Customer service is a thing of the past when major corporations are involved. I am so tired of hearing expressions like: "That is not our policy" or the ever endearing, "I'm not authorized to do that". The problem I had today concerned a furnace control purchased from "Lennox Industries". The part is two weeks old and has already failed. The customer service rep. says I have to purchase another part and then submit a warranty claim to get reimbursed my money. I also have to pay shipping again. If I want to get fully warranted I have to submit a form, wait for authorization to return, wait till the part is deemed defective and then wait for the new part to be shipped. After two to three weeks if the new part is not also defective the customer who has been without air conditioning the whole time will finally be back working. Buyer Beware! Lennox furnaces and air conditioners are no longer a sustainable product as they are made with Chinese parts and the company doesn't care if you are without or not unless you want to throw good money after bad. In the "Four States" area this brand is not recommended because of the lack of availability of parts in the area.

I wonder sometimes if getting old is something to look forward to. I am beginning to think that the whole concept of retirement is some kind of plot to minimize our experience ,and knowledge.
Then there is the education system.
Having returned to school last fall, I find that the world has changed since my last venture into education twenty years ago.
The teachers are for the most part dynamic and well versed in their particular area of study. They are helpful and want the student to succeed. The rub is the material that some of the courses offer is not
helpful in the real world stage and is so much filler. The particular class that I am thinking of is misnamed and really is not any thing I will use as it is designed around bad software that unfortunately is the mainstream choice. Who makes the decision on what is important and what we will study?
Why does it cost $200. for an access code. No book, cd, dvd, or even a study guide. Just a pin number. Really?
If I never hear, "I know it's frustrating" again, it will be too soon.
The status quo is acceptable only if you let it be. I for one will be heard whether I am right, wrong, or indifferent. Blind acceptance is not an option.

    Is it my imagination or is the world getting dumbed down even in the education forum. You go to school for  four or six or eight years and you can't think logically or with common sense anymore.
    Maybe its not the education but the fact that if you are in a bureaucracy you have to answer to someone and fear for your job, therefore you have to make sure you do your job a certain way so you get to keep it.
    I can't help but wonder why someone would waste all that time and money just so they could grow an ulcer and be a neurotic mess.
    This also seems to lead to a control problem. With frustration comes the pigeon hole power player
who in their own little domain can make your life miserable with their authority, even over something that should be simple, but will become ever complicated, because it can be made so on a whim.::
    Spoiler alert: dumbed is not a word according to spell check
    Alert two: Stay tuned for further rantings of a crazy old man including thoughts on; insurance companies, politicians, news reporters and check out clerks among other gripes and complaints.
    I hope this works. I am hoping if I vent a little here I will keep from getting my own ulcer.