I Love Verizon

Over the years, I have had a number of cell phone carriers. Some are no longer with us, some have merged with bigger ones, and some have changed their names, or all of the above. We have been with Verizon for quite a few years now and I have never really had a complaint about our phones, phone service or the customer service that we have received. Something happened this weekend that solidified my loyalty to Verizon.

Image via CrunchBase

We ordered iPhones on the day they were available for pre-order. We got to keep our unlimited data plan since we were grandfathered in. Last Friday our phones arrived. When I opened the box, they each had a summary of our plan banded around them. We are on a family plan so it had which plan each phone was on. As I looked at mine, it said that I had a corporate email and data plan for $44.99 and NOT the regular unlimited plan for $29.99. I was curious as to why.

Saturday we went over to a Verizon store to ask. It seems that I had been paying the extra $15 a month for the past 2 ½ years. YIKES! That did not make me happy. I asked the clerk if I could get changed back to the regular plan and that I really didn’t want to be credited. I didn’t want to be THAT person. After all, it was my fault for paying the extra amount for so long. Granted they signed me up for the wrong thing, but I never checked the bill. I just kept paying month after month after month. The clerk told me that the plan had been changed and we wouldn’t pay the extra in the future. YAY!

Monday, we got a letter in the mail from Verizon. It said that we were on a Corporate email and data plan and that the regular one would be cheaper and to call them. This was curious. If the request Saturday generated this then that was a fast letter. If not, then they noticed it before I did and were trying to rectify it. Cool.

Jackie called yesterday (everything is under her name as the main account holder) and spoke to someone to verify the changes were made. The person she spoke to, knew exactly why she was calling and made sure everything was ok. Jackie never asked for any kind of refund. I never did. The rep on the phone, without asking, offered us one. Dating all the way back to when we started the plan! That was Feb. of 2009! Close to $500! WOOHOO! Now THAT is some GREAT customer service.

I don’t know if there were a lot of people that have called about that, or if people have really raised hell or what. I don’t really care. Whatever the reason, we received outstanding customer service. I am a very happy person because of this and will probably stay with Verizon now for life.

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iPhone … Day 1

Actually, it is like day 1.5 but since we didn’t get the phones set up until last night, I count it as 1 day. So far, I am still trying to get used to it. I guess it is ok, but I can’t get the iCloud to work right and synch my address book on my computer to my iPhone. I had to do it with a cord hooked up to iTunes.

A few other things I am really going to have to get used to that the iPhone doesn’t have, that my Blackberry did. I can’t have separate email alerts for my separate email boxes. For that matter, I was able to give each person their own email alert if I wanted to. I don’t see that functionality on the iPhone. Just different ringtones for each person. Not the same. I like to know who I am getting an email or text from without looking so I know if I have to look at it right away. Actually, they might be there, I may just not have found them yet. If anyone knows, let me know.

I also don’t like that I don’t have a blinking red light telling me I have a message of some sort. If I am on silent, or if I walk away from my phone and come back, I like to know I missed something without having to pick it up.

I am sure there are a few other things that I will have to get used to but so far I am doing ok.

 

A Few Bits And Bites

I just didn’t want to copy the name of another blog. So, we have bits and bites from my brain.

Jackie is watching The Sing Off. Nick Lachey … is a douche, moron, idiot, jerk wad, dumb ass. His writers should be fired. If he is making up his own jokes, then he should be shot.

Hank Williams Jr. Ok, So you are allowed to think what you want and even say what you want. You shouldn’t say it on national television and then expect nothing to happen. Furthermore, don’t say that it was YOUR idea to pull your song, and then make a song criticizing the 2 networks because they fired you for exercising your free speech.  Oh yeah, and don’t do your interview drunk. Dumb Ass.

Cancelled TV Shows – Playboy Club, How to Be a Gentleman, Free Agents and the one show I might have gone on, H8R are all gone now. I never had a chance to comment on how bad any of these shows are were. Apparently, everyone else did. Now if we can just get some shows out of here that lower the collective I.Q. of the country then we would be better off. I recommend: Bad Girls Club, Gossip Girl, Nancy Grace and anything with Tyra Banks for starters.

Apple is coming out with a new OS so that they can know everything that you are downloading and saving. Let’s just hope that the “cloud” doesn’t start raining and giving out private information like Paris Hilton’s sidekick.

Speaking of Apple, I broke down and got an iPhone Friday. It turned out with upgrade bonuses and what not that 2 iPhones (one for me and one for Jackie) was cheaper than the one Droid Bionic that I wanted. Honestly though, I don’t think I would ever use half the features of the Bionic. Probably won’t use them on the iPhone either but … what the hell right?

