12 Days

12 days until the wedding. I’m not nervous at all, well not about the lifelong devotion portion at least. Kel and I have been together for 8 years as of our wedding day. Over 8 years we’ve experienced the best and worst we have to offer, and this has undoubtedly made us a stronger couple.

What really makes me nervous is the fear that I won’t be able to live up to the high standards I’ve set for myself.

Can I be the husband that never holds a grudge too long and is always quick with a hug and apology for those times when I let my wife down?

Can I, one day, be the Dad I imagine myself to be? Loved and adored by my son (it’s in the cards baby!) for all that I am and am not?

Can I be the fair and equitable force in my family that is expected of myself?

Again, I’m not sweating the ceremony or the thought of spending my life with one person. If anything, that’s the moment I look forward to the most. The entire ceremony will be a blur, all but the two seconds when I look my bride in the eyes and say the two words we all sit so anxiously to hear.

Kel and I have been through quite a bit over the last 8 years, but I never thought the last few months would have been the most difficult for us.  Allow me to explain, it’s what I do.

In May I was having some pain in my shoulder and figured it’d be a good idea to get it looked at.  Since I had the day off for one appointment and had a bit of trouble breathing recently, I doubled up and saw my Primary doctor.  He did his rudimentary EKG (SOP for asthma patients) and suggested I go to a heart specialist, hmm.

Two days later I’m sitting in the office of one of the areas most renowned heart specialists.  He’s talking slowly and for the most part, simply.  From what I can gather he’s trying to tell me something is wrong, but all I hear are letters; SVT, WCW, WPW, SAP, etc.  I’ve got no clue what he just said.  The only part I’ve retained to this day is a blurb:

“It’s really quite fascinating because I’ve never seen readings like this before.  Look here, at about 3 in the morning your heart is beating around 170bpm and for no reason whatsoever, your heart stops and not just for a single beat cycle either. I mean your heart stops for a few seconds.  Then miraculously it starts up again in a completely normal rhythm around 50bpm.  You’re quite the interesting case.”

That’s when he went full on Barney with me and said I needed surgery, soon!  At first it didn’t register.  Then when it hit me that I needed a heart “procedure” I couldn’t help but think about how upset Kel was going to be.  We were 5 months from our wedding and all I wanted was to be strong for her throughout the process.

Over the next two weeks I got worse, fast.  My heart was working on it’s own schedule and I couldn’t keep up.  Walking up the stairs became a concern as I was afraid to do anything that may trigger an “episode.”  I could see that Kelly was taking it in stride when we sat together, but behind those eyes I saw her pain, her concern and her ultimate fear.

The surgery was moved up a week and happened to be on her birthday, awesome present right?  I didn’t sleep well that night and I could hear Kelly stirring around as well.  The next morning we drive to the hospital and didn’t speak much.  The first of us to speak was going to end up in tears, so we sat quietly as we motored up the highway.

The prep for heart surgery in a catheter lab is extensive.  I was the first to be operated on that day so all hands were on… me.  The nurses scrambled to get me ready and all those while Kelly sat alone in the waiting room.

She was allowed in shortly before I was carted off to the table.  I was smiling, cracking jokes and talking about how excited I was to be awake and see the inside of my own heart.  In reality it’s how I deal with situations where my mind is bugging out, and it works well might I add.

Kelly told me how she sat in the waiting room staring at the screen displaying which stage the patients were in (prep, pre-op, op, post-op, recovery). I was the first on the list to be shown as “op” but not the first to be listed as “post-op” or “recovery.”

The thought of being in her shoes makes my eyes heavy and my chest tight.  I can’t imagine the thoughts in her head when she sat for over 3 hours watching the screen after the doctors said the surgery should be “about an hour.”  It’s at these times we all fear the worst, and I wish I could have called to her and tell her I was fine and that we’d be done soon.

The hardest part about the entire experience was my inability to convince Kelly that I was going to be okay and that we’d get through this and be back on track to have our dream wedding.  When I brew up these stories again it helps me breathe easier.

How hard can a wedding ceremony be after all that we have been through?

Accidents, traveling, work, life, love, lost loved ones, and forgotten old friends… We have had quite the journey to say the least. From what I hear the easy part is over and the real fun begins when our two families become one. I think Kel and I are going to be just fine.

Stand Up Honesty

I’m ashamed of myself today because I allowed a conversation to continue that I could have and should have stopped. Instead, I stood back and shook my head, keeping my thoughts of disgust internal.

It doesn’t do any good to keep those thoughts internal, it perpetuates the belief that you cosign the conversation and you’re now an accomplice. The first step towards redemption is acceptance through honesty.

