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contours provocations
journal - 2002-0419 - fri 2200 Another week of turmoil and ferment I did finally get my rebate check for purchasing the Compaq laptop. The info was mailed in mid January. In March, I checked the web site, but in effect, it said I didn't exist, so I felt the information had gotten lost in the mail. But there it was in the box today. Looking ever so much like junk mail. In fact, I almost threw it out. For a couple of months I've been trying to unscramble a bizarre charge on a credit card account. This is the case in which the nice lady called and told me I was getting some type of card with a $50 credit. And that all the information would be in the material I received. And if I didn't cancel, a monthly charge would appear on my credit card bill. And I thought it was a discount purchase service. Well, I never received anything. But a charge did appear. A charge without a phone number. A charge indicating a conversion from Euros. I phoned the card company, and they did not have a number either. So the obvious question was how was I supposed to cancel. By searching on the net, I discovered it was an Adult Verification Service in Europe. But again, no email address and no phone number. I was fearful of having the charge appear of bills for months to come. Today, the bill appeared, and there was no charge. So I'm thankful for that tiny event. Now I'm hoping it's disappearance is permanent. On the other hand, I got a different bill which indicated a discrepancy in a payment. I'd gone over my credit limit at the end of last month, the company called and said I needed to make a payment. They said they could create a draft against my checking account and process it at the end of the month. I grugingly agreed. When I called today to ask about the discrepancy, they said the difference was a service charge for processing the check! What a racket!!! They made me feel like I had to do it their way. Then they turn around and charge me for doing it their way. What a racket!!! About five seconds after hanging up, I got my scissors and snipped the card into tiny shards. I was so tired this evening, I decided I'd eat out by myself. And I wanted Chinese. So off to the Chinese place I went. I've noticed that when Chinese places offer a buffet, they seem perplexed when you want to order off the menu. And this evening the server was unusally perplexed. The menu item was certainly nothing exotic - shrimp and mushrooms. He went to the front and talked with someone for several months. Then came back and asked if that was what I wanted. And I asked if there was a problem. He didn't respond and vanished into the kitchen. When the dish arrived, it was not exactly shrimp and mushrooms. It was more a forest of mushrooms with a few lost shrimp. I poked at it with my fork. And decided to send a diving team in to retrieve the shrimp. I shuffled the mushrooms around, ate most of the shrimp, and then asked for a to-go box and my check. No doubt, the server's knowledge of English was limited. So I didn't want to turn into Joan Crawford. But it's the kind of thing I find tiresome. I'm trying to decide if I can find any redeeming merit in all this. And I'm not sure. It certainly is tiresome. It seems to nibble at my already precarious sense of well-being. And to top if off, I just realized I'm out of antidepressants. That's it. I'm too whacked to come up with anything else. PAX!
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