okay.. so I don’t know what to do with myself, so I’m going to vent and try not to whine…

First of all, my apologies have to go out to my poor unfortunate roomies, who all had the misfortune of having no hot water this morning because… the gas was cut off. The even worse news, it is “scheduled” to be turned on sometime tomorrow between 8am and 4pm, and someone must be home to let them in.

THIS is ultimately my fault, because I didn’t notice that after paying four months of bills with a certain account number, that the gas company had changed the account number. So my big fat May payment, sent w/o paper stub because I use online billpay, had the old account number, which just so happens to be the account number for the apartment complex, and it was credited to their account not ours, and I am left with proving to the gas company that I paid that bill. EVEN though they admit they have a payment in that amount to the account I said for the date I said, they don’t believe that I forgot to update the account number… they want copy of cancelled check.

Well, with autobillpay, they DO send paper checks, but I only get copies if I request them… which I immediately do. I get all the info, Names, extensions, fax numbers, for the girl at the gas company, and then give all that info to Wachovia with my request. Meanwhile, I went ahead and made another payment on the account.. autobillpay, correct account number, they get it… no problem. Few days later, get a phone call and an email from Wachovia saying they had contacted the Gas Company, and it was all straightened out. SO.. silly me takes them at their word.

Now, yesterday we get a notice from the apartments on our door that they were notified that we have a past due gas bill. Yesterday was busy, I was thinking I should call and make sure things were straightened out but, well, didn’t happen yesterday… WHICH is unfortunate because THIS morning it was disconnected.

SO, I try to call the gas company, not open yet.

So I call Wachovia, they show in their records about the investigation and how they contacted the gas co., and how they contacted me, etc, and thought it was all fixed. SO, I told them it apparently wasn’t, since the gas is OFF, and they deemed to reopen the investigation, getting a copy of the cancelled check and sending to the fax number that I provided. I asked why they hadn’t done that the FIRST time I asked for it, oh say 15 days ago, and they said they were told it wasn’t necessary by the gas company.

SO, I call the gas company, prepared to raise hell, and well, they don’t show any record of anyone from Wachovia contacting them in any way. No argument can be made.. I give them the name and extension of the girl I talked to, that I had given Wachovia to talk to, and that girl says nobody called her. I don’t know who to believe, I can’t really prove anything since I don’t know who to call Liar, so I just tell the lady that I had already called the bank again, and she should get proof within 3 days…

NOW the fun part. How the hell do we get service turned back on, and I already knew the answer.. pay the bill.. again.. right now, over the phone. So I offer to do that, but it seems because of the disconnect we now have to pay $150 deposit on top of the bill to get it turned back on. I can’t help thinking this disconnect is SO NOT MY FAULT, but well, we need hot water, so the full amount is paid. I ask them.. what happens when my other payment is credited, she’s like.. well, then your payment and deposit will go on as a credit on your account. Great… so I wont have to worry about paying the gas bill for a while… fat lot of good that does me right now that I’m broke from double paying plus deposit today.

So, after spending nearly 1 1/2 hours total on the phone, I finally hear the words “Your account status is now cleared…” and just as I am about to ask how soon until service is restored the rest of what she is saying sinks in.. “you now need to call this number, for an Atlanta Gas technician to schedule an appointment for them to restart your service. Someone will need to be home for them to start service.”

So, I call AG, AG doesn’t show our account clear… I start to explode, but the woman suggests I wait a half hour and call back.. that the system is just slow. Before I hang up, I ask what the chances of getting it turned back on today are, and she says, well, very slim, that maybe if it were clear right now, but in half an hour she bets it will be Thursday or Friday. And, what do you know, she is right… in half an hour, I get an appointment for 8-4 tomorrow.

So, now the question is, our account is up to date, thanks to double paying that May bill. Do I just sit here and ASSUME Wachovia is going to do their job THIS TIME and provide the paper evidence that I wrote the check that got credited to the wrong account? I think JamesT put it succinctly this afternoon when he heard the news… “So, are you ready to change fucking banks yet?”

Yes, damn it. Yes I am. Even though uses the SAME bank, the SAME autobillpay and has NEVER had a problem, I seem plagued with them from this bank. Now if I only had more than $40 to my name I’d go right out and open a new account.

Anyway.. excuse me while I go cry about how powerless I am.