The One With The Damn Bag!!!
Yesterday, after unnecessarily cleaning my apartment in Phoenix for the final walk-through and the 6 hour drive between Phoenix and El Paso, we arrived to some mild rainfall.
It took us less time to unpack both cars and the moving truck than it had to pack them originally, but we also had a "Come to Jesus" moment when my parents brought my couch up the stairs. My mom's still working on healing her ankle from the car accident in December so it was intense.
When we had gotten the keys and done the walk-through to record the state of the apartment one of the doors to the utility closet where the washer and dryer will go (tomorrow!!!) was barely hanging and one of the light bulbs in the living room ceiling fan had been broken off (??) in the socket so before we left I went down to the office and asked for a work order. That was on July 17th. Last night when we got in nothing had been done. When I went down to request the status this morning there was no record of a work order. But the guy came out and did it today while we were out to lunch and while the door is hanging properly, the bulb was removed, not replaced and thrown into an empty trashcan.
But we got everything into the apartment last night. Which is good because we were not in the same mood today as yesterday. Rather, we were able to just move the furniture tentatively into place and begin unpacking most of my things. My mom brought contact paper which gives the shelves a little something, and even though it's a little thing I really appreciate it.
Last night when we had finished unpacking everything and were headed to the hotel I was trying to find a bag full of my bathroom stuff like shower gel, shampoo, toothpaste because I had asked for it to stay in my car but it wasn't. I decided I didn't need it and left the complex for the night. About halfway to the hotel I realized the case for my contacts was in that bag and we had to turn around. So we go back and I run up and find the bag and that's that. This morning we head to the apartment and get doing some stuff and realize we need scissors. I had purposely left them in a bag that I knew I would keep with me, which bag is it, oh right the one I had left in the apartment and had now left in the hotel!
That damn bag is ruining my move!!! But scissors are a dime a dozen for $5 a pop. Whatever.
Around 1 p.m. we decided to go and get some lunch, stop at the bank and open a new account for me, and find a Starbucks to use their free Wi-Fi to check on the status of my AT&T order which was supposed to arrive today, Friday, but hadn't at that time.
Lunch. Done.
Bank. For...ever...it was not a lengthy process by any means, but the representative who helped me didn't talk at all. Ever. For 15 minutes at least there was dead silence. Then she picked up the phone, without telling me what the problem was or the reason she needed to call anyone, so I get to listen second hand as she explains to the IT guy that she has been having trouble logging into the system for the past 15 minutes. Unreal.
El Paso, so far, with the debacle that occurred at my first apartment attempt and all the stuff that continues to happen, is less than inspiring. But I suppose this kind of thing happens everywhere, it just stands out as being worse because this city is so new to me.
After spending close to an hour at the bank, we made it over to Starbucks where I looked up the emails confirming both my account and appointment with AT&T and called the number to confirm the order status. The automated guy was unable to understand the account number I entered into the phone and spoke into so that transferred me to an agent who literally did no better with understanding me. She couldn't find the number that the email told me to refer to when checking the status of my order, so she took my name which I had to spell at least 3 times. Then she took my social. Then she took my address. Then she took the confirmation number I got when I signed up. Then she took my name again. Then she told me she had spelled Megan with 2 e's the first time. Then she said her computer wasn't working and had to call me back.
So she called me back and had me spell my name. AGAIN! Then she said the fist order didn't go through and that she was getting me another one. So I asked why after more than a week, and various emails from the company that I was no longer in the system anywhere AND they couldn't be bothered to tell me my order was not going to go through when they had clearly contacted me before. And no real response to that question, but she did want to know what I thought of her service. I wasn't prepared to use those words in front of my parents. So I hung up.
And then I lost it.
Everything had been going so well. It really had. We'd started unpacking, I'd had 2 coffees, nothing had been broken in the move, it was too good to be true.
And I cried. Like a small child, I threw a tantrum and cried for a while. I even asked my parents to take me back to Phoenix.
I retreated to the bedroom to let the grown ups work when I heard someone knock on the front door. Through the wall I hear:
"Hello, I'm from AT&T."
"You sure are."
"You had an order for internet service for today?"
"We thought we did but there was some confusion when we called and they had no record of us..."
"Well, I have the record right here."
"We are so glad to see you then!"
So apparently I talked to the dumbest customer service person in the world! Ranked! She has to be at the top!! So now I have to cancel an order because my original one was filled because it had gone through and I hate whoever that chic is because she snapped one of the threads that was holding me together.
But the damage had been done, and my parents devised a scheme to take me to the movies tonight to make it better. Dinner for Schmucks.
It totally worked.
Earlier in the afternoon, pre-movie, post-tantrum, my new neighbor, Brittany, came over. She had been getting ready to walk her dog and we were blocking the staircase. She asked where I was from and told me she was from El Paso but had gone to ASU.
Small world.
She came over this afternoon with homemade cupcakes and her business card with all her information on it.
And I cried again.
It's been a really long day. I'm glad things are starting to take shape. At least being surrounded by familiar things helps. I won't be able to say goodbye to my parents on Sunday though. I may run after the car. It just hit me earlier today that I don't get to go back with them. The days of visiting El Paso, at least for the next 4-6 years are over.
At least all my stuff's here. I just wish everything else was.
Things to look forward to:
Washer and Dryer delivered tomorrow.
Internet will be hooked up thanks to the modem my Dad got this afternoon.
The t.v. guy will be here tomorrow to hook up the dish.
Sleeping in my own bed.
Erin & Kelly visiting in 2 weeks!!
Things to dread:
More cowboys.