I accept that I was more concerned with my perception at the time of the conversation than I was with the content of the conversation.

I willfully allowed my ego to dominate my decision making process in hopes to remain in good ties with the crowd.

By allowing the conversation to continue I became an accomplice in the propogation in the objectification of women.

By allowing the conversation to continue I allowed others to continue their belief that I am in acceptance of their belief in the objectification of women.

1st Class Fail?

Could any single company last as long as Microsoft and still fail as frequently as Microsoft? I think not.

New, Clear Hyper Nation

So I started learning the guitar last month and I’m officially 4 lessons in and absolutely addicted.  I pick up the guitar and play for about 20-25 hours every single week, neglecting meals and all other luxuries in life.

Part of my new found guitar obsession is this new appreciation for good music.  I am more aware of talented musicians who write bad songs and get terrible publicity for it.  At the same time, I’m realizing how truly talented guitarists are, and in general, how talented musicians are.

Here are the songs I’m working on as of today:

• “Gloria” Van Morrison
• “Everlong” Foo Fighters
• “Wonderwall” Oasis
• “About a Girl” Nirvana
• “Blackbird” The Beatles

In addition to playing these songs, I’ve been writing down thoughts.  I hope these thoughts will eventually lead to songs that I can write music to and play along with.  But either way, I’m really having a great time and would urge anyone to pick up any instrument, take some lessons and start smiling more.

New, Clear Hyper Nation
Greed and deceit
Bleed and retreat
Conspire and lie
Fight and die
This is our cycle

Our new, clear hyper nation
A loss of power
A rise in devastation
A call to arms
A nuclear heightened nation

Knife the back
…redact
Knife the heart
Just the start
We can take this back

Our new, clear hyper nation
Make it true
Fight for Youth
Make it new
Fight for Truth
We’ve got this one shot,
Cannot,
Must Not,
Let it go, it’s over
Your time has come
We’ve finally won
Cannot,
Must Not,
Let it go

This is our cycle
Our new, clear hyper nation
A loss of power
A rise in devastation
A call to arms
A nuclear heightened nation

2008 In Review

Saying 2008 was an eventful year would be an understatement. But don’t let that fool you into thinking 2009 is my off year. I anticipate much of the crazy, hectic, hair-losing that my friends went through in 2008(weddings anyone?). 2008 can be summarized in far more entertaining ways than what I am about to regurgitate, but nevertheless, I must go on before I forget everything.

January “Decision Month:” I had a big decision to make in January 2008; granted, I had been pondering this for much longer but it was this month that a decision had to be made. At the time I was working at CA, which was a convenient 15 minutes from my apartment at the time. The location was fantastic, the facilities were outstanding, the work itself was pretty good and the coworkers were good coworkers. So what decision did I have to make? Well, the manager who hired me in had left and the new manager had a new way of managing the department – which included my role. To make a long story short, the old manager had put a ton of faith in me and wanted me to take on high visibility projects while the new manager wanted me to stick to my defined role (and that itself is a story all of its own). I spent a month looking around the job market and couldn’t find anything that was grabbing my attention. I looked internally, but was stonewalled because I had to be with the company for 1 year before I was allowed to change positions internally. Right about the time I was going to just suck it up and stick it out (oh that’s filthy!!) the new manager promoted the new girl to SAP Project Manager. The former SAP Project Manager was the current new manager, someone who had 20+ years of experience. The new SAP Project Manager was a former car salesperson with experience topping out at 5 years and 0 years was in SAP! My coworkers had thought I was the person they were announcing as the new SAP Project Manager and to make another long story short, unhappiness ruled the SAP Training Team. So back to the big decision! I made a few phone calls and in a matter of weeks, was on the brink of working for myself as an Independent Consultant. This would afford me the opportunity to hand-pick my projects as well as my rate of pay. The death of the American Economy was looming and people were chatting about it here and there, but at the time, we all still thought a recession could be fought off. So did I take the opportunity to work on my own and risk job security or did I stick it out and make changes with the current job?

February “Big Chill:” The shortest month of the year was the longest 4 weeks of 2008 for me. I told CA that I was leaving and the new manager’s timeless response was simply, “Shit!” They didn’t do much to retain me, and those who I had worked with closely were sorry to see me go but happy that I was getting into something better. I had made a contractual commitment to work at Select Comfort in Minneapolis for a minimum of 8 weeks at a pay rate that would help kick start my poor ass finances. February 21, 2008 was the day I first flew out to Minneapolis (nice and chilly!) and started work as an Independent Contractor. The coworkers were pretty good and the location was awesome for a number of reasons. A week or so into the project I was nearing the end of February, and it wasn’t the bad economy looming – just really shitty luck.

