That’s what I get for not going to work today

 Life, Off Topic  2 Responses »
Nov 242009
 

There was excitement on the home front today, and as always when something like this happens, Edie was not around. She was out for her morning walk.

I had just finished a short bike ride, and was just sitting down at the computer to read the news, and answer a few emails, when I hear Sylvia’s coffee cup drop to the floor, and some strange noises emanating from her room. I immediately jumped up to see Sylvia flailing about.

Now Sylvia has had Transient Ischemic Attacks (TIA’s) before, but nothing at all resembling what was going on this time. This did not look good. So I immediately called for the paramedics.

I would like to thank the 911 operator for continually talking to me, and trying to calm me down. I only wish she had been more successful.

Fortunately the paramedics arrived in short order, as I was starting to get a little nervous, and I had just been disconnected from the 911 operator, when my phone went into emergency mode (no joking). Well, at least that’s what it said on the phone display.

So here I sit at home, Edie is still at the hospital, waiting to learn what the doctors at the hospital are going to do next, and also wondering what might have happened had I gone to work today, and no one would have been around when Sylvia had her seizure.

Update 11/25/2009 8:45 PM

Sylvia seems to be doing fine. She’s sitting up, watching TV, and eating.

They think she had a very mild heart attack, although Edie said she has never heard of a heart attack victim flailing about [as in a seizure], like Sylvia was doing. Regardless, one of the doctors thought she could go home, but her primary care physician thought she should stay for at least another day or two.

So she’ll definitely be spending Thanksgiving in the hospital. We’ll learn more on Friday.

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 Posted by Marc at 2:11 pm  Tagged with: ,

What if we only sent volunteers to Afghanistan?

 Off Topic, Politics  No Responses »
Nov 222009
 

That was a suggestion from Lyndon Baines Johnson’s National Security Advisor, McGeorge Bundy, on what to do in Vietnam, about 6 months into Johnson’s presidency after Kennedy’s assasination.

No matter what your views on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the tapes of LBJ, as presented by Bill Moyers on PBS (part 1 and part 2), sheds tremendous light on the complexities and the struggles LBJ dealt with in deciding the course of action to be taken in Vietnam.

They are TRULY enlightening, to say the least, and even President Obama would do well to listen to them! IMO, it’s a great piece of journalism. Something we could use a lot more of now a days.

Editor’s note: Johnson dismissed that suggestion out of hand, but I just wonder now what would have happened had he not? And I wonder if that same piece of advice might not be such a bad suggestion for putting an end to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well?

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 Posted by Marc at 2:34 pm  Tagged with: , , ,

Here we go again

 Life, Off Topic  No Responses »
Apr 212009
 

Every year it’s the same thing. American Express debits my Starwood Preferred Guest card for a $45 membership fee, I call them to get a good will credit, and every year they tell me the same thing.

I’m sorry we can’t issue you a credit.

Then I talk to a few other people, write an email, and with the exception of last year, I have always been able to obtain a credit for the membership. Last year, if you remember, was different. No matter what I did, I couldn’t get any satisfaction from anyone, and I ended up cancelling the card.

Of course about a week after doing that, someone at American Express, who does have the authority to give me the credit, called, and not only gave me the credit, but gave me an extra $50 to boot. So I agreed to use the card again. She also gave me her name and number to call, should this happen again.

Unfortunately I lost her number, but did remember her name, so I thought I would still be able to get in touch with her, and solve my problem. But after three days of trying to get in touch with her, and even leaving a message once, I was unsuccessful.

So after talking to the latest individual, who of course had no authority to do anything, I just canceled the card, and this time, Continue reading »

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 Posted by Marc at 11:51 am  Tagged with:

If it ain’t broke don’t fix it

 Life, Off Topic  1 Response »
Feb 122009
 

Never was a truer statement ever made!

Yesterday I upgraded my WordPress software (the software that runs this blog) to the latest version 2.7.1. The developers of WordPress have made it very simple, in the last upgrade to v2.7, to do that, so with just one click of my mouse, I was easily able to accomplish that task.

Everything looked good at first glance, but a few hours later I discovered that my previous post had been truncated, so if you read my blog between the hours of 11:03 AM and 9:59 PM yesterday, you did not get the full scope of my wisdom.

