We rely so much on our electronic devices and if one becomes
unworkable, our life seems to grind ungraciously to a halt. Life can be tough getting back into the rat
race again.
My mobile phone was serving me well, albeit with a minor
issue with sound, which meant I usually had to have the speaker turned on. I chose to live with that rather than invest
in a new phone, knowing that one day I would certainly have to buy a new
one. But not yet. The cover was another matter, and one Sunday morning I
bought a new case on Ebay, as the old one was wearing badly. A new bamboo one - I was excited to have found it and purchased it.
My grandchildren had come to stay, and they “helped” me buy
the case, just before we went out to fish in the lake nearby, and while helping
one with a snagged hook I dropped the phone into the water. Briefly.
I swept it up almost as soon as it hit the water, and was glad to see
that it didn’t look too bad. Perhaps
only the cover was wet, and I had ordered a new one. I soon learned that the phone was going to
punish me for dropping it in the water.
For a few days, actually until the new cover arrived, the sound was
impossible. Scratchy – in fact sounded
more like the speaker was blowing bubbles.
The children were excited when the new cover arrived and I
was excited that the phone seemed to have a new lease on life with the new
cover, and the sound improved. Lucky me.
A week later, the children were back at home and school and
I was on my own again, thinking I could catch up on many tasks that I had put
aside while I endeavoured to entertain, feed and generally manage the
grandchildren, but worse was to befall me.
While busily checking emails, Facebook, local news and other
things on my computer, the Internet stopped.
I went and checked the modem etc and turned the equipment off for a few
seconds and back on again. No
signal. I contacted my neighbour – our units
adjoin – but she was having no problems.
I tried to phone my Internet provider but could not get through. Not happy.
So I chose to write and ignore the Internet and prepare for
its return. Surely it would be back on
soon! Later that day a text message came
through – the company had had a fire and their equipment was damaged, but they
expected it to be back functioning within 3 days. Could I live without the Internet for three
days? Why not?
I have a smart phone and could access emails,
and most things.
On the day the system was to be functional again, there was
bad news. It was a strange and convoluted
message, but essentially said that the company could not tell when it would be
going to return service. I had to source
another provider, which was challenging as I had no Internet, but I managed to
use a WiFi at another business and checked out a few companies. I chose one, on price, which is not always a
good idea, but as I don’t earn a lot of money price is often my system of
choice.
The following day, after several phone calls and giving them
my details, I am told I have active service.
When I returned home after my morning tasks I endeavoured to get online,
without success. I phoned their help
line. They told me that I could not be
on fibre, but had to have had ADSL. No,
I had fibre. No, said the woman with a
foreign accent, probably from an Asian country, then I must have satellite. I
have no satellite on my roof, and I explained that, but she did not believe me. In the end I spent around 4 hours on the
phone, as they advised me to change cables in the various boxes on the wall of
my very hot garage where they are installed.
In the end she claimed that the previous company had not been providing
me with fibre, but ADSL, which she was adamant about, and then told me there
was a fault with my computer, or the modem, and gave me a number which she
claimed was the company which manufactured the modem. I rang the number only to learn that it was
incorrect. I phoned my son, daughter,
and son in law – the latter who has a very technical brain and I knew he could
help me. None answered their phones, and
I left messages for all of them.
I was pretty brain dead with all the endeavours to work with
the foreign lady who seemed to be on a different planet to me, and so
frustrated I started to cry. Now, not
many folk would know that I can cry – I do not do it in public unless I am at
the movies or a funeral, so to have this melt down was quite out of character
for me.
Eventually I went to bed, but sleep didn’t come. In part
because I didn’t know what I was going to do next with my Internet (or lack of)
and I was exhausted, and on top of that two cats chose to spend all night
howling at one another across the road.
I could hear them but not see them.
They were loud like a woman screaming.
I learned that other neighbours suffered from insomnia on that night
because of the cats, but no one could do anything. It was hard to see where
they were.
I did doze off eventually and when I woke in the morning I
looked like I had done 10 rounds with Mohammod Ali!!! Then I had an idea. I would get out the old
Dongle that I hadn’t used for many months, and see if I could activate
that. I phoned the company and was told
I needed a new SIM card, so waited until the post office was open and went to
get one. They didn’t have one. So I went to the newsagent where I did get
one, but my friend behind the counter could see I was distressed and when I
told her my issues, she offered to send her partner who apparently is good with
technical stuff.
I contacted the company to activate my account and SIM card,
and had to leave a message – they would phone me back within 10 minutes. They NEVER phoned me back. I phoned my son again and ranted about his
lack of interest in calling back his mother.
Yes, sorry, but…..
His phone had been uncharged – and when he got it back and
running he didn’t see my message, though hours later he admitted he had
eventually found it. Then he phoned the
company that was “trying” to get my Internet active. There was me in the garage again, with
laptop, and phone, talking to my son, who was relaying messages from another
female techy somewhere in the world, and after four more hours of achieving
nothing I stopped it. It was just going
nowhere. Again I was told there was a
fault with my computer.
Then I phoned the other company in an effort to get my Dongle
going, which did happen.
My friend’s bloke turned up, and looked at a few things and
then said he had to “activate” something on my computer and so desperate was I,
that I let him do it. I was still not on
the Internet. I have no idea what he did
to the computer but it is totally different to what it was like BEFORE he
touched it and many of my programs have gone missing. I could write about 6 pages about the changes
to my computer – but I won’t!!!
My tears were starting to flow again – frustration and
fatigue was getting to me. My daughter phoned
(she had been busy and just found time to call me) – over 24 hours after I had
called her. I know she is busy, and I
respect and understand that. Her husband
phoned me – apparently he uses another phone and had just realised his old one
had a message – my message from the previous day.
I explain the problem to him, and he said he would phone
back. He arranged for his brother to call
over that night – they are both technically clever, so I was happy for him to
come. He did and several hours later I
was back on the Internet.
Now I am trying to catch up on my last week’s work, BUT…….. Isn’t there always a “but”? I am still trying to get my computer back
into some semblance of what it was before.
Even Skype disappeared.
I hope never, ever, ever to have to endure what I have been
through in the last week. I wonder
when/if I can restore my computer to its former glory. OMG.
It is a wonder I didn’t take heavily to wine!!!!!
Comments