March “Big Scare:” Frikin March. We were only 3 weeks into the new project and I find myself hearing chatter that the project is about to be cancelled. What. The. Fuck!? I clung to the phones and was searching for a new project when I hadn’t even been paid for the first project! What frikin crappy luck! I leave my cushy job at CA and 3 weeks later the inept client has to cancel the project; wish I would’ve known before!! Anyway, I spent a couple weeks looking for the next project and had to turn down some undesirables along the way. If it wasn’t the location, it was the pay rate, and if it wasn’t the pay rate, it was the length of the contract. All I wanted was something a bit more stable, maybe a new project, and something along the lines of what I was getting paid in Minneapolis (which I’ll likely not see for years to come). It only took a few weeks, but in the last week of March, I found it. The client was Colgate and the location was New Jersey. Guess who lives in NJ? You got it! I moved into a new apartment with 2 roommates as well. The apartment is OUTSTANDING!

April “Big Easy:” Colgate rules. I had a week off in between projects and was happy to get back to work. Colgate was a 3+ hour commute but I had a great hotel, a decent rate, a good coworker (singular) and the client was a former project of mine so acclimating was quick. Being in NJ during the month of April afforded me the opportunity to spend time with my New Jersey friends, and I took advantage of that at every opportunity. I even got grilled by someone’s father about Hindu and why I should convert immediately. And how can I forget the classic eye rolling of his daughter when he mentioned how women had all the power – HA! – what trip! April was also the month that I started my own company officially with the help of the aforementioned father and daughter. TSC – Think Solution Consulting – would offer me the opportunity to apply for more contracts and would help legitimize my name in the industry of Independent Consultants. My best friend and future Co-Best Man was wed to his lovely wife who shares the name of my fiancé. The wedding was a ton of fun if you subtract the part when I slid down the hill in my tux as I was running to my car for my wallet.

May “Lazy:” Colgate ended in May and I spent the rest of the month and part of the next month not working at all. The fiancé was freaking out and I was starting to get nervous towards the end, but that wasn’t until June so I won’t include that in May. May brought me 3 weeks of sleeping in, playing video games, chilling with my puppy Trot, and drinking 6 days a week; just because I could. I’d take calls from potential clients while playing beer pong or shooting heads off with a sniper rifle; May was good.

June “Long Haul:” June started slow and picked up pace quite fast. I started a new contract, my first as an employee of my own company and was flying to Baltimore, then training to Washington, D.C. to provide services to AES, an energy company. Again, I found myself earning a fair pay and working with good people. This project was slated to last a few months and by the time it ended I would be debt free and rolling in dough! The other big event was the biggest, longest (filthy!!) wedding I will EVER attend, and according to the bride, the ONLY wedding she’ll ever have! The entire day was jam packed with awesomeness, except when the fiancé was bit by a random pit bull on the side of the highway (long story!). Oh and my roommate, friend, and fraternity brother (all in one) announced he was having a baby!

July “Huh?:” I don’t remember much of July. I worked. I traveled. I tried buying a house I think, but that didn’t work out too well. Oh yah! After 5 solid weeks on the project, I hear chatter that a new change management team is coming on board and everyone’s job is at stake. AWESOME! Back to the frikin phones!

August “Back to Reality:” August was the month where all my hopes and dreams of being a filthy rich bastard with no debt came down with a crash; quite the precursor for our nation’s economy might I say! I had to abandon my hopes to continue working for myself in exchange for job security. Luckily, I found a full-time job making a fair salary. The only compromise is the 2+ hour commute each way to the big city coupled with another move! The fiancé and I decided that since one of our 2 roommates was moving out, that we should probably resign a lease for our apartment until after the wedding in 2009 so that we don’t have to find housing while we plan a wedding. This was the plan since the house on Party Drive fell through. So I’m working in the city and I’ve got a few friends working in the city as well, this can’t be that bad!

September “Families Meet:” September’s big event was the engagement party where my family first met the fiancé’s family. It also marked the first time that my various groups of friends would all be in the same place at the same time. The event was a decent success, although I would’ve been happier if the fiancé’s family spent more time with my family. It was almost as if her family went into their standard party mode and totally forgot how immense and important this was to me and my family. Still had a good time though.

October “Grinding:” October was nothing special. Did stuff. Turned 25. Worked. Move along.

November “Reigning Champion:” November was a bit more exciting than October. I returned to the Rubinson household and reigned supreme as beer pong champion with my fiancé. The losing team was not so thrilled with the loss; but they got over it. My friend bought a house in New Jersey and we celebrated the same weekend I defended my crown at another New Jersey home – so all in all, good month. I ate a ton of food on Thanksgiving too.

