It’s a damn good thing it’s sweeps week on the major networks, because I’ve got nothing but re-runs for you here today.
This was supposed to be the post where I raved about the fantastic service I got from Apple.
As you know, my iPod died a week ago Friday. On Saturday, I spoke to someone at Apple, and on Tuesday, a box arrived on my doorstep to return my deceased iPod to its mothership. I missed the Tuesday night pickup at the UPS store, so it went out on Wednesday. I followed its progress on Apple’s Web site, and was amazed at how quickly it was processed. On Thursday, the Web site indicated a replacement iPod had been shipped, and if we hadn’t been out of the house, I would have had it in my hot little hands some time around 6 pm on Friday. Now that’s impressive service… if we’d have been home, it would have been exactly seven days from problem to new iPod.
As it was, I had to wait an extra two days because the delivery company works Monday to Friday only. When I got home from work yesterday, sure enough, the new iPod was waiting for me. Since it had been sitting on the porch in minus 20 degree temperatures all day, I thought it prudent to let it warm up to room temperature before I plugged it in.
By the time I finally sat down to load some music on the new iPod, I was pretty excited. I plugged in the USB cable, watched as iTunes opened, and selected a few songs to load.
That’s when I got the first error message. I tinkered with it, and it got worse. I went to Apple’s Web site support and followed some instructions. (I am always a bit relieved to see the error messages I’m receiving addressed, but ultimately disappointed when the proposed solutions never seem to work.)
I called Apple support and spoke to one agent, who walked me through the steps I’d just taken, and when it didn’t work for him either, he referred me to a ‘product specialist’ who walked me through a few more solutions. Are you shocked to hear that none of those solutions worked, either?
They’re sending me another box today, so I can return this ex-iPod back to its maker, too.
For those of you keeping score, that’s four iPods in six months. Yikes!
The worst part? My cordless phone died in the middle of my conversation with the guy from Apple support. And, just now Blogger crapped out as I was typing this with its suddenly ubiquitous message, “Could not connect to Blogger.com. Saving and publishing may fail.”
You think maybe the universe is trying to tell me something?
I used to have that same problem with the Chevy Vega. Wonderful cars according to the owners that I knew, but the moment I got in the car, something weird would happen and the car would die a slow death that involved windshield wipers turning on spontaneously, electrical shorts, and odd noises.
Could the iPod be your Vega?
The Blogger problem makes three, so you are done for this week, I think.
Eletronics suck?
Oh my god! Technology is allergic to you!
Maybe you should give your toys some benadryl and see if that helps?
UPS?!?!!? UUhhhhhhh!!! They drive me NUTS.
You see….I do surveys for an online company called Pinecone Research and once in a while they send me samples…..of food! (yum!) So it was to my delight that I got that little ticket on my mailbox telling me UPS had a package for me from Pinecone! So on a break from work I went there (on a Thurday) to pick it up….nope sorry it was on the truck going to my place….where I certainly wasn’t as I was working 8-6 doing landscaping. So I call Friday at 8am and ask them when I could pick it up. They said the truck was packed at 6 and they couldn’t take it out.
“So when are you open tomorrow?”
“We’re not open on weekends sir.”
“What??!!? You’re not open weekends and only during business hours from Monday to Friday? When is a 9 to 5er supposed to get this stuff?”
“That’s why we bring it to you sir.”
“But I’m NOT HOME?!?! I work during the day! I’d glady come over any time after work or over the weekend, but that’s exactly the time your inaccessable to the working class?!!?!”
“We’ll keep it in the main building on Monday sir and you can pick it up then”
Ok…so Monday rolls around, I take an hour off work to go pick it up….here’s it the clincher.
It’s during our summer heatwave, it’s almost 40 out with the humidity. I head into the building…and hand the ticket. I notice the storage is outside. Knowing it’s probably some sort of food I ask:
“You’re storage area isn’t air conditioned?”
“No sir.”
“What if someone delivers perishables?”
“They just cool the office for the staff sir.”
I got my package. After sitting in summer heat wave temps for over 4 days.
It’s ice cream.
I just closed my eyes…shook my head…went home….plugged my nose…and opened the package.
Inside was a fantasticlly pungent, creamy and clotted substance that may have been ice cream in a former life.
UPS took what was supposed to be a litre of FREE ice cream for me to test during a summer heatwave and turned it into guck.
Needless to say….I’m a Purolater man!
I’m sorry to read you have these electronics issues.
Got one of my own, a different kind though. Can you tell me how I can center my flickr badge in my sidebar? Mine sits on the left edge.
I’m using blogger too. Tried fooling around with the layout thing but couldn’t figure it out.
Hope you get your new toy soon!
Mmmm, yummy four day old hot ice cream!
Claudette, I centred the Flickr badge with a div tag around the script: < div align="center">< /div> (make sure you take out the space after the ‘
Sounds like you need a technology break to me. You are the first person I have known that has had so much trouble with an ipod, hope this next one is the clicker.