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Chase Nearly Catches Me Off Guard, And a Status-Now.com Near SNAFU

Did Ryan Church really miss third base, costing the Mets the lead in the top half of the 11th?

Did Xavier Paul’s fly ball really fall between LF Angel Pagan and CF Carlos Beltran?

And what the heck was with that throw to the plate???

Cue Yackety Sax!

- So over at The Consumerist about a week ago, I read an article about how Chase was “inviting” certain customers to skip a payment on their credit cards, clearly with the intention to charge interest rates on existing balances.  I told myself, “Gee, I wish Chase would do that with my balance transfer!”

Fast forward to today, and I noticed something peculiar on my Excel spreadsheet made for bills.  According to the spreadsheet, I had already paid off my Chase Freedom card for the month of April (you know, the one that was made better than ever recently, if by better than ever, I mean FUBARed).  I wasn’t sure if that was right, though, so I logged in to my Chase online account.

(I know that a payment is due on a credit card account when there is a figure under the minimum payment due.  In addition, the first thing I check when I log on to my Chase account are the notices on the left hand side of the page.  Once a payment clears, the minimum payment due resets to zero, the notice goes away, and I make a note on my spreadsheet that the account is paid.)

I looked at my Freedom account, noted the minimum payment due was $0, and thought that that was peculiar.  I investigated further, and that’s when I saw the last payment date of April 13.  I knew that that didn’t sound right, so I opened up a PDF copy of my statement, and that’s when I saw the blurb quoted in the Consumerist article above:

You have the flexibility to skip a payment. you must pay past due and overlimit [sic] balances immediately. However, the remaining minimum payment for this month has been reduced to $0. Finance charges will continue to accrue. To reduce your balance, feel free to make a payment.

Thank goodness that my minimum payment of $0 was due on May 21.  It was only a $120 balance, so I suppose it wouldn’t have been a big deal if I missed the payment (even at 24%, that’s about $5 out of my pocket).  Still, that’s a few bucks of mine that Chase nearly got their hands on.

- I had a Status-Now.com rebate that was in rebate limbo from all the way back in November of 2008.  Being the lazy bastard that I am, I waited until a few days ago to inquire about the rebate.  After a brief wait on hold, I was told that the rebate was invalid due to a duplicate submission(?!?).  I couldn’t find my rebate scans, so I told the rep that I would call right back.

I checked Status-Now.com, and sure enough, it appeared that I did file duplicate rebates.  WTF, I thought to myself.  I could’ve sworn that the two rebate entries were different, and without the rebate form, how was I gonna prove it?

It took a bit of, um, URL “engineering,” but I eventually found the proper rebate form.  I called Status-Now right back, gave them the promo code of the rebate, and was stunned to hear what the rep told me.

(paraphrasing) “Sir, that rebate promotion code is for a promotion that hasn’t yet occured.”

…….

Huh?

About a minute later, I finally was able to speak again.  “Come again?” I said.

The rep put me on hold, came back on soon after, and explained that there was “probably” a typo on the rebate form.  She explained that, in the event that the promotion code is incorrect, the system automatically tries to process the rebate under the closest promotion code.

OK.

Long story short, the rep created a new record for me—she had to process it under a promotion that I’ve already done, but she assured me that it would be OK—and that she would expedite the rebate process.

Whew.

Until next time…whenever the hell that is.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , by Peter
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Frys Rebate Rant, Manny Being…Druggie?, And Why the Lakers-Rockets Series Needs to be Fought in a Steel Cage

You know it’ll take a huge story (or in this case, two!) to get me to blog again.

First things first, though.

Quick-hitters:

- 90 degrees with a RealFeel temp of 95.

I’ve officially turned off my internal “Complain About the Cold Weather” switch and turned on the “Complain About the Hot Weather” one.

- Time Warner strikes again, and I’m not talking about their threats to put usage caps on broadband users.

I called them up about a month ago, asking for ways to reduce my bill.  They offered me HBO and Cinemax for $10/mo—I was paying $15 for HBO alone—which I accepted.  They also offered to drop my Road Runner plan down to the ‘Basic’ level:  1.5Mbps down and 384kbps up.

