Blogging Good Time7308

Got a bill in the mail this week addressed to my late son Payson. It was from one of the satellite radio operations that he had an account with. He had satellite radio service in his Jeep Wrangler.

Seems to me he had the company charge the service to my American Express card when he signed up – something I didn’t know until I started getting bills. Took me a long time to get the charge taken off, but I succeeded.

The notice in the bill said his checking account had been closed. They said there was a balance due. They knew this had to be an oversight on his part and would appreciate a remittance “immediately.” They went on to say what wonderful service they offered and how he certainly wouldn’t want to be without it.

I called the toll-free number and hopped on the merry-go-round. I finally got in touch with a human voice, albeit a foreign one. I tried to explain the situation.

I told her that I was Payson’s father and that Payson was deceased. In short I was no longer interested in this particular company’s satellite service.

She asked if I was Richard. I said I was Dwight Dana. She said the bill was in Richard Dana’s name. I explained that his name is Richard Payson Dana and that he went by his middle name.

“So Richard,” she said, “How would you like to settle this account? We take all major credit cards.”

She then asked for Richard’s home address and telephone number so that she could verify things.

I gave her the info and she promptly said the telephone number was listed in Richard Dana’s name.

I was beginning to lose the smidgen of patience I have. I wasn’t about to get into the rigmarole that the telephone number hasn’t been taken out of my father’s name since he died in 1964.

I finally got her to understand my relationship to Payson seconds before exploding, as I am wont to do when people can’t understand that there are those in this deprived world who go by their middle names.

Eureka, home free at last!

Not hardly.
I was transferred to another foreign technician whose was charged with actually dropping the account.

We started going through the same old blather again. He asked for the same information the previous magpie had sought.

Smoke was billowing from my head. I was a syllable from blowing this guy away with some of my finest language.

But then it had to be the Lord who intervened. We got cut off.

I’ve done my part. If they don’t have the situation straight by now, then they can send the next bill to the IRS. They keep trying to get in touch with Payson, too.

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