I did manage to restore the original version, but this morning I discovered some of my theme files have been modified giving a different look to my blog. The changes are mostly superficial, and the reader may not even realize it, but from an administrative stand point and aesthetics, they are significant, and I haven’t been able to figure out how to fix it just yet.

Oh well, I’ll work on it when I get to work this morning.  :)

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 Posted by Marc at 4:37 am

Out with the old

 Off Topic, Politics  1 Response »
Dec 062008
 

For the longest time, I’d been thinking our economy was headed downward. Lately I was even thinking we were headed toward a great depression of sorts, but a comment by one of the retired, old timers in the bike club, while we were having coffee/tea after our ride, got me to thinking. He said,

I’m sure glad I’m living on a fixed income.

That’s when it dawned on me, while so many people have condemned social security as a ponzi scheme, it may be the true savior of our economy. Sure things will likely worsen some for many in the next couple of months, but there is an abundance of retired individuals, having the protection of that social net, who will ultimately help cushion the blow, until the various proposed stimulus programs are implemented.

Social security didn’t exist in the 30′s, and neither did unemployment compensation, and that contributed greatly to making the great depression ‘great’. Plus the numerous stimulus package(s) that were introduced, at the time, were of such a feeble nature, they were ineffective. It wasn’t until the onset of WWII, when a large enough stimulus was introduced, that the economy really got kick started.

That’s not going to happen this time, and I don’t believe we’re destined to repeat the mistakes of the past. And with people like Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and Christina Romer, head of Obama’s Council of Economic Advisors, both scholars of the great depression, I am for the first time, in a long time, becoming optimistic [about the economy].

And after last months jobs report, it appears many more politicians are also seeing the necessity to save GM, Ford and Chrysler, and for a massive economic stimulus, on a scale comparable to what got us out of the great depression.

Sow it’s out with the contrarian/pessimist of the past, and in with the optimist. Ok at least a contrarian/optimist. One should never get too complacent.

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 Posted by Marc at 4:37 pm

Why don’t some businesses get it?

 Life, Off Topic  No Responses »
Dec 032008
 

Several months ago I wrote about how American Express was unwilling to credit me the $45 annual membership fee on my Starwood Preferred Guest American Express card, knowing they would lose over $500 in merchant generated fees a year from me using that card.

Eventually I did get the credit (plus an extra $50 for my troubles), but it took canceling the card, to finally catch the attention of someone at American Express who realized losing $500 per year wasn’t worth gaining a measly $45 annual membership fee.

Now just recently I experience a very similar problem with my cable internet provider (Charter Communications).

When Charter wanted to raise my monthly fee to $69.98 per month, I balked, and got them to agree to a charge equivalent to Verizon FIOS service + $2 more ($44.98/month). I agreed to the extra $2 per month, because service was good, and it was worth $2 per month not having to switch providers.

But the next month I received a bill for $47.64. Apparently because I didn’t call them the instant my bill was increased, I was charged the $69.98 rate for the 3 or so days I was late calling.

Now that wasn’t what I had agreed to. I wasn’t willing to pay $69.98 per month for any length of time, but no matter how hard I tried, and I talked to 3 different people, no one would budge. I had to pay that extra $2.66, and there was no one in the company who could change that. That was policy, period. The customer service people wouldn’t even let me talk to anyone else, i.e supervisor etc.

In other words, they were willing to piss off a customer, and risk losing over $500 per year, in order to squeeze a mere $2.66 out of me.

Yes I realize $2.66 is not a lot of money, and I could easily afford it, but it was the principle involved. It wasn’t what I agreed to, and I wasn’t going to pay it. My principles are very important.

Eventually I did get the credit, plus a little extra for my hassles. I knew all along I would get the credit, because I have a friend who works for Charter. I just didn’t want to hassle him for such a measly item, and something that should have been taken care of at a much lower level.

But what about those who don’t have friends in such positions? Is business so great for Charter Communications they can risk alienating customers, and losing business?

It just continues to boggle my mind, when you consider how much competition there is in the credit card, and broadband communication businesses, that any business would try and alienate their customers, by implementing such inflexible policies.

Don’t they know without happy customers they don’t have a business?

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 Posted by Marc at 5:49 am  Tagged with: ,
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