I've completely lost my mind... shocking? no, not really.

I knew the second the automated voice picked up that I was not gonna be happy.  The voice was annoying.  It was either a very effeminate male voice or it was an older female voice who had spent the majority of life smoking a pack a day.  Either way it was annoying.  The voice proceeded to tell me how bad cold weather was for water pipes and how the company was not authorized to light a pilot lights.  Ok.  Good info.  But I needed to pay my bill.  And it was the warmest day of the year.  Not really worrying about frozen pipes or unlight pilot lights, but ok… good info. 

Turns out this whole phone incident could have been avoided had I not neglected to pay the stupid bill.  But the whole life/work/family thing got in the way and when I realized the due date it was too late to mail a check.  So it’s all my fault and I have no one to blame but myself.  Ugh!!!!

So the next section of the phone call was the payment section. Ok, I was almost there. This section allowed me to “voice” my account and credit card information.  Awesome.  Since I had chosen the opportune moment of driving home to make this transaction, voicing rather than dialing in my numbers was definitely safer.  Oprah would be proud! Safety first!

I spoke the account number in… not problem. Numbers are numbers.  Evil computer can figure out the account number.  But that’s when it all went to pot.  At first, it was just a misunderstanding.  One number off.  Yea. Well it’s a cell phone, so connections aren’t always reliable.  I’ll try again.  I used to be a dispatcher for the police department.  I know how to speak clearly, but no, I did not say 2759.  Not even remotely close to 4436. Yes I will try again.  Nope, that’s not it either.  No, not it…. Once again.  After about ten times, I not only know my credit card number by heart, but I was really angry; not really angry… very angry. 

At this point, I begin screaming at the automated he/she voice.  Now, I realize that it’s not a human, thus cannot react to me.  I realize that a cell phone isn’t reliable for proper voice recognition.  I also realize that the madder I got, the less likely this computer would recognize the number. However common sense was beyond me at this point.  Reason had abandoned me.  I had lost my ever-lovin’ mind. I was mad.  And further, I let that computer he/she voice have it.  Then he/she had the nerve to toss my call back up to the beginning.  Where he/she informed me AGAIN that winter weather was bad on my pipes. This time, I replied back…”no really?!?!” to that he/she says “That is an invalid entry.”  As if hateful (as I began to refer to this he/she satanic machine would know a valid entry… he/she can’t even get four digits of my card right, what can she possibly know about the validity of MY number… and it’s MY card!!!

I’m sure my blood pressure was sky high.  I’m sure the veins in my neck were protruding.  I’m also sure that I was quite the sight to passing motorists.  However I didn’t care.  Hateful was wrong and someone needed to tell her.  If I continually messed up my job, I wouldn’t have it.  Why does she get to royally mess up the number and I have to deal with it?!?  And it’s obvious that I didn’t deal well with it.  Now I’m a big idiot, and I know it.  Yet I can’t stop it.  Again, UGH!!!!!

As I sit here relaying this info down, I can see the error of my ways.  I can see that I reacted like a crazy woman.  Yet I couldn’t control it.

The good news is that a really nice HUMAN lady that helped me pay my bill after a horrendously long wait with REALLY bad music (don’t even get me started on that….topic.  I mean seriously… do they have a really bad hold music discount store somewhere?).  

Psalms 37:8 states “Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret--it leads only to evil.”   I would assume that this can only be a forewarning against evil computers.  Seriously I should have refrained, but I didn’t.  I can only hope to learn from this, and the next time I forget to send my payment, that I will exercise patience and kindness.  Even though the evil he/she computer won’t realize the difference.    Heaven help us!!!