Tori is now 1. She is too cute and already too smart. I am in big trouble. She is now mimicking just about everything. I have to start watching my road rage when she in in the car. She already is repeating me as seen in this video …

A Few More Things

As we head off into the long holiday weekend … hmmm, thought I would have a better follow up to that. Apparently the long weekend has nothing to do with anything that I am going to write about today. Basically, there have been a few things lately that have ground my gears, tweaked my melon, made me go “hmmm”, or otherwise made me scratch my head or wonder aloud.

First off, movies. I remember when Labor Day weekend used to have at least one good movie coming out. Now, we have things like Bucky Larson: Born to be a Star. I have made it clear in the past that any of these movies where people just act like idiots trying to be funny are not my shot of whiskey. What is worse in this one is that at the end of the commercials, they have some guy acting like he is mentally handicapped trying to say how funny it is. What is the point of this? Why do they think it is funnier if the people are mentally handicapped, developmentally challenged or whatever you want to call it. That is an insult and to me, offensive.

Second off, mortgage banks being sued. The government says they are going to sue a number of big banks over mortgage stuff. They say that when the gov bought mortgage securities, the taxpayers lost money. Now they are saying they are suing them to get the taxpayer money back. I got 900 billion dollars that says the taxpayers won’t see any of it.

Third off, Old Navy. They have the most annoying commercials and I wish they would stop using songs and changing them to use their stupid lyrics. They suck.

Fourth off, Dancing With The Stars. A) None of those people are ‘Stars’, B) Who cares?

Fifth off, I have gas. Just thought I would share.

Sixth off, I don’t care about what people took in college when they are complaining about not being able to leave work early when you haven’t done anything really to deserve it anyway.

Seventh off, Star Wars. It is coming out on Blu-Ray. You can’t fight it, Darth Vader will say “No” no matter how much you protest. Even with all the complaining and people bitching about it, George Lucas will still make another fortune because everyone complaining is still going to buy it.

Eighth off, pro athletes. (I am stealing this directly from a co-workers Facebook page) – “I’d like to honor Lance Briggs by demanding more money or a trade from my employer too. Oh wait, I’m part of the 98% of the population who works hard everyday not making the league minimum or deciding not to play out the rest of my signed contract. Hey Lance, you tool, enjoy your stay in Jacksonville or Kansas City or whatever hole your able to find.”

Ninth off, iPhone 5. An iPhone 5 got left in a bar … again? Please. Apple quit trying to fool us and just admit that this is the way you can get info out there without admitting you are getting info out there.

Tenth off, Tori. I worked from home yesterday with Tori at home due to ill day care. It was pretty brutal and not something I thin I want to make a habit of until she is MUCH older … like in school. Anyhoo, later last night we took a cute video of her. Her new thing is saying “HIIIIII” to everyone she meets. Even herself. So, for those of you that do not know me on Facebook. Here she is being all cute and stuff.

That is all for today. I want everyone to have a safe, relaxing and fun weekend, be sure to donate during the MDA marathon and until next time, remember … “In outer space it’s okay to wear white shoes after Labor Day.”

New iPhone 5 Rumors

Everyone wants to know what is in store for the next iPhone. Everyone is looking to rumor reports for the answers. Some of the rumors that have come out are actually from reputable sources. In my endless quest to gain national attention by being sued by a major corporation for saying something they don’t like, and after seconds of exhaustive research, pennies in bribes, a short nap and a few deep inhalations off a Magnum 44 marker, I have found a brand new list of rumored features for the next generation of iPhone. If the voices my sources are correct, then the next iPhone is going to outsell everything that has come before.

Latest rumored net gen iPhone features:

–       First off, the next gen iPhone will not be 4Gs or even iPhone 5. Apple will be going the same direction as their OS and giving it an actual name. For the iPhones, Apple did not go with big cat or even animal names, they decided to try to grab an even younger audience and go with a candy reference … “Giant Sucker”.

–       Will include Haptic Feedback. Audio sensors on the phone will be able to detect when a user is saying anything slightly negative about Apple. At this point a high voltage shock will be delivered through the metal case into the user.

–       The case of the iPhone is changing. After complaints of it being hard to hold, and the antennae gate scandal, they will be adding 150 small pin-like spikes on the pack of the phone. Not only will these aid in holding the phone if your hand is wet or dry, or if you hold it on your shoulder with your head tilted, but the spikes will pierce your skin, your body to aid the reception of the antennae. It is believed that with this new tech you will actually be able to get 23 bars of signal.

–        It will have a retractable dog leash

–       There will be a Swiss Army collection that features all the cutlery worthy of an Apple product.

–       Etched into the glass front will be an image of Steve Jobs.

–       It will have 2 cup holders.

–       If lost or stolen, you will be able to send a signal to your iPhone that will blow it up with the force of an M-80.

–       The display is being increased from Retina to Nervus Opticus.

