Today is Wednesday 13th April

Today is day three without our internet connection and a landline.
We are convinced it is simply a case of them not switching us on at their end, though it is a worry that they can find no record of an account under our new phone number. We have checked the email correspondence we have by piggypacking on our neighbour’s broadband line and we have the correct number.
I am also worried that they will sting us £85 for the fault trying to put the blame on us.
Our internet and phone line were working perfectly on Sunday but there is no connection coming into the house now and we have tried both sockets. When calling the new number from our mobile, it is ringing, but not here!
We have checked several times every day by lifting the receiver hopeful to hear a dialling tone but are greeted with silence.
We have always said that everyone is too reliant on technology and this is a perfect example. We have received text messages referring us to their website as they assume we have a smartphone.
We cannot check our emails, the weather, the news, look anything up or access our blogs.
If we didn’t have our mobiles, which are simply PAYG with text facility and a lousy camera, we wouldn’t be able to contact anyone because they have now removed the public telephone box from the end of our road.

Our engineer is due to come between 1pm and 6pm, so as I am collecting our friend’s daughter from the railway station because she is still too poorly to drive, I will be taking Hubby’s mobile in case they ring with a change of plan. To be honest, that would not surprise me.
On Monday when we were supposed to go live, a little man in his van had been playing the knitting came in the junction box at the end of the road, and had also driven up our street. Hubby flagged him down on the way back, but he couldn’t help us as it was not on his job sheet.
Yesterday, another van was parked in our road and someone else was knitting in the junction box so perhaps Monday’s guy had dropped a stitch and they sent someone with more experience or a crochet hook. That van also drove down our road to drive out again an hour later.

My mobile In Box has been flooded with text messages from them confirming this, that and the other, and the last ten messages are all about failure.
Years ago, when you had a fault with your phone line, you rang one number and they were able to test the line there and then, even if it wasn’t your own. It would appear this is an impossible task now and customers are either expected to do all the running, or they send out an engineer two days later in the hope of making a quick buck.
It reminds me of when I worked for the gas board in 1972-73 and we had moved into our new property after living with my grandfather for almost a year. The house had been empty for over 20 years and still had gas lighting, which actually worked. Dad was able to get a grant from the council (as well as a council mortgage) for electricity and central heating, but the original gas meter needed to be replaced. No more was it a case of one guy did all, so we had someone come to take away the meter that hadn’t been disconnected, then someone else come to fit the meter that hadn’t been delivered.. In the end, I got it done on a gas escape and all it took was one fitter who did the lot in less than half an hour.

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