Comcast, you do a very poor job!

We went through this w/ the phone company, before the govt came in and broke them up: when you have a monopoly, and no choice in services, you get poor service.

This afternoon, I was in the middle of watching a tv show and - dead.  Or rather more accurately I got the screen that you get when your bill is overdue, in order to be reconnected.  As I didn't have my account number, I had to call.  Comcast, here is why you are doing a very poor job:

I first spoke to a woman who insisted I had been disconnected at the pole on July 2d.  She didn't believe me when I insisted I've had full cable service until ten minutes ago, on July 12th, at just past three in the afternoon.

The automated service said my bill is due in three days - so if thats the case, why was I disconnected early?!

Also, the automated said I was overdue by $88, but the woman who stuck to the pole story said it was only $29 past due.

Not wanting to argue with a woman who insisted I had been without service since the 2d when I have not, I figured - Jean, just pay the dammed bill and be reconnected!  Now, here's another problem:  with other cable service companies, if I have the account number, I can pay online and avoid all fees.  But this woman is telling me I won't be able to pay online, because yes I'm disconnected at the pole so that will be another $5.95 for phone processing.  I smell a rat, but I want my computer, so, ok.

But it doesn't log on.  So I'm shifted to Sales.  

The woman in sales was really remarkable, walking me through modem shutoff and restart.  My only problem was her very pronounced accent.  I know of at least one professional woman whose company sent her to a specific language school to lose her accent and I think Comcast needs to do the same.

Well, anyway ... that didn't work, either.  So I was shifted to someone else, who asked me to read the number on the bottom of my modem.   I'm reading this off to her and she starts saying she can't hear me, we're disconnected, I'm screaming HELLO HELLO HELLO she hangs up -the whole time I could hear her, she *suddenly* couldn't hear me.

Well, I'm back online, anyway, Comcast be dammed.