday I worked for 10 hour shifts (9 hours if you take out the lunches). Wednesday I left 5 hours into my shift. After all the new apartment was finally ready (they finished it Wednesday and not the Tuesday as they had orginally said) and I really needed to finish getting everything out of the old apartment. Mainly I wanted to get Azrael out of there. Now each night after work we had been moving as much as possible into the bedroom. After all I wasn't sleeping there and we were still trying to make sure that the mattress was able to dry out as long as possible before using it. As soon as I got home on Wednesday I brought down Azrael's stuff and then brought him down. Hot got kind of spooked by the traffic... the new floors (he can't sneak up on me now... His claws are long so I can hear him coming... the tap tap tap on the floor)... and just the change so he was hiding in my closet. Mom came over and helped me move a lot of the kitchen stuff downstairs and then cleaned the cupboards for me. It was much appreciated. She left just as Steve was getting here. Now as soon as he brought down the futon mattress (or maybe it was the catnip I gave him around the same time) Azrael was perfectly content and no longer hiding. He curled up on the mattress and just stayed there. Guess it was what signified that it was home. Work was nice and gave me Thursday off as a vacation day so that I could get as much done as possible. I had acrued the time from last year. At least this way I was still able to get paid for 40 hours that week. A far cry from the 55 hours that I had been working but I really hadn't planned on being flooded either.

So by Wednesday night (well early Thursday morning) everything had been moved to the new apartment... except the balcony chairs since the door was frozen and we couldn't get to them. But they were just cheap plastic chairs any ways. By Thursday night pretty well everything was set up. Just the finishing touches on Friday. Friday the cable guy was also here doing the reconnection. He also replaced the modem which had stopped working. Could have something to do with the water... Even did a proper installation so the cable goes around the room and not just across the floor. All the OT that I had been working had to go to pay for the cable installation. Cost me $180 when he got there. :( But hey I had my TV and internet back. Really it's just the reconnection fees of $50 that hurt. The rest was my normal cable bill.

I will say that not everything with the new apartment has been smooth sailing. First it wasn't ready on time. It still isn't completely finished. They still have to put a spacer where the carpet meets the laminate flooring and most of the cabinet doors and drawers need knobs/handles. Those should be done on Monday. Also, they were planning to leave the fridge and stove in there. The stove had obviously been on fire at some point and the top was still charred. The freezer door didn't close properly. Complained and initially they wanted to bring down the ones I had upstairs. Roach motel anyone? So in the end I got practically brand new appliances. The only caveat is that Steve had to help them move them. Say what? Again he doesn't live there... and isn't getting paid to do any work there... But he wanted me to have it so he did it. The fridge is much bigger then what I had previously. They are both nice... although the stove is a touch smaller I think. I need a smaller cookie sheet now. Last Friday I was doing dishes in the new place. No big deal right? Except that the pipe only appeared to be connected.... So all the water drained into the cabinets. Immediately report it to the super who tells me he will call Jeff immediately to get it fixed. Surprise, surprise since it's about 4:30 p.m. on Friday Jeff never shows up. I try not to use the water too much and put the stopper in the drain on that side. However, the next day someone in another apartment was running water and it backed up and once again my cabinet was flooded. Must say that I really didn't want to see any more water. And didn't want to lose anything else to water. Went and got the super and he fixed it in 3 minutes. So now everything is good. I have heat here... the apartment is nice... Azrael has settled in... and I am cautiously optimistic about getting rid of the cockroach infestation. It's still possible that I brought some with me so we'll see.

So the flood happened on the 16th. As I already mentioned Steve brought in fans, a dehumidifier and connected the air conditioner. The maintenance guy only showed me the available apartments on the 17th and did nothing about the water in my apartment. On the 18th he came in and got about 5 gallons out of the carpet. Spent about 20 minutes and then his excuse to stop is that I am moving any ways. Then asked me if I wanted to do it. Not really... After all I am moving and have other things to do. And it's not my responsibility to fix the damage. I moved all of the stuff out of the bedroom so that he could work. When I handed in my keys to the old apartment on the 24th they still had not done any more work on it. You could see mildew on the walls. the plastic over the window in the bedroom wall had come off. Not that you need to worry about the cold. The humidity level was keeping it fairly warm. I hate to see how much additional damage has been done by leaving it for a week... Sure they were ripping out the carpets any ways but what about structural damage? What about the mold and mildew? Not my problem since I no longer live there... but it should have been dealt with immediately.

Other then the MacBook Pro I haven't really mentioned what else was damaged. Now it is really easy for me to say that I got lucky because I didn't lose everything. And that definitely is true. But my MacBook Pro was only a couple of feet away from the TV and the entertainment unit. The entertainment unit definitely has some water damage to it but the TV, the PS3, the cable box and the wireless network were all fine. Likewise the sound system is still working. Likewise the Blu-rays were pretty close and didn't get damaged. But the modem was on the floor beside the Blu-rays and was fried. The futon was a little damn but seems to be fine. As for the bedroom the mattress I am still a little leery about. It dried out and seems to be fine... but I am concerned about the potential for mold and mildew to form in the core since it was wet all the way through. The MacBook Pro has been dried out and cleaned and will not power on. But I haven't given up all hope on that one.