–       New security feature will only unlock the phone after licking the screen.

If all the rumored features are true, then this will be one powerhouse of a phone. That’s all for today. I am off to find that marker again.

Until next time, remember … “Good artists copy, great artists steal.”

Apparently, I Don’t Own An iPhone

Apple has been telling me this for a while with their tv commercials. I know what my phone does not do. I know what my phone does do. I don’t really use apps. I don’t play games. I don’t need to surf the web and talk on the phone at the same time. I actually grew up without constant access to a phone or the web. I went to school all day and had to wait until I was at home to talk on the phone or watch TV. They didn’t even have the internet back then so I didn’t have to worry about that at all. i turned out ok.

I think that Apple must think that I am stupid. I know my phone isn’t an iPhone because it isn’t an iPhone. I don’t need to be told that if it doesn’t do certain things that I don’t have an iPhone. I need someone to tell me that if I am not a woman, then I am not a woman. I am going to boycott all advertising. Except of course any advertising that is for work … or ads for any of my favorite tv shows … or foods … or drinks … yeah … boycotting all advertising.

I Knew It!

Welcome friends to Techtainment Tuesday. I have been a little remiss in keeping up with both technology AND entertainment lately so I am going to zip through this relatively quickly today.

Until next time, remember …

Nah, I have a little more than that to write. It is true that I haven’t been keeping up with technology as of late. The only real tech thing I have is that Verizon WILL have an unlimited data plan for their iPhone. I am still not getting one yet. I am still a hater I guess.

In entertainment news … sort of … it looks like I, along with a small handful of others, have been vindicated for not jumping on the Ted “golden voice” Williams bandwagon.

Golden Mug Shots

 

Pretty short stint at rehab for someone who claimed they were clean for 2 years. Hate me all you want but, I always thought there was something fishy. What kind of ticks me off about that though is that someone like that, who lies and makes up stories, gets his chance, and blows it to hell, while people who are also talented but don’t get their breaks because we they don’t have sob stories. Maybe I should pretend I am homeless and then I will get my big break as a cartoon or Muppet voice. Granted, I really haven’t done a whole lot on my end other than making a silly video. What? You haven’t seen it? Well by all means click here then. (Yeah, yeah I whore myself any chance I get)

In other entertainment news … FOR THE LOVE OF GOD ZSA ZSA GIVE UP!!! I am sorry, that is a truly cruel and tasteless thing to say. That is why this blog is not rated G. Seriously though, Is she hanging around to be with her husband who is so incompetent he glued not one, but BOTH of his eyes shut? We would all like to see SOMEONE on the death pool die this year.

Joel McHale is Oprah’s Half sister!! I thought that was one of the funniest tweets I have seen yet. Another funny item was a Facebook post from a friend of mine David, who posted in reaction to the Oprah news “The biiggest secret of all this? Oprah ate the other half.” – Thank you Mr. Mazzie.

Apparently MTV is going to have commercial free programming. Skins is losing all of it’s sponsors. I have heard a rumor that the show will stay on because it will have only one sponsor. Woody Allen will be exclusively advertising his new movies during that show. Wow, that joke is showing my age.

I don’t think I am going to have any input on the Oscars this year, at least not before the show. I may actually do live updates DURING the show this year…maybe. I just haven’t seen enough of the movies that are nominated. I may have to just stick with the Razzies.

One last little bit of tech. Facebook is introducing “sponsored stories”. This means that if you “like” something or mention a brand in your post, the company you mentioned can buy it and use it as an ad. Are they buying it from you? OF COURSE NOT! Facebook gets the money and you lose your special comment. Sounds like a crappy deal to me. If a company wants me to write their advertisements, then they can hire me and pay me to do so. I think I will have to boycott talking about anything on Facebook that might be construed as an advertisement.

Tonight begins day one of the 3 night experiment “Bob alone with the baby”. I did pretty well a couple weekend ago so I think I will do just fine. I am anticipating that no housework will get done, dishes will pile up and I will be partaking in a lot of drive-up window dinners the next few days. This is only due to the fact that Piper, our American Bulldog, has been rather jealous the last few weeks. I am not sure I can play with both of them at the same time quite yet. We shall see what happened. I usually don’t tweet, but there may be a few choice tweets the next few days.

That’s all for now. Until next time, remember … “Sweeeeet poooetaaaaaayyytoooooe”

Got To Get You Into My Life … Or Do I?