(Not long ago, RoadRunner raised my speeds to about 8Mbps down/1Mbps up, from 5Mbps down/512k up.)

I couldn’t fathom those speeds, so I kept the RR package I was on.

Two billing statements later…and my bill is almost the same as it was prior to the changes.  You see, apparently, TW raised rates AGAIN in April, coinciding with my attempted rate reduction.


- Once again, Fry’s is coming through for me over a rebate hassle, this time with a pair of AVG rebates handled by the now bankrupt Continental Promotions Group (CPG).

Unfortunately, unlike past instances, Fry’s dragged their feet this time around. Back in January, I emailed Fry’s about two “lost” rebates, totaling $30.  Two days later, I got a reply saying that they needed me to fax in my rebate documentation.  I did so, and got an email soon after saying that they were going to look in to it.

Out of laziness, I didn’t follow up on my rebate resubmission until March.  I sent Fry’s another email, asking about the status of my rebates.  Here was their response:

Thank you for contacting Frys.com.

It was giving to the Rebate department and they will be handling your
paperwork. They should be e-mailing you shortly.

Please let us know if we can be of further assistance.

I wonder what would have happened if I never bothered to email them.

A month later (again, out of laziness), I still had yet to hear anything about my rebates.  I sent Fry’s another email, asking for an update.  Here was their response:

I do apologize for all the inconvenience this may have caused. We have
done a change in our rebate inquiry department. And your forms have
been misplaced. Again my sincere apologies, if you could please fax
them again and we will expedite them to get you, your refund. So if you
could please fax at the number below.

Needless to say, I was livid.  They lost my rebate documentation, and they couldn’t have told me this earlier?

Naturally, as an a**hole customer, I sent them a hate-filled email, demanding quick resolution to this situation.  Here was their latest reply:

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to assist you with your rebate
inquiry. Please be assured that we are committed to having your rebates
honored. Due to the inconvenience, we will be issuing a check for the
rebate amount of $10.00 and $20.00. You should expect your rebate check
within the next following 4-6 weeks. Again, we apologize for the
inconvenience and thank you in advance for your patience and
understanding.

Usually, Fry’s first response to a rebate resubmission resembles the response above (nice alliteration, eh?).  I should have known that I was going to be in for a fight when I didn’t receive an immediate response from the Fry’s rebate department.

I’ll update this post (I promise!) if/when I get the rebate check(s).

Sure, I understand that eating a pair of rebates because a rebate company went bankrupt sucks, but that doesn’t justify jerking around with a customer.

- So much was going right for the Dodgers so far this season that you knew something was going to happen.  Never in my wildest dreams, however, seeing this headline on Yahoo! Sports this morning:

Dodgers star slugger Manny Ramirez has been suspended 50 games for a drug violation.

Although the news still hasn’t quite sunk in yet, here are my quick thoughts on the story:

1) AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

Now that I got that out of my system…

2) Am I really supposed to believe that Manny used an alleged sexual enhancer?

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the substance is supposed to boost sex drive.

Two sources said Ramirez tested positive for a gonadotropin. Major League baseball’s list of banned substances includes the gonadotropins LH and HCG, which are most commonly used by women as fertility drugs. They also can be used to trigger testosterone production. Testosterone is depleted by steroid use, which can cause sexual dysfunction.

Yeah, right, and Raffy Palmeiro really took a B-12 shot.

EDIT:  Now that I’ve had some time to digest the news, let me add that there is a chance, of course, that Manny really did just mess up, and he wasn’t really juicing.  If it really was just an honest screw up, then good, but can you really blame me for assuming the worst?

3) So what does this mean for the Dodgers this year?  I think they’ll be fine, as long as Manny produces once he’s allowed back on to the field.  In the meantime, you know Hudson and Ethier are going to take huge hits to their production, you know Furcal, Loney, and Martin are going to have to produce, and the thought of Juan Pierre in “Mannywood” has to give Dodger fans flashbacks of…2008…unless prospect OF Xavier Paul immediately starts hitting the cover off the ball.

*shudder*

Here’s a scary thought.  What if Andruw Jones had re-dedicated himself BEFORE he was paid by the Dodgers to go away, and became a semi-productive fourth OF for the Dodgers this season?

