Gah, RL.

I just got one of those calls (yes, at a very late hour) telling me that we/I had screwed up at work.  The big issue -- ongoing -- is that I don't think anyone is clear on where my areas of responsibility end.  I definitely thought that this particular issue fell outside my jurisdiction and responsibility but there is a price to being the relatively responsible and accessible one in my workplace and that price is that people come to you with all problems no matter how clearly or how often you state, "I am not in charge of this."  And fine, if no one else (read: the people who are MEANT to be in charge of this) is actually there to take responsibility, I guess maybe it's my problem by default?  Sigh.  I feel terrible and guilty and like I should have done something preemptively but god. damn. it.  I AM NOT IN CHARGE OF EVERYTHING!

Apparently I am now also the de facto manager of profuse apologies and promises to track down the source of the problem and correct it.

Sorry this is all completely vague.  Mostly I am just venting and feeling awful.

[/sad]

I love that you can now change most contact info for accounts online, it's lovely and convenient and sidesteps all that unpleasant waiting on the phone listening to godawful hold music and then trying to decipher interesting accents of call centre workers from Louisiana who have never heard of your city or province or possibly your country.

That is, assuming the stupid online account sites work.

I just spent ten minutes trying to convince my (ostensibly Canadian) wireless service provider's site that Alberta is, in fact, still a province, and is not, in fact, 'invalid'. Finally gave up and sat through the painful phone call procedure instead.

Dear (faux-patriotic) Company,

Is it so hard to contract out the automated menu messages to a Canadian voice actor person? We Canadians say 'ad-dress, not ad-'dress, for the noun form of the verb. Like 'a-dult instead of a-'dult. Yes, Rodney Mckay, like 'zed' instead of 'zee'.

Maybe it seems insignificant, but these little slips MAKE US AWARE THAT YOU ARE AMERICAN and your careful campaign of fooling us into thinking you're Canadian? -- with all your little '.ca's and 'Canada Inc.'s and sponsorship of CFL football -- IS WASTED AT THIS POINT.

Distastefully yours,

Plor