December “Finale:” December wasn’t too shabby. I spent half the month working from home and the other half was uneventful. New Year’s Eve was spent on a heated, rooftop garden bar in the city and I survived until way past 1 A.M. this year!

The end.

The “What-ifs” and “I-hope-nots”

I close each program that is open before I shut down my PC.  When the screen finally goes black I unplug the wireless mouse and iPod headphones from the computer and tuck them away in my desk drawer.  I slide back my chair from my corner desk and flick my thigh so that the chair rotates like an automated clothing rack at the dry cleaners.  My coat is now facing me and I’m looking towards the Exit sign when the coat slides over both arms and is popped up onto my shoulders.  I turn back around and grab the shoulder strap of my new Dakine bag and adjust the soft pad on the strap so that it rests neatly on my collar bone; and toss the strap over my head and onto my shoulder.  A slight adjustment of the strap pad and I’m good to go.  I check for my wallet, phone and keys before I turn back around with my hands in my pocket.

I’ve always felt awkward leaving work at 4:30pm, all the while never feeling awkward that I’m the first to arrive at 8:00am – and not to mention the 140 minute commute each way.  As I reach the end of the aisle of desks I turn to my right and extend my hand towards the desk of my coworker buddy Marcos, “Have a good one.”

“You too buddy.”

I turn the corner to my left and raise my head in a quasi-nod to another coworker pal, “Enjoi your evening Lora.”

“You too Dave.”

The Exit sign is now sitting well above my head as I turn to the right and reach for the door.  I lower my head as usual and duck through the open door and round the corner towards the elevator.  7 floors up and you would never know with the speed of that elevator.  Within moments I am bounding out of the elevator and down a flight of stairs to 48th Street.  The street is lined with black vehicles with illegal black tint on all of their windows.  They also bear the Diplomatic license plates and their country’s name and flag in the back window.  The street is rarely occupied by a moving vehicle so I can move freely across the street without so much as a care.  The next corner I am approaching is speckled with pretzel, hot dog and some middle eastern food cart that serves a mighty tasty dish for $5.00 – best to get there at Noon sharp or expect to wait in a surprisingly long line.

My destination at the moment is 53rd Street and Lexington Avenue, the Downtown E.  My ultimate destination is home in Bellport, Long Island.  I check my watch under my coat sleeve and see the time is 4:33pm, I have 18 minutes if I want to catch the 4:51 from Penn Station to Ronkonkoma so I pick up the pace when the crosswalk signal fades to white.

I arrive at the subway and glide down the stairs without much effort, all the while I’m plucking my wallet from my back pocket and sliding out the monthly Metro/LIRR card that will grant me access to the most complex and mind boggling subway system this side of the Atlantic Ocean.  I don’t have to wait long for the Downtown E, and that is what I was hoping for.  A slightly packed Downtown E is an anomoly; one I’ll gladly accept more frequently until the 2nd Avenue Subway line is completed in a few years.

Then I realize that I haven’t stayed with a job for more than 2 years and I laugh at the thought that I could still be working here in 4 years.  I keep my head down on the ride to Penn Station and think about the book that haunts my Dakine bag.  Roland, Jake, Eddie and Susannah are frozen in time and awaiting my return so they can continue their journey to the Dark Tower.  I feel a pang of guilt for making them wait so long, but such is the life of a working man eh?

The Penn Station stop on the Downtown E looks eerily similar to those Bridal Shops in November that sell wedding gowns at a drastic discount.  The doors open and panicky commuters dart for doors in hopes to make a train that is scheduled to leave in less than a minute.  I check my watch under my coat just prior to the Penn Station stop and see that I have 4 whole minutes; I’ve got time and I’ll be sure to step to the side and avoid the stampede.

Finding a seat on the train is as expected, an adventure.  The weight on my shoulder bears down on me, and not because the bag is heavy, but because Roland and the gang anxiously wait for the crease of the book to be opened to the stale train air beneath the never-sleeping city of New York.  I tuck myself next to a small Indian guy who is glancing longingly out of the window towards the neighboring train; not much of a view if you ask me.  It doesn’t take long for my bag to find my lap and the book to find it’s resting spot for the next 90 minutes.

The pages blur by as I am transported to the world of Roland, Jake, Eddie and Susannah.  Their journey has captivated me entirely and refuses to release its grip on me until we finish the journey together.  Jake, the youngest of the crew, is reminiscing about the last few months of his life.  He had to grow up so quickly but is quite happy with his life up until now.  Jake is beginning to make friends with a young boy from a town he and his ka-tet are passing through.  The young boy helps remind Jake of what it means to be a boy again.