I can dream, can’t I?

With the rest of the NL Worst being plain awful, I don’t see the Dodgers losing too much ground in the standings.  Remember, we weren’t too bad last year with three automatic outs in our lineup every game:  Jones, whoever manned SS, and the pitcher’s spot.  As long as Billingsley and Wolf keep pitching well, and we get anything out of the 4 and 5 spot in the rotation, and if the bullpen holds up…

Ok, now I’m nervous.  It is really that outrageous to suggest that the entire Dodgers season might hinge on Chad Billingsley’s leg and Orlando Hudson’s wrist?

Then again, do not discount the possibility of 2008 redux, when the Dodgers acquired Manny in the summer.  When the Dodgers get him back in July, would anybody be surprised if he plays out of his mind down the stretch again?

(Would it also not surprise me if he dogs the rest of the season, accepts the option for next year, and goes “Manny?”  Sigh.)

4) So what does this mean for Manny’s HOF credibility?  Ask me again later.  I still haven’t decided if A-Rod, Bonds, and Clemens are no longer HOF worthy.

Why?  Simply put, do we know exactly when these players were juicing?  Were they HOFers before they started juicing?  Does that even matter?

5) And what does this mean for the rest of the MLB?  Albert Pujols must really be uncomfortable today.  When A-Rod got caught taking steroids in 2003, that just about make everybody skeptical about everyone in an MLB uniform.  How do we know that Pujols, Pedroia, Hamilton, Longoria, etc., never cheated either?  Manny’s suspension is only going to fan those flames even more.  I wonder how many fans got turned off by MLB over the A-Rod roid scandal, and how many more will get turned off over today’s news.

EDIT:  Despite my backtracking above (see the previous edit), I still stand by my statement that this story is going to continue to “fan those flames.”  How can it not?  And what if Manny is lying about the use of this drug?  Then what?

Oh yeah, and props to me for avoiding any Viagra- or Cialis-type jokes!

- Finally, after the Royal Rumble last night at Staples Center, I’m worried over who is going to get suspended for Game 3.

If we’re going by the letter of the law, Derek Fisher is going to get suspended for sure.  Kobe Bryant might, as well, and I’m 50/50 on whether or not Ron Artest will get suspended too.  I’m 50/50 not because I think he deserves to be suspended, but don’t tell me the “Malice at the Palace” incident still isn’t fresh in the minds of the NBA.

I’ll admit that I laughed when Scola, after talking crap to practically the entire 5 on the court for the Lakers, got smacked down by Fisher, the same way that I’m sure that Phoenix Suns fans are still laughing at Raja Bell’s “Ole!” takedown of Kobe in Game 5 of the Suns-Lakers series from a few years back.

Don’t expect me to buy Fisher’s argument that the play looked worse than it was because “because Scola stopped short of where [he] expected him to be.”  We all saw Fisher man-hug his teammates and walk off the court with a huge grin on his face.  And don’t expect Scola to apologize for running into your head with his chest.

As for the Kobe elbow to Artest, the letter of the law says he should be suspended as well; then again, Rajon Rando mistakened Brad Miller’s head for a pinata and, not only did he not get called for a flagrant or get suspended, he was revered by his own coach!  I thought the Kobe elbow was flagrant, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as Dwight Howard’s elbow “punch” to Samuel Dalembert’s head.  I do wish there was a better camera angle of the incident, though, than the one showing us only the backs of both players.  It still wouldn’t surprise me if Kobe got suspended for the elbow, however.

EDIT:  Here’s a reverse-angle replay of the elbow.  It looked pretty flagrant to me.)

(Speaking of Rondo, if the league suspends Orlando G Rafer Alston for slapping the back of Celtics G Eddie House’s head—and they should, IMO—that’s just gonna make Rondo’s non-flagrant, non-suspension after Game 5 of the Celtics-Bulls series even more ridiculous.)

So what do I think will happen?  Kobe and Fisher will be suspended for Game 3, and the Lakers will get run right off the floor.  They’ll steal Game 4 in another bloodbath, and the league will agree to line the Staples Center floor with barbed wire and a steel fence in preparation for Game 5.

If ever I wanted a series to go best of 15, this is it!

See ya in three months :P.

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