about that credit card....

... a very frustrating, aggravating, annoying story. That does not have a happy ending. Yet.

When I drove to TN, and went in a Wallyworld, I used the card to buy stuff for a meal on Friday night. But when I tried to use the card to buy our breakfast at the biscuit shop in downtown Chattanooga, it was denied. Thinking that was really strange, I immediately called the number on the back to ask questions.

That whole experience, as you can imagine, is pretty irritating. Going through the process of providing all your info. to a computer, and doing the voice mail thing, spending more and more time getting more and more annoyed at the computer. Seeminly programed to deliberately throw up roadblocks as you get more and more frantic. When you so desperately want a human to come on the line and listen to your problem, provide a solution.

It turned out I was five days past due on making a payment on the balance. Desperate to get it re-actived, I paid off the whole thing. Then asked to have the late fee and interest forgiven as I am never late, always pay in full. The CSR agreed to that, and I thought I was squared away. So I tucked the card back in my pocket and went on to a fun day at the aquarium: wearing out my eyeballs looking at all the exotics and wildlife in the tanks. Plus amusing penguins and otters.

But when we left to find some lunch, and I went to use my card at the sandwich shop, it was declined. Well, #$%&.  So I called the number again, and went through that same irritating process. Finally talking to a real person, thankfully in north America rather than India or Phillipines call center .Then talked with a CSR supervisor.  Who said that it would take several days for the payment to process, and my card would not re-activate until it had cleared their accounting system. Which we can assume means not before Monday, when the banks are open.

Still so irritated, I asked to speak to her supervisor. The response I got to that is her boss does not take incoming calls, but she would call  me back in 24-48 hours. I'm thinking: I want her job. Where you can deal with irate customers at your leisure, instead of when they have steam coming out of their ears.

So here I am, out of town, with no credit card. I only have one, and use it for everything: groceries, gas, eating out. Even if gas has gotten cheap, down to $1.81 a gallon in TN, I still need it to get home.