I am immediately transported away from this journey and into another, far less exciting, journey that I have been living for the past decade or so.  I am recalling a discussion I had earlier with a good friend during lunch at Johnny Rockets that day.  We spoke about the little kids in our lives, not our own, but little ones nonetheless.  I told my friend a brief story of my baby brother Matthew and how he would squeeze my finger with surprising strength.

Now I’m sitting on this train as it idles through the tunnels of New York and opens onto the borough of Queens.  Light pours in on both sides of the train as faces turn away like young children turning from the TV during a scary scene in a horror movie.

“I wonder what Matthew looks like now.  How big is an 8 year old, or is he 9?  Does he know I exist?  Does he know that he has 2 older brothers; one in particular that would love to sit and share an ice cream cone with him and talk about his school, his friends – perhaps share an older-brotherly bit of advice with him about family?”

I chuckle at the thought.  After all, who am I to give advice on families?  To my own family especially!

“What if I don’t exist to my brother?”  I hope that isn’t the case.  “But what if I do exist to my brother; as a villain or an outcast who denounced his family and his brother?”  I hope that isn’t the case, but I’m scared to death it is.

I haven’t thought this thoroughly about my brother in a long time.  It hurts to think that I have someone who shares my blood, my origins (even if only half of those origins) but who I cannot share a thought with.  I’ve tried so many times to rescue a relationship that has been doomed for over 10 years; but I tried and tried and failed and failed.

My biggest failure.  My biggest heartbreak.

I can’t return to the journey now.  Jake and his new friend are going to have to put their friendship on hold while I collect myself.  I’m sorry young friends, but my own journey has to take precedence over your search for the Dark Tower; for I have a darkness of my own to conquer.  I hope you’ll understand and I look forward to returning to you and narrating your epic story of friendship and hardships; and family.

The Anti-Capitalists

Is it just more or is the United States Government’s interaction and “saving” the failing companies the exact opposite of capitalism?  Isn’t capitalism supposed to be Laisez-Faire; hands off?  If the government feels the need to step in and save these failing companies because it is in the American People’s best interest, isn’t that all the proof we need that Capitalism doesn’t work?

Bear Stearns, AIG, Morgan Stanley, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Wachovia, Lehman Brothers.

If these companies practiced a flawed form of business and failed, should they not be allowed to fail?  The government says they stop these companies from failing by taking the taxpayers money and giving it to them (after those companies took our money by artificially inflating the cost of living) so that the country’s financial system doesn’t crash.  They save these companies to save us; or so they say right?

Let them fail.  That’s Capitalism.  The company did business poorly, made poor decisions and now they should be allowed to fail.

But it’s too late.  The United States Government has stepped in and taken taxpayer money, yet again, to save companies – to shelter us from financial failure.  Well fuck that!

If the United States Government wants to promote Capitalism and reep the benefits of Capitalism, then they should also allow the world to see the flaws in the system.  Instead, they plug it up with borrowed money.  They hide the fundamental flaws of Capitalism (greed) by giving money to those who lust for money.

It just seems so wrong!!

What a load!

$700,000,000,000.00 USD

Was it as good for you as it was for me?  Blowing that $700,000,000,000.00 load was supposed to help save our economy!  Bush came out in a near panic and said that we needed to pass this bill immediately because each day the economy lost Trillions of dollars ( $X,000,000,000,000.00).  The US Treasurer Paulson backed Bush and made it abundantly clear that if we didn’t pass this bill, the economy would tumble.

Then some people asked questions.

Why $700,000,000,000.00?
Answer:  We think it’s enough.

Will it work?
Answer:  We hope so.

So have you seen the latest measures of the American economy recently?  The DOW is below 10,000.00 for the first time in four (4) years when we were at the height of this war in Iraq.  And if you think the DOW is only one indicator, take into account the huge losses across the global markets.  Trillions up Trillions of dollars have been lost and people are looking for someone to blame!

The McCain Campaign is blaming Barack Obama, after telling us for months that Barack was a rookie and had no experience.  Apparently a rookie with no experience is capable of bringing down the world’s financial markets!

The McCain Campaign is blaming all of the Democrats in the Democratically “lead” Congress – keeping in mind that with a Republican President, the Democrats would only have the lead if they had more than 66 seats (Senate), which they do not; they have 51.

