I'm sure everyone has had one of those days when they wished they just hadn't got out o...

I'm sure everyone has had one of those days when they wished they just hadn't got out of bed? Well, this Friday was that day for me. And, it all started on Thursday, when both the hotspot on my iPhone and my jetpack fritzed out at the same time. I panicked. I knew my iPhone and jetpack were old and I rely on both extensively to provide to me a rather low-cost solution for Wi-Fi out in the boonies. So, I ran into town and went to the Verizon store. **The last time I'd been there was many years ago so I didn't know that a Verizon store does not necessarily mean a Verizon Company. That was mistake number *. So, I went in and was immediately diagnosed with having old equipment (little did I know at the time that Verizon was experiencing intermittent service interruptions on Thursday and everyone in my small town was affected that day). Their solution to me, was of course, new equipment! I told them that was fine as long as my monthly bill would not increase one penny. They said, "No Problem." That was mistake number * - believing them. So, I purchased the phone they recommended to me. It was not an Apple product - a product that I'm familiar with - and that was Mistake number *. **As you might guess, as soon as I brought the phone home and began exploring how to use its features, I was immediately disappointed. But, the one thing I just couldn't get past was the poor sound quality. It sounded very muffled and I could not turn the volume up high enough to hear many things at all. It was then I realized that this new phone would not do. So, I called a Corporate Verizon Customer Call Center in San Francisco that very night and asked them for help. They said the local Verizon store I dealt with committed many sins, not the least of which was selling a non-apple phone product to a long-time apple user. She worked with me for hours to get the right phone for me and the best service agreement to suit my needs. She told me she would send the new phone directly to my house and I could use that same box with the supplied mailing label to send the erroneous phone back to her. Hooray. Problem solved. **Not so fast. The next day (Friday) the Verizon Corporate rep called me at home that morning and told me that she had some bad news for me. She said the Verizon store with the Verizon sign was not actually a Verizon store. What you say? The very one that's always been a Verizon store? She said, I cannot help you, you have to go back to the store that sold you the wrong phone, the wrong cover, the unnecessary expensive insurance and the unnecessary magic wipes that harden to armor-plated diamond-like protection that will protect the phone from virtually all nuclear devices except Russia's. But, she said, I will call them on your behalf, tell them you're coming, tell them exactly what phone you need, and tell them not to sell you all the other unnecessary stuff. Wow! Surely, that girl is a customer service angel sent to me by God Himself! Her name was Thursday! **Approximately an hour later, she called to tell me that she had spoken to the manager about my situation, she made sure they had the phone I needed in stock, she told me what their hours were, and everything else they needed to know. I told her I had a few things to do but I would leave this very day (Friday) and run into town from the lake just to get the right phone. And, that was *th and final Mistake. Life got really, really, ugly after that.**I walked into the Verizon store and I sensed that this might not be the pleasant experience promised to me by the Corporate Verizon rep. When I walked in, the manager simply looked at me very sternly and commanded* "Sign In!" So, I did. I was third in line and the other two were being helped, so I thought this can still be a quick thing. **It must have been bill paying day because one after the other stepped up to the counter to pay their bill without even being told to, "Sign In!" Soon it became dozens of people. And then multiples of dozens. That's when I decided to call Corporate Verizon and let them know just how they were being represented in Cordele, Georgia. I stepped just outside the front door so I wouldn't disturb anyone inside the store as well as being available to any of the employees who just might tell me that they were ready to help me. Never assume! Never assume! Never assume!**Finally, about an hour later, only one customer remained. So, I walked in and asked the first available employee that I saw if she wanted to help me. She said nothing. Instead, she looked over to her manager and asked her manager, "What should I do?" Her manager replied, "Well, I'm not going to help him!" And the other employee joined in the chorus that they were absolutely not going to help me and that I needed to leave. So, I reminded the manager that I had been there for over an hour patiently waiting to be helped while I watched as they helped everyone and anyone but me. I went to the table and brought her the log of sign-ins with the actual times. She responded by shoving my face away with her open hand then clenching both of my arms as though to prevent a physical response by me. She then dug her nails in me so hard that I later had to use the sign-in sheets to remove all the blood from my arm. Interestingly, those sign-in sheets mysteriously disappeared. In the meantime, the other employee was calling the police - ON ME! She said, you need to leave. The Police are coming. I simply said, "Good." I mean, what did I have to fear? That was Mistake number *. As soon as the police officer arriver he told me to wait outside while he interviewed the employees. It was then when I saw police officer number * arrive to the scene. I thought to myself, "Boy are they ever in trouble now." Within a few minutes you could see that the tables had turned. The first officer told me to turn around while he handcuffed me. I asked, "What are you basing you judgement on." He said, "It's on video." I said, "Did you watch it?" He said, "We'll all see it on the day of your court appearance." I said, "If you hadn't watched it, how can you be certain that you're arresting the right person? This question was plainly one that he did not want to answer. And into the hot back seat of the squad car I went. I waited in that horrible heat so long I thought I was beginning to black out and when I finally got to the county Jail, I was all wet from sweat. All this because I wanted the simple refund that Thursday at the Corporate Verizon store in San Francisco said that I was entitled to.*Brian Bickhaus*(***) - *** - **********@***.com***** Lakeshore Court**** Lakeshore Way*Cordele, Georgia *****