what a headache

 So, I still receive Doki Doki crates. I have my subscription set to renew every three months, so I have flexibility in cancelling it if I ever hit a MAJOR financial problem. 

Back in May, right after I had my Visa number stolen (probably through a skimmer on the wal-mart self-check-out), I changed the subscription to my MasterCard, which is through my local credit union.

the Doki Doki Crate subscription is the Chekov's gun in this story....

So, coming back from my mom's in May, I found my MasterCard was limited. Not good, because it took a month to replace my Visa, and I didn't want to use the new Visa on a gas pump in a random town (I wound up going in to the place and paying cash for gas). 

I called it in, got it fixed up, fine. Everything was fine for a while. 

Then, Friday afternoon, I went to the local gourmet shop, because I wanted a 9x9 baking pan. Tried to  pay for it with the MasterCard. It wouldn't go through. "Don't worry," said the person at the register (one of  my students in fact), "Our system might just be wonky right now"

But no: my Visa worked fine. Okay then.

So I went home and - this was after business hours for most everyone - tried calling MasterCard. As usual, got shunted through the various branches of the phone tree, finally spoke to a guy. He admitted up front there was little he could do without a "case number" (I never received one).

"Could you please at least read the last five charges off to me, so I can see if one was fraudulent?"

Yes, he did. The earliest charge on the list was, in fact, listed on the bill I had just paid. The other four were all four charges I had made - the storage unit, a donation, JoAnn's, and the Doki Doki subscription.

He suggested I call my credit union Monday. Okay, fine.

So after classes today, I called the MasterCard number first. 

By the way: two and a half years into the pandemic, if you are still blaming it for long wait times? You're not fooling anyone: you have bad customer service, you aren't hiring enough people/paying enough to get enough people to work for you. 

When I *finally* got through, the person talked it through with me, it sounded promising, and then: "Oh, wait, I can't process this, my computer decided to update, call back in a couple hours" which now I wonder, was that just a convenient lie to get me off the phone while making me look like the bad guy if I was dissatisfied.

Okay, thanks, I said, I'll call the local credit union

I did. Called their main branch. Got transferred to the one person who could help. Who was out to lunch. I was told (upon call back) that maybe she'd be back in an hour, but I could be transferred to the local to me branch where there was someone who could help. Yes, please, let's try that.

Oh no, no dice: "I'm sorry, she's getting ready to go run an errand in Sherman. She'll be back in a couple hours, you could call then"

Well, ain't this place a temporal oddity? Two hours before anything can get fixed.

So, dispirited, I left my number.

Decided to call the 1-800 number again. Was told "oh no, we can't help you, your local branch has to help you, since you don't have a case number"

I became slightly irritated and noted I did not HAVE a case number as I was never NOTIFIED

"Oh, we call your phone number of record, or text"

the penny dropped - I had had my landline on there, BUT when they call? It comes from a no-name 1-800 number and I am sorry but I am NOT answering those, because then I get either dunned for more charity money I don't have to give, or asked to take a survey about our dreadful local politicians, or told that they've been trying to contact me about my car's warranty. 

So I once again asked: could you change it to my cell phone, and then text me.

She said she would, but given that I asked for this LAST time this happened, I am not sanguine.

As I was ringing off with her, the credit union called back. I explained the situation for approximately the tenth time, gave my hypothesis that the overseas (Japan) purchase of the Doki Doki subscription triggered it and 

(Bang, Chekov's Gun:)

"Oh, we don't PERMIT overseas purchases on our credit cards"

What? Huh? I was never told that before, I do not remember that from the terms when I signed up for the card. But okay, fine. Maybe it's true. Maybe it's a convenient lie to make their lives easier. Whatever. At this point: whatever.

She reinstated the card. I transferred my Doki Doki subscription BACK to my (new) Visa, will be annoyed if I have to play the shuffle game again if THIS card number gets stolen....

There HAS to be an easier way, though. This ate up a good 45 minutes of my time and pretty much all the goodwill I had for today. And I'm just irritated at what "customer service" (which is now often misnamed "customer care" and there ain't no care in at at all) has become. Yes, I know, everyone's tired, no one wants to work, but there are things I CANNOT do for myself and being given a giant runaround and probably being lied to three separate times by three separate people doesn't make me want to participate in the consumer economy any more.

(In a nicer better world where people actually did care, someone at MasterCard would either get the records of my calls, or even read this, and reach out to me to AT LEAST apologize. But since this world is now Willie Wonka screaming "You lose, you get nothing, good day sir" at us,. I don't count on anything. I get tired of pushing myself to be polite and pleasant to students and others only to receive no help when I request it)