Dear So and So

[azfiddle]

Dear Honda sales guy,

I don't know if I'm happy or not that you persuaded us (especially my DH), to trade in our 2010 Honda Fit for a 2013 model while we were in buying 2 new tires. On the one hand, the payments are not that much more and the interest rate is fantastic, we now have a brand new car with 18 miles on the odometer, and the blue matches my bike perfectly. On the other hand....we are going to owe $260 a month for 5 more years, instead of $212 a month for 26 months....

[Blueberry]

Dear [REGIONAL BUS SERVICE OPERATOR]:

You suck. I have been on the phone with you constantly about your operation of a bus you just took over since you took a good bus and made it crappy. Now, we need new parking permits to park in a commuter garage that is the ONLY place to park and ride in a city with very limited bus service going into neighborhoods (so people can't take the bus all the way). There aren't enough of the permits for everyone who wants one (by a long shot), but you sent an email saying they could be picked up as of 6AM today (the new ones - I have one, but you changed your gate system on really short notice). Given that you don't have enough of them, I figured I needed to be early. It seems you can't read or don't know your own hours, since the office doesn't open until 8:30 (after I got up at 5:30 to be there at 6, I discovered this).

You are supposed to be getting an additional sales tax revenue (we have bumped our sales tax to fund you so you can actually provide service that's worth a d@mn). I'm a huge environmental person, and therefore mass transit supporter. But - you've finally frustrated me to the point that I think we should give up on it. You are incompetent and inefficient, and I can only imagine how many new ways you'll find to waste that extra money without actually providing any better service. #FAIL

Signed,

Grumpy to have gotten up this early and now not have time to exercise

[tulip]

Bummer, Blueberry! Can you take the academic scholar bus? Bike to university near you, bus to other one? It's free last I heard.

ETA: I just looked it up and I think you ARE talking about the academic bus. Too bad they messed it up!! Any way you can ride your bike instead of driving to the bus stop to eliminate the parking issues?

(ETA again: I took that regional bus back when I was in grad school, and the service ran once an hour, stopped running at 6pm every day, no direct routes between the universities (I went to two at the same time because my program was a jointly run endeavor--had to make the transfer mid-way) and had vans instead of buses...so it was worse at one point, it really was! Doesn't help you now, but just giving a little context. I hope it gets better).

[Blueberry]

You're right - I've been taking the academic one, but it's been so often late and there are so many safety issues that it's just about not worth it (regularly running red lights, panhandling on the bus). It's being operated by the city agency, not the regional one - and I think that's actually worse. At least I do have a free pass for it - it's now the "express bus" fare, and it's pretty expensive for most people.

I should bike to it - I know I should - but it means having to lug around even more stuff for the day. That and cold rainy weather is why I haven't been. And there aren't bike racks at the most convenient stop (but they are working on that, I think). I don't use the parking permit *that* much, but when the other half is out of town (which he will be for a week soon), it makes more sense for me to do it that way. I know it was worse - I actually remember back in 2000-ish that it wasn't as good. But if you rely on the regional service, the routes that don't take 1.5 hours still end really early. Bleh. I just wish they could get their acts together.

At least I got a permit. The other half went at 8:30 with my old drivers' license, my parking contract, and the old pass. They gave him the new one. I also have the ear of someone who is trying to fix things, I think. I'm hanging in there with it - I just wish we would *actually build* regional rail.

[tulip]

I know! I was taking that bus mid- to late- 1990s and they were talking about regional rail back then, almost 20 years ago! If they had just done it, we wouldn't be having this conversation now! I'm actually trying to figure out how to get to one of those hospitals for an appt on Fri on the regional bus. I'll likely just end up asking my brother for a ride (for an eye appt--can't drive). Such potential for an awesome system, and yet they don't actually do anything to make it happen!

[Blueberry]

PM me if I can help.

[Veronica]

Dear Tech Department:

Really? Your mailbox appears to be unavailable. Try to access it again in 10 seconds. If you see this error again, contact your helpdesk.

But those tickets are suppose to be done by email. Maybe you guys are lonely and you want everyone calling you today.

Veronica