Today was just one of those days. Well actually most of this week as been a SNAFU. All this due to the new technology of movie conversion software, tablets, smart phones, just in time warehousing and other such things
Things went ok early as I got most of the new storage set up with a big shelf, got most of my scrap and saved items put inside that storage area and cleaned up the yard a lot so there is now, no more “stuff” setting out on pallets. Last week I had checked with the mechanic about my rear wiper not working and the springs he put on 2 years ago sagging. He said the springs were warranty so just get it back in Tuesday and I told him to also find out why the wiper wouldn’t work. I had checked it and it had power to the wiper and I had the wiper motor rebuilt thinking that was the problem .
On Tuesday I dropped off the Jeep for the repairs, made some rounds to get a few other parts, check on a phone upgrade and to the skin doctor to get my recheck on my dry skin problems. Then back home to work on some video conversions that I had started over the weekend. So far they had not worked at all. Sometimes they would convert but most will not play. Some would not convert at all and some it took 12 hours to get one 3 hour movie done. I couldn’t wait for all that I would loose interest in the movies before they were done? I hammered all day on the video conversions with out much luck. Got most of the converted with a new GNU software “Handbrake”. But when I put them in the tablet to pay, none would play. In fact none would play on the computers either so I had to download some more codecs and fixes for the media players then they would play on the computers – both laptop and shop computer but still nothing on the tablet. I thought maybe the conversions were not good enough and I found some that were real good on the computer and some real bad, so I decided to redo all of them with the same setups. That finished up the day and still not all done
Tuesday the mechanic got the springs swapped out but couldn’t get the wiper fully checked, but it appears to be the switch. Who knew it had to send both 12 volts and a 12 volt switch signal to the wiper to make it work. So I had to go back Wed morning and he would do the check on the switch.
On the phone upgrade, my phone had suddenly Tuesday lost it’s mind. I would not start, would not keep time and had an error coming up that locked it up so I could not use it. Finally after multiple starts it worked – a little. Unfortunately My options were , hard reset, get another just like it on the warranty or upgrade for $150 +10 more a month due to the new data requirement implemented. I decided to think on that and check the other options.
Wednesday morning I got back to the mechanic and he confirmed the switch was the problem – SHIT, I had spent $90 bucks to get the motor rebuilt and it didn’t need it! Guess I should have done a bigger Google search on that to figure out the problems – the only things we had found was it could be a ground problem or a broken ground wire? After that he had to order the switch and it would be in the next day.
In the process I remembered that I needed to replace a couple of drill bits I had broken in putting up the shelves. All I wanted were the replacement not complete sets but at Lowes they were out of the singles for nearly everything? They had some complete sets for $20 but I only wanted 2 bits for about $1.95 each(a set of two for that), but they were out. Ok I will check the other places around but no one had the bits, it was like all the singles had been broken that weekend and no one had them on the shelf. Sh_T again. I was also looking for a cap for one of my old 2.5 gallon gas cans. Well they don’t make the size any more and they don’t have lids for them either and you have to buy new “safety approved” version now. I told the guy at Lowes that I was sure there were still a lot of people out there that could figure out how to blow them selves up with the new safe cans anyway. After these disappointments, I went back home and – pulled weeds from the front flower bed and finished up some trimming around, drug off the remaining pallet that had scrap stored on it and moved back some the encroaching growth north of the shop.
Today, I had another Doctor to visit – the Dentist. I used to joke why would would pay a guy to stick tools in our mouths and hurt us where we didn’t want to be hurt but I sure like having my own teeth. Well most of my own. I do have two gold ones, one on an implant and one capped on a broken tooth. Anyway I got out of the with a minimum of pain and it was done real early so I just treated myself to breakfast after.
Last night I had been checking on the phone problem and found that everyone had about the same prices and figured I would just get a replacement phone on the warranty but then it hit that maybe I should check Radio Shack as a place of last hope. When I got there and asked they said sure we have a special on the phone you want to upgrade to for only $100 and we give a $50 credit for the old phone (since it was a fairly recent smart phone anyway). Well alright then we will just upgrade for the remaining $50 charge. That was a great thought but didn’t work as well as planned. I had gotten there at about 9:30 and there was only one guy there and things were going ok but then the phone rang and then 3 more people came in and they kept coming in. I said I wasn’t in a big hurry so it took – 3 HOURS! – to get the upgrade deal worked out. That was ok, because I didn’t have a lunch date anyway. I got the upgrade phone, paid the $50 plus tax, and went out and figured , lets just get some of the old apps in the new phone. As I was doing that it rang and I answered and DIL said, strange she was calling my wife and it rang that phone? OH NO! they did it again. I went back in, and sure enough they had not upgraded my phone but – although they took my old phone and the receipt had my old phone number on it, Sprint had grabbed or the Radio Shack guy has slipped and it was my wife’s number on my new phone. Well then I call here and her phone is dead. You know how unhappy she sounded over that? The new guy (they swapped at the time I walked out) was trying to figure out how that could of happened and the first plan was to totally back out the upgrade, renewal, etc. then start over. Hell, another 3 hours?. “No they knew what to do this time so it should only take 30 minutes”. I asked why can’t we call sprint and have my number put on this phone and re-institute my wife’s phone? Great thought but no with the new phones you have to have all the SN#’s and several other numbers and codes and such. I said I would go get her phone and get it back if they could just get mine swapped over. They got mine fixed but the data part would take an hour or so to come up.
I left and stopped off to get a bit of lunch then on to her office to get her phone and back to RS to get it fixed. The lady at Sprint didn’t get all the details out right and asked to talk to me and I couldn’t understand half of what she was saying. Her headset was overloading and sputtering but I finally got the store guy to explain to her again that we had the phone we just needed it re-instated. she thought we were cancelling out the new one. As I write this the new one is still working so maybe se got that fixed. My wife’s is working as well. But before I left we discussed the problem that we now had. My phone was upgraded on my wife’s number then we swapped it back so on the system her phone would appear to be upgraded not mine and when we came back to upgrade hers the people then would not figure out that it was really to be put on mine but use her number. Yea I am lost here but suffice to say it is still going to be mixed up unless we upgrade my wife’s phone off my phone number so both will be upgraded on about the same day and we won’t qualify until 2 more years from now for anything but maybe it will be “mostly” right by then? So we hope now to upgrade her phone for the same $50 bucks and have both of the lines fixed with new phones so they won’t be as likely to get swapped again – maybe? Only problem is they didn’t have anymore of the new phones so we have to wait until tomorrow to make this final attempt at getting this part fixed – clear as mud?
I better quit this now, as I am getting more confused on the whole thing?
WD0AJG