Amidst all of this blame, behind all of the mud slinging and crap flying – I haven’t heard one person speak up and offer a solution to this crisis; except Barack Obama.  Barack would rather focus on the real issues at hand and let the children of politics (McCain, Palin) soil themselves in their playpen.  Because while Palin is claiming Barack is “pallin’ around with terrorists” she was busy supporting a campaign that pushed to seceed from the United States.  A Campaign that is lead by a man who has openly admitted his hatred of the United States and everything the American People stand for.

So let it fly.  Wave your shiny pinwheels around and distract the mindless masses.  But don’t try and come to me with these flimsy ‘facts’ about what’s what.  If I want facts, I’ll do the research.  If I want a pile of shit thrown in my face, I’ll come find you.

Professor out.

Why I’m Glad Lehman and Others are Failing

I know, I know.  I’m such an insensitive jerk who isn’t thinking about all of those employees who are going to lose their jobs, or all those people with their life savings and retirement accounts who are broke.  But you know what?  I’m not the bad guy here.

The past 7 years have been a bumpy 7 years, and that’s being generous.  The American Economy was poised well above the other world’s major markets; and our dominance in that arena was lock solid.  Or so we thought.  Amidst all of this, America suffered the most horrific of events when terrorists took control of no less than four (4) airplanes and dealt a devastating blow to the American Armor.  

The attacks on that day left us momentarily paralyzed, unable to conceive the atrocities that had just unfolded.  Some turned to anger; “Kill them all!”  Others turned inward; “Why us?”  In the end, we were told to go about our lives. 

Fast forward 7 years.

We’re fighting a war with a country that had no hand in the attacks on our country.  The biggest American Financial firms are collapsing.  Foreclosures are leaving families homeless or scrambling for residence.  The average American worker’s salary is declining.  Crude oil has skyrocketed to numbers unforeseen and unpredicted by even the elite of the industry.  A 72-year old POW is on the precipice of a seat as POTUS with his former beauty queen and self proclaimed “Pitbull with Lipstick” Alaskan hockey-mom as runner-up; should his numerous bouts with cancer spur up during his term.

It’s hard for me to survey the current landscape of this country that I adore, and to avoid feelings of resentment and anger.  While many war-mongers are angry and resentful at those who attacked us, I’m casting a sideways glance at those responsible for leading us down this path of inevitable destruction.  Those same people who have been made wealthy beyond their wildest schemes and who are just now seeing their world fall around them.

I think it’s about time that this artificially inflated economy of ours, that has done no good for the Middle Class American and has done wonders for the wealthiest, is hit with a reality check.  I’m not happy that people are losing money, that would be far too vindictive for my style.  I am happy that at long last, those who make the decisions on our behalf, get to experience the pain we’ve all had to experience for the past half decade.  

Maybe now we can hope for real change.  Maybe now people will realize that the policies of the past 7+ years are failed policies.  Maybe now people will take a second look at the other candidate and see what so many of us see – a chance for redemption.  Redemption for ourselves, and redemption in this world. 

We’re starting to realize that America can not operate unilaterally.  American cannot do as they please simply because we have the most nukes.  The world is nothing more than an expansive community, and if we don’t start treating our neighbors and fellow man (and woman!) with respect; well, I see no end in site.

Sprint Denies the existence of “Premier Status” for Personal Accounts

 

 8:48:03 AM        System 

Connected to Sprint Web Chat Server

 8:48:03 AM        System 

Session ID: 3300278

 8:48:08 AM        System 

Please hold and the next available agent will be with you shortly.

 8:48:13 AM        System 

Whitney has joined this session!

 8:48:13 AM        System 

Connected with Whitney

 8:48:14 AM        Whitney 

Thank you for contacting Sprint. My name is Whitney. How may I assist you today?

 8:48:47 AM        David 

Hello Whitney. I’ve been a Sprint customer now for about 7 years, and I was just made aware of a friend who is also a long time Sprint customer

 8:48:57 AM        David 

He has received something called “Sprint Premier” status

 8:49:25 AM        David 

After being made aware of the benefits of this status, I was interested in finding out what the requirements are for this

 8:49:49 AM        Whitney 

I will be more than happy to assist you with this today.

 8:49:54 AM        Whitney 

For account verification, may I please have the 6-10 digit pin number on the account or could you please answer your security question for me?

 8:50:21 AM        David 

Absolutely

 8:51:04 AM        Whitney 

Street you grew up on?

 8:51:37 AM        David 

My fiance’s name is on the bill so the street she grew up on is {omitted}

 8:52:09 AM        Whitney 

Thank you for that information. Please allow me one moment to access your account.

 8:54:04 AM        Whitney 

David, I apologize for the inconvenience, however, I am not quite sure I understand what you are referring to when you state Sprint Premier. Please clarify your statement?