Coming soon to Verizon

Welcome to a long overdue edition of Techtainment Tuesday. Let’s just address the elephant in the room right away shall we? The iPhone is on Verizon. I am not sure if I am going to go and get one. First, I don’t really use all the apps that it is mainly made for. I am pretty much a web, email and phone guy. Second, they haven’t said what the pricing is going to be yet. I may not use my money’s worth of unlimited data that I am paying for, but it is nice to know it is there so I don’t get $900 in extra charges if I forget to disconnect a streaming data source. Third, I can’t type on that screen. I need some sort of feedback so that my clumsy fingers know that I have typed something. I like my BlackBerry Storm for that reason. I also like the DROID X for the feedback, but again couldn’t justify paying for features I really don’t use.

There are reasons for me to get it though as well. First, at work, we are ALL about Apple and all of their products. Second, More and more we have clients that want iPhone apps and occasionally have the need to test said apps and what not. Third, everyone is doing it and do I really want to be left out of the loop?

I guess I have some time to think about it. I am not going to get the first ones that come out anyway, or stand in line for it. I am also thinking the next iPhone for Verizon, that will probably come relatively soon, would be for the new LTE network. I would hate to have an iPhone that wasn’t as good as it could be, and be stuck with it for 2 years just to be the first to have it.

In other technology news, IOSafe has created an almost indestructible hard drive. You  will need this if you want to drop your portable hard drive in diesel fuel, take it scuba diving or shoot it with a shotgun. It comes in Aluminum or Titanium. If you want Titanium, you can get a 512 GB solid state drive for the low low price of $3,499.99. Or, you could buy a bunch of flash drives and get 10 times more storage for about 1/100 of the price.

One last piece that sort of fits into tech and entertainment, I posted a video of Tori from last night and also put a BUNCH more pics up on Flickr. Click HERE to look at all the fun. She is so cute but then again I am biased.

That’s it for today. I really don’t have a quote and I am a little embarrassed by that so … until next time, see ya!

24 Leaves iPhones On Verizon

Welcome back to another exciting edition of Techtainment Tuesday. Maybe only sort of exciting. I am still fighting a lot of the sympathetic tiredness. Today, we are in mourning. We found out this weekend that we officially have lost one of the best shows on television. In just a few mere hours we will see the end of 24. Jack Bauer will leave our televisions for the big screen. I am saddened. I love 24. Jack Bauer is one bad ass mo fo. For days he has led us through many an adventure. Granted, it has pretty much been the same story line. I never knew that the US was attacked that many times by nuclear weapons. I do think however that a few of the other characters have been underrated.

Take Chloe for example. She deserves far more credit than she gets. She is smart. Smarter than most of the people around her. Mary Lynn Rajskub on her own is pretty darn funny. I have seen her in a few other things and she was HYSTERICAL when she stopped by The Soup. Other underrated characters, most that got killed off way too soon: Edgar, Morris, Milo, George … the list goes on. 24 will be missed by me. Mainly because now they will try to put American Idol on 4 nights a week.

On the technology side of things, it looks like I would be able to get an iPhone soon even if I don’t want to leave Verizon. I am not sure I want one. I don’t like the touch screen with no click. That is why I like my BB Storm. Plus, I don’t need all the apps. I know I have hashed this over before but, as I said, I am dog tired lately and it is a struggle to get my mind to work past the hours I am at work.

Exactly 2 people who have read my blog and have not ever commented, have asked me about my quotes. Actually, I think they have just proof read my blog maybe once. Or maybe I just told them I write one. In any case, they asked me “what’s the deal with your quotes? They don’t make any sense half the time.” I told them they were just not paying attention. I didn’t want to tell them the meaning behind my quotes because I didn’t want to waste a perfectly good side note. So what do they mean? Nothing other than every quote I put at the end of my post is from a TV show, movie or song and has something to do, even in the most bizarre of ways, with what I posted that day.

So, until next time, remember … “There are things in this world which are out of our control. Sometimes we like to blame ourselves for them so we can try to make sense out of them.” Other times, we just drink every time Jack says “copy that”.

Techtainment Tuesday … A Follow Up

It was announced today, introducing the Apple iPad. A few different pricing options seem to make it an affordable item if you don’t want a lot of memory. Still, what will be the point if you don’t have a large amount of memory to store games, apps, etc. It comes with built in WiFi which is essential for such a device.

A nice added feature is optional 3G so that you can have “anywhere internet”. Unfortunately, this is also the sad part. Despite all the problems and complaints about AT&T with the iPhone, Apple has decided to stick with them for the 3G data packages for the iPad. Instead of looking to fix the problem, they just decided to add even more bandwidth suckage to the AT&T network. Good luck now iPhone users. That is about it as I just wanted to get this out there.

Perhaps I will post more next Tuesday once everyone is sick of hearing about it. Then again maybe I will be too sick hearing about it and I won’t.

One final parting thought. When I heard the name of the new product, I posted on Facebook “The iPad … the immature side of me wants to know if it will have wings.”

My friend Abby confirmed for me that yes indeed, the iPad has wings.