I’m Being Supervised by a CAT – and He’s Forcing Me to Think Dystopian Thoughts!

True Story!

This afternoon I tried to reach Verizon. First, by using a number I taped awhile back to my computer, with reminder to just keep hitting “O.” In recent years, this number doesn’t work right.

I Googled “Verizon customer service number.” Got it.

Called 3 different times. First round, I kept hitting “O” and refusing to comply with the hedgehogs. I think I did get to choose something reasonable, but I must have hit the wrong prompt and got disconnected.

Next, I tried again. Message first always asks if I want to talk about “Hoy? Healthcare.” Strange, at same time, getting texts from VERIZON. Something went awry there…I think it wanted my “pin” number. Like, I keep that handy. I think it is 5 digits, not four, so I had made it trickier. I took a guess and eventually got disconnected, again. Oh, but not before the robot told me I could reserve a call back time, nor before I was asked to state my problem, (Likely I was repeating, “problem, problem, problem…tech support, tech support, tech support…”) I can make this callback appointment, I’m told, by downloading a FIOS app. I should have smelled something fishy then.

I was having a phone issue. I wanted to know why a “red emergency” icon was on my phone under the restart section, and I couldn’t hear Spotify from my phone but I could put it on Alexa.

I dared call back a third time. THIS time, same number dialed, it answers me BY NAME! rofl???

Without much ado…maybe hitting a few “zeros” again (for anyone who doesn’t recall, “0” is supposed to make you reach an Operator. Back in the day, an “Operator” was an actual PERSON.

So a guy answers. Sounds like he might have taken high school English here in the States, but I could be wrong. Sounds like a millennial to me. But, I could also be wrong about THAT, too.

Hey, I’ll go further here. I said it sounded like a man. I don’t know, I suppose that might not have been the situation either.

I was a little edgy. Go figure! I tried to use my “indoor voice” and calmly said, “Oh good! I have reached a human being. Hey…before I tell you my problem, I have a question for you. Do you know what dystopian literature is?”

As I spoke this, I realized I better not let there be too much pause or he will hang up on me, thinking I’m some crackpot.

Before he can answer that, I say, “Ha ha, sorry, I’m having a rough day. I called three times to reach you. I have a tech problem with my phone. There’s an ’emergency’ icon that is red I’ve never noticed before and…and…and…two weeks ago I called 911 when my alternator died in the middle of heavy traffic near DC. And now, I can’t hear Spotify through my phone, suddenly, TODAY, but I can still hear friends using the Marco Polo app with me. Plus, I can hear YOU.”

Guy pauses, assures he will help me with all this. As he runs some remote diagnostic, without me even having to give him remote control of my phone (hey, where is THIS capability when I call a number and they can’t identify me by the number)…he says…”You mean like Ann Rynd. That’s dystopian.”

I said “YES.” Along with 1984, Animal Farm, Jennifer Government and Brave New World.

He says, “I don’t think 1984 was Orwell.”

I said, “Yes, it was.”

As he investigates my phone and wants me to access some feature, I tell him, “hold on just a minute, I need to take a photo of my CAT. He’s now lying on his head.”

Guy says, “sure.”

I said, “I hope I’m entertaining you today.”

He said something like, “Yeah, this is the best call so far!”

I then learn that I did “not” activate some red emergency icon two weeks ago. That was a feature I had years back on my “family plan” – if anyone on it called 911, there was an immediate release of data quotas set. I remember that. I was actually wondering two weeks ago, when I called 911 several times, if I needed to reset anything.

Apparently the phone issue was I called FIOS, not Verizon cell. Apparently the FIOS message about “Hoy Healthcare” option is for that. Are they managing both internet and healthcare now??!!

And we fixed the issue. He walked me to the cache dump of temp files in all my most used apps, and showed me how to empty them.

Worked like a charm!

I imagine they were super full, since I don’t recall clearing them in two years. Not since I replaced my phone after dropping it in water the morning I was headed to the settlement here in Aug 2020, nor the next replacement when I was using a hammer in a closet and knocked off a shelf on the other side, which fell right onto my phone screen, that was lying on the floor…playing Spotify.

But I do recall learning this trick several years ago, to clear app cache.

So there’s THAT.

I just kept thinking the only thing that could make this experience more frustrating and dystopic would be if I were 87 and half deaf and didn’t really understand this technology, like a dear friend of mine

It’s been a dystopian day in my mind, and one of wanting to create images…

FYI…a PSA and a bit of Trivia…

I copied 482 installed fonts from my Windows 7 machine. These are located in the Control Panel, Under Windows/Fonts I “think.” Offhand..now that I clearly know.

You see, on that machine I could do a quick search for anything on my computer – imagine THAT – by opening the little thing at the bottom left. You know, some little icon you touch with your mouse!

Apparently, BG only thought I should have 99 fonts. What’s wrong with variations on Arial? I mean…how about Edwardian Script? Many of my PSD file templates have this used, and if I don’t get that font back…potentially hundreds and hundreds of files are affected with a default substitution.

And that, skews my layouts. Requiring submission to some other font substituted, or at least time picking a new one…or…um…fixing my layout.

Time = Money.

Now, I have a total of 312 fonts installed on my Windows 11 beast.

FYI, you can eventually find the font directory…not by easily searching with the search tool…um…once one finds “said tool” after clicking several different ways to view basically the same stuff. I actually Googled it.

You know, your computer/programs, etc. Oh wait. Your programs aren’t named “programs” anymore. They are now APPS.

The name seems “appropo” I suppose, since most apps you don’t OWN. They are just APPS? Not like Programs which you might in fact, felt worth paying thousands of dollars for back in the good old days.

Who would want to play a Victrola record on a Smartphone?

ME! That’s who.

Anyway,

When I do 482 minus 99 on my calculator I come up with 170, not 312.

When I took my flash drive downstairs again and put it in the old machine apparently it may have been in the middle of making some copy exceptions or something…I don’t know…

It doesn’t add up…but at least…I now have Edwardian Script back to finish what I’m trying to do here.

My new monitor probably needs color calibration, too…with my Epson fine art printer. Doesn’t look quite right. I did the

Photoshop work downstairs on my old Windows 7 machine, so I could run my scanner and use Photoshop 7.

I hope this helps clarify things, lol

Whatever that is.

No wonder Marley was last seen taking the high ground perched on my paper shredder.

I don’t use that anymore. Now that I can routinely BURN STUFF outside!

I find that sometimes intense worldly and other-worldly tribulation attunes my eye better to interesting or beautiful images!

I think Marley is pretty disgusted with the situation.

The big wicker basket that housed an old Afghan for cats to relax on in the Sun was taken out to my produce stand to hold lots of tomatoes which blew over last Thursday

Marley is thinking about having to lay in the Sun next to computer cords while I’m working downstairs by necessity on a Windows 7 machine.

I’m thinking he’s thinking of the military term FUBAR. That’s a little bit of a bad word there for anyone who knows what it means.

But I suppose a sweet cat-like Marley can get away with about anything!