Driving with all these crazies.
The Goodbye and subsequent crying myself to sleep for a few days.
It took us less time to unpack both cars and the moving truck than it had to pack them originally, but we also had a "Come to Jesus" moment when my parents brought my couch up the stairs. My mom's still working on healing her ankle from the car accident in December so it was intense.
When we had gotten the keys and done the walk-through to record the state of the apartment one of the doors to the utility closet where the washer and dryer will go (tomorrow!!!) was barely hanging and one of the light bulbs in the living room ceiling fan had been broken off (??) in the socket so before we left I went down to the office and asked for a work order. That was on July 17th. Last night when we got in nothing had been done. When I went down to request the status this morning there was no record of a work order. But the guy came out and did it today while we were out to lunch and while the door is hanging properly, the bulb was removed, not replaced and thrown into an empty trashcan.
But we got everything into the apartment last night. Which is good because we were not in the same mood today as yesterday. Rather, we were able to just move the furniture tentatively into place and begin unpacking most of my things. My mom brought contact paper which gives the shelves a little something, and even though it's a little thing I really appreciate it.
Last night when we had finished unpacking everything and were headed to the hotel I was trying to find a bag full of my bathroom stuff like shower gel, shampoo, toothpaste because I had asked for it to stay in my car but it wasn't. I decided I didn't need it and left the complex for the night. About halfway to the hotel I realized the case for my contacts was in that bag and we had to turn around. So we go back and I run up and find the bag and that's that. This morning we head to the apartment and get doing some stuff and realize we need scissors. I had purposely left them in a bag that I knew I would keep with me, which bag is it, oh right the one I had left in the apartment and had now left in the hotel!
That damn bag is ruining my move!!! But scissors are a dime a dozen for $5 a pop. Whatever.
Around 1 p.m. we decided to go and get some lunch, stop at the bank and open a new account for me, and find a Starbucks to use their free Wi-Fi to check on the status of my AT&T order which was supposed to arrive today, Friday, but hadn't at that time.
Lunch. Done.
Bank. For...ever...it was not a lengthy process by any means, but the representative who helped me didn't talk at all. Ever. For 15 minutes at least there was dead silence. Then she picked up the phone, without telling me what the problem was or the reason she needed to call anyone, so I get to listen second hand as she explains to the IT guy that she has been having trouble logging into the system for the past 15 minutes. Unreal.
El Paso, so far, with the debacle that occurred at my first apartment attempt and all the stuff that continues to happen, is less than inspiring. But I suppose this kind of thing happens everywhere, it just stands out as being worse because this city is so new to me.
After spending close to an hour at the bank, we made it over to Starbucks where I looked up the emails confirming both my account and appointment with AT&T and called the number to confirm the order status. The automated guy was unable to understand the account number I entered into the phone and spoke into so that transferred me to an agent who literally did no better with understanding me. She couldn't find the number that the email told me to refer to when checking the status of my order, so she took my name which I had to spell at least 3 times. Then she took my social. Then she took my address. Then she took the confirmation number I got when I signed up. Then she took my name again. Then she told me she had spelled Megan with 2 e's the first time. Then she said her computer wasn't working and had to call me back.
So she called me back and had me spell my name. AGAIN! Then she said the fist order didn't go through and that she was getting me another one. So I asked why after more than a week, and various emails from the company that I was no longer in the system anywhere AND they couldn't be bothered to tell me my order was not going to go through when they had clearly contacted me before. And no real response to that question, but she did want to know what I thought of her service. I wasn't prepared to use those words in front of my parents. So I hung up.
And then I lost it.
Everything had been going so well. It really had. We'd started unpacking, I'd had 2 coffees, nothing had been broken in the move, it was too good to be true.
And I cried. Like a small child, I threw a tantrum and cried for a while. I even asked my parents to take me back to Phoenix.
I retreated to the bedroom to let the grown ups work when I heard someone knock on the front door. Through the wall I hear:
"Hello, I'm from AT&T."
"You sure are."
"You had an order for internet service for today?"
"We thought we did but there was some confusion when we called and they had no record of us..."
"Well, I have the record right here."
"We are so glad to see you then!"
So apparently I talked to the dumbest customer service person in the world! Ranked! She has to be at the top!! So now I have to cancel an order because my original one was filled because it had gone through and I hate whoever that chic is because she snapped one of the threads that was holding me together.
But the damage had been done, and my parents devised a scheme to take me to the movies tonight to make it better. Dinner for Schmucks.
It totally worked.
Earlier in the afternoon, pre-movie, post-tantrum, my new neighbor, Brittany, came over. She had been getting ready to walk her dog and we were blocking the staircase. She asked where I was from and told me she was from El Paso but had gone to ASU.
Small world.
She came over this afternoon with homemade cupcakes and her business card with all her information on it.
And I cried again.
It's been a really long day. I'm glad things are starting to take shape. At least being surrounded by familiar things helps. I won't be able to say goodbye to my parents on Sunday though. I may run after the car. It just hit me earlier today that I don't get to go back with them. The days of visiting El Paso, at least for the next 4-6 years are over.
At least all my stuff's here. I just wish everything else was.
Things to look forward to:
Washer and Dryer delivered tomorrow.
Internet will be hooked up thanks to the modem my Dad got this afternoon.
The t.v. guy will be here tomorrow to hook up the dish.
Sleeping in my own bed.
Erin & Kelly visiting in 2 weeks!!
Things to dread:
More cowboys.
Driving with all these crazies.
The Goodbye and subsequent crying myself to sleep for a few days.
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