 8:55:03 AM        David 

A friend and coworker had mentioned that he received notification from Sprint that outlined specific benefits he is now eligible for as a result of his longstanding committment to Sprint

 8:55:27 AM        David 

For instance, he is eligible for the $150 discount every 12 months instead of 22/24 months when purchasing a new handsest

 8:57:54 AM        Whitney 

One Moment please.

 8:58:59 AM        Whitney 

Thank you for the clarification. The offer that your friend was provided with is a upgrade discount for being in their contract for a specific amount of time. Each customer is eligible for a discount. After 12 months in your contract you are eligible to get a $75 upgrade discount off of any phone of your choice. Also after 22 months in your contract you are eligible for a $150 upgrade discount. As of this moment you are not eligible for a upgrade discount, you will be eligible for the $75 upgrade discount on 9/1/2009 and then you will be eligible for the $150 upgrade discount on 11/1/2009.

 8:59:26 AM        David 

Question

 8:59:44 AM        David 

I haven’t bought a new phone in nearly a year, why is my eligibility for the 12 month discount set as if I bought a new phone this weekend?

 9:00:54 AM        Whitney 

The upgrade discount is all based on the length that you are in your contract. As of this moment your contract was renewed on 1/18/2008 and it expires on 1/18/2010.

 9:01:17 AM        David 

So my 12 month eligibility for the $75 discount should be 1/18/2009 correct?

 9:01:20 AM        David 

not 09/01/2009?

 9:02:29 AM        Whitney 

You will be eligible for the $75 upgrade discount on 1/1/2009.

 9:03:21 AM        David 

You had previously mentioned 09/01/2009 as my eligibility date, but now it is 01/01/2009 ?

 9:04:29 AM        Whitney 

I apologize for the type error, however, you will be eligible for the $75 upgrade discount on 1/1/2009.

 9:05:11 AM        David 

Next question: If I open a new line on my account, which discounts am I eligible for?

 9:05:45 AM        David 

It is cheaper, with Sprint anyways, to open a new line than to upgrade a handset – with other carriers, they encourage the purchase of new handsets with more favorable discounts to existing customers

 9:06:08 AM        David 

Currently, discounts favor non-customers, while the current customer base is left paying full retail for upgraded phones.

 9:07:20 AM        Whitney 

If you are adding a line to your account you are only eligible for the instant savings that are listed on the site for the phone. When upgrading you will get the upgrade discount that you are eligible for deducted from the original cost of the phone. You are not able to get the instant savings on the phone, since the instant savings are only for new sprint customers that are joining service with us for the first time.

 9:07:44 AM        David 

So how can I qualify for Sprint Premier status?

 9:08:05 AM        David 

Because Sprint seems to favor the non-Sprint customers more than their own dedicated custoemrs

 9:09:49 AM        Whitney 

David, I apologize, however, I am not familiar with the sprint premier status that you are referring to.

 9:10:14 AM        David 

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS128950+24-Jun-2008+BW20080624

 9:10:21 AM        David 

This is a link for the Business Premier status

 9:10:30 AM        David 

There is a similar status for Personal Accounts as well

 9:11:34 AM        Whitney 

Please allow me one moment to access the site so that I may better assist you.

 9:12:25 AM        David 

https://businesspremier.sprint.com/images3/spc/index.htm

 9:12:36 AM        David 

This is the direct site from Sprint outlininng the benefits for Business Premier

 9:13:25 AM        Whitney 

David, I apologize for the inconvenience, however, the only way that you are eligible to get the Business Sprint Premier Reward Offer is if you are under a business account.

 9:13:35 AM        David 

Understood

 9:13:52 AM        David 

I wasn’t asking about Business Premier Status, I was asking about the equivolent of this status that is made available to personal accounts

 9:15:40 AM        Whitney 

May I ask where you are retrieving the information that this is also offered for personal accounts?

 9:16:33 AM        David 

http://www.sprintusers.com/forum/showthread.php?t=160940

 9:16:42 AM        David 

Here is another link where users are discussing this status

 9:17:40 AM        Whitney 

One Moment please.

 9:20:35 AM        System 

Your agent has been disconnected from the system, you are now being transferred to your original queue. Please stand by…

 9:20:35 AM        System 

Whitney has left this session!

 9:20:55 AM        System 

Jaimalyn has joined this session!

 9:20:55 AM        System 

Connected with Jaimalyn

 9:20:55 AM        Jaimalyn 

Thank you for contacting Sprint. My name is Jaimalyn. How may I assist you today?