I didn't have insurance so it makes it that much more devestating. I kept thinking I should get it... but when you're about $200 short a month as it is I just couldn't justify the cost. With all the OT I had been working I had actually just done a quote not that long ago but it was still going to be about $30/month. I was told later to try State Farm but it's a little late. Well too late to cover what I had any ways. Fortunately, the only 2 big items are the MacBook Pro and the mattress and they are not even a guarentee that they need to be replaced. and while the area rug was destroyed with the new laminate flooring I don't feel the need to put a rug in, even if it would hide the speaker wire. But if anyone does feel generous there definitely are some items that have not been replaced: white sheet set queen size, white knit blanket, 2 16" x 20" sheets of glass (the glass from my picture frames were broken), coffee table, 2 balcony chairs (folding chairs are probably best), computer speakers, and a living room chair. Okay so some things were replaced already but all in all when I look around at my apartment it could have been so much worse. Yeah it's about $400 or so to replace it... but my mattress alone is $1200. When I did a rough appraisal of the contents of my apartment it totaled around $50,000. Not including the hotel probably about $400 has already been spent so at best it will cost around $800. It is a lot of money but to put that in perspective... that is only about $150 more then the orders I placed at Columbia House. And if Azrael had been injured I couldn't put a price on that. But I definitely think once I have some money I should contact State Farm and get an insurance quote.

Emotionally I think it is going to take a little while to recover. Dealing with the heat and then the flooding has taken a lot out of me. To have everything moved and set up in a week is pretty amazing. Obviously it took a LOT of work to accomplish that. There was a lot of adrenaline involved. Not to mention a lot of uncertainty. It has been quite a roller coaster. Right now I am in the middle of a 3 day weekend. I had contemplated going in yesterday to make up some hours but decided my health and well being was more important. Using it as down time to try and absorb the blow... After all I had so much work to do that I didn't have time to process it and work through the emotional devestation that comes with it. There are still a lot of uncertainties. There is a financial cost.. a cost as far as time goes.. and an emotional cost as well.

Something Seems Wrong with This Picture

Mac vs PC

You Are a Mac

You are creative, stylish, and super trendy. You demand the best - even if it costs an arm and a leg.

Are You a Mac or a PC?

Mac Addict

The other day I was at work and Pete was reminding me of how nice it is to use a Mac. When I first started working I always said I would never buy a Mac. I could build a PC for much cheaper so why get a Mac? I held to that idea... This year I had a decision to make. I couldn't build a laptop so I was going to be buying one... Do I get a PC or do I get a Mac? Initially I was PC all the way. And then Apple released iWeb... software for web design that came free with the computer. That had a great deal of appeal for me. Just look into the entire iLife suite and it's hard not to like it. The drawback was the price. But since I am a performance coach I figured getting the Mac would also be beneficial for my agents. See I am not entirely selfish.... So I went with the Mac. And when Pete and I were talking I was reminded that, although the first one was a DOA computer, the second has been extrememely stable. With my PC I was reformatting about once a month. I have yet to reinstall with this one. No blue screen of death. In fact I haven't had to restart unless I chose to. It hasn't locked up. So while it costs more... that's not such a bad thing when it means I don't have to spend hours reinstalling or troubleshooting the system. I'm starting to see why Mac users are fanatics. Everything just works... and they are really easy to use. Not to mention everything is Apple... not Microsoft for the OS, ATI (or NVIDIA) for the video card, etc. Looks like I am switching over and am joining the fan club. Less frustration and down time as a result of the switch. And I still have my Microsoft Office. For basic photo editing I have iPhoto. And for those that really do need a copy of Windows there is always Virtual PC for older Macs and either Boot Camp or Parallels for the new intel Macs. Mac addicts unite!

Mac Users

So I was browsing in Chapters today... I was checking out the magazines and had the newest edition of "Mac Addict" in my hand. I was busy listening to my music when I hear a voice... This guy strikes up a conversation about rearranging the magazines so the PC ones are hidden. Then it turned into a conversation about the many uses of a Mac, installing Windows on a Mac and universal applications. It brought to mind the idea that Mac owners are fanboys... they are so loyal to the brand. I was also starting to think Mac owners are friendlier... There aren't many people that will try and have a conversation with someone that has headphones on... It's also like a small community. Mac users are in the minority. I just thought it was interesting.

Parallels + Windows

I was at the Apple web site today and on the front page it indicated that they were now selling Parellels Desktop so you too can install Windows on your Mac. For as comfortable as I am with Windows I have come to the conclusion that Windows was never meant to be installed on a Mac. I had the trial version installed on my MacBook Pro. They say it is supposed to be fast... I never really found that. In fact I found that both operating systems were slower. Plus I couldn't access CDs from the Mac side of things. It seemed to be a wasted effort. Even if it did work no one will be providing support for that. Apple definitely won't... and Microsoft won't either. Then just look at the price. It's $100 just for Parallels and Windows is not exactly cheap. For a legitimate copy of Windows XP Professional you're looking at $400. So now that it's costing $500 just to run a copy of Windows on your computer. You might as well just go with a cheap Windows computer or get Mac compatible software... a much cheaper option. But just my 2 cents.