Dreaming of Internet (March 13, 2012)

Our appointment for the guys at Telstra (Big Pond) to come by the house and set up internet was scheduled for January 20, 2012. Eliza sat home all day anxiously awaiting this coveted prize. The ability to Skype and FaceTime or even email home for that matter is something that makes being so far away from family and friends a lot easier. It had been a while since we were "off the grid". The installers never showed up, didn't call, and we never heard anything from Telstra. A few days later I decided to call to see what happened and to re-schedule an appointment. After 45 minutes of being on hold and no real apologies forthcoming, they admitted they were having trouble with their employees blowing off appointmets because it was too hot, or for some other meaningless reason. The next appointment I could have was February 15. Angered, frustrated, and used to getting my way with U.S. customer service reps, I confidently told them that this was unacceptable. 90 minutes and 4 managers later, I was in the same place, being asked if I wanted to re-schedule the install on February 15. Just before I agreed, the agent hung up on me. Another call, another 45 minutes of hold, and finally I'm back on the schedule. February 15 rolls by without any phone call or installer showing up (I even called on February 14 to verify that they were coming by). After calling them back at the end of the day after it was clear that they were not coming, they asked me if I wanted to reschedule for the next available date...March 14. Yes, put me on the schedule, but I want to speak to a manager. Can you guess if I was successful? Well tomorrow is our appointment...here's hoping that we are connected sometime this century.