 9:21:10 AM        David 

I was just speaking with an agent who disconnected from the system

 9:21:20 AM        David 

I was inquiring into the Sprint Premier Status (not for business accounts)

 9:21:20 AM        Jaimalyn 

“There was a brief system outage with the previous agent’s terminal and your chat was transferred over. Please accept my apologies for this interruption but allow me a few moments to review your chat with the previous agent and I will then be able to address your situation. Thank you for your patience.”

 9:22:55 AM        Jaimalyn 

Thank you. One minute please.

 9:26:30 AM        Jaimalyn 

Thank you for your patience. I will be with you momentarily.

 9:26:39 AM        David 

okay

 9:29:10 AM        Jaimalyn 

I am not seeing it for non-business customers please allow me another minute.

 9:29:33 AM        David 

On page 2 of the third link I sent there is a screenshot of the Sprint Website detailing the status

 9:31:20 AM        Jaimalyn 

Thank you. One moment please.

 9:32:05 AM        Jaimalyn 

You are speaking of the White Glove account correct?

 9:32:28 AM        David 

Does this provide a $150 discount on new phone purchases every 12 months?

 9:34:35 AM        Jaimalyn 

This program is based on pay history and tenure along with having a plan 99.99 or higher.

 9:36:26 AM        David 

According to other Sprint users and a Sprint Customer Service representive (reached by dialing *2) the White Glove account is not the same as Premier Status

 9:36:59 AM        David 

Premier Status allows for a $150 discount on new handset purchases every 12 months as well as an “Anniversary” gift

 9:38:00 AM        Jaimalyn 

One minute I am consulting with a lead agent.

 9:40:45 AM        Jaimalyn 

I do apologize for the information David, I have researched all information and the White Glove is the same as Premier Status.

 9:41:08 AM        David 

My friend and coworker has achieved this status and his monthly bill is less than $60/month

 9:41:34 AM        David 

A number of others who have this status also have monthly bills lower than $100/month (before discounts)

 9:42:32 AM        David 

It is disconcerning that a customer, such as myself, of 7 years is unable to upgrade a handset without any helpful discounts. A $75 discount is halved when the $36 upgrade fee is applied

 9:42:33 AM        Jaimalyn 

I understand, however Sprint picks the accounts to place on this program.

 9:42:48 AM        David 

I am unsure of what qualifies as a White Glove account then

 9:42:59 AM        David 

You had mentioned it was payment history and the amount of the bill

 9:43:07 AM        David 

Now you are saying Sprint chooses them

 9:43:41 AM        Jaimalyn 

Yes, they are based on tenure and pay history among other things.

 9:43:57 AM        David 

My tenure of 7 years with a pristine payment history does not apply?

 9:44:56 AM        Jaimalyn 

Thank you. One moment please. .

 9:49:01 AM        Jaimalyn 

Thank you for your patience. I will be with you momentarily.

 9:50:31 AM        Jaimalyn 

I do apologize however there is not a way to enroll we send customers the membership offer.

 9:51:01 AM        David 

Understood. I would appreciate it if my account could be reviewed for this status.

 9:51:16 AM        David 

In light of the recent cellular market, Sprint is falling quickly behind.

 9:51:22 AM        David 

It is in my best interest to remain loyal

 9:51:38 AM        David 

However, Sprint has become expensive and these are exactly the benefits needed to retain longstanding customers

 9:52:01 AM        Jaimalyn 

One minute please I will submit a request for it.

 9:52:02 AM        David 

I would appreciate a second look at the account in hopes that Sprint will recognize my committment and honor that loyalty

 9:55:16 AM        Jaimalyn 

I have noted the account that you are wanting to have the account reviewed for this program.

 9:55:21 AM        Jaimalyn 

Have I resolved the issue that prompted you to chat with us today?

 9:56:01 AM        David 

Not entirely, but from what I’ve been told, you have provided all the information you have available

 9:57:21 AM        Jaimalyn 

Yes, I have. I do apologize David, that is the information I have.

 9:59:01 AM        Jaimalyn 

Do you have any more question today David?

 9:59:12 AM        David 

No

 9:59:13 AM        David 

Thank you

 9:59:41 AM        Jaimalyn 

Thank you for contacting Sprint. Our goal is to make your chat experience a great one. There will be a survey after this chat that you may fill out to advise us of how we are doing. Please disable all popup blockers before pressing the exit button to end the session. This will ensure that you will be afforded the opportunity to participate. Should you have any additional feedback or comments you would like to provide regarding your chat or chat agent, please send us an email at: sprint.customerappreciation@connextions.com. If you would like a copy of this transcript please press either the print button at the bottom of this session or the copy button to copy/paste into the word processing program of your choice.

 10:01:32 AM        System 

Jaimalyn has left this session!