Bad Car Day

I was really excited yesterday when I found out there is a farmer's market in Buena Park on Saturday mornings. I've been wanting to go to one, but I hadn't een able to find one that occured nearby when I wasn't working. So I planned to go this morning when Bobby was working on his homework.

Erica had taken the Civic for the weekend, since she doesn't have a car yet, and Bobby and I don't normally need more than one car on the weekends.

But when I made it out to the Accord, the tire was flat. I mean really flat. Like, couldn't be any flatter. The tire has been low consistently lately, and we knew we needed to replace the tires soon. I was hoping to sell it before then but oh well.

We didn't really want to wait while they changed out the tires, but again, Erica had the Civic, and Bobby's employee had the truck. But my dad's truck was at our house. Bootlegger's Brewery was getting a super deal on some new tanks, so my dad and brother had rented a flat bed truck to transport them... leaving his truck at my house. I called to ask if we could use the truck for a couple hours while we had new tires put on the Accord. "Sure, no problem."

So Bobby inflated the tire and hopped in the Accord, while I jumped in the truck. He decided to turn north on Brookhurst, while I decided to take advantage of the green light and continue on towards Euclid. Just after I went through the intersection, I saw the front of a car pull out right in front of me.

The woman had pulled out of a parking lot, crossed all the westbound lanes, and right out in front of me (the police confirmed she was clearly at fault). I couldn't see her until right before I hit her because she was hidden behind all the westbound cars waiting at the light, so I hit her at almost 40 mph.

Neither car was drivable afterwards, and we were stuck straddling the only two eastbound lanes. Firetruck, ambulance, two police cars, and two motorcycle cops - we got the full treatment. Had to shut down all eastbound traffic on Ball for at least a half hour. Two people in the other car went to the hospital, but everyone was able to get out of the car without aid, so no one was hurt too badly.

Even though it wasn't my fault, I felt pretty bad about my dad's truck. It's on the old and beaten side, so it would cost more to fix it than it's worth. My parents, of course, just keep telling me it's no big deal and they are just glad I'm okay, and now they seem to be excited about buying a new truck, as if I did them a favor by putting the final nail in the coffin.



You would think that were the end of my car troubles for the day, but it wasn't.

My farmer's market plans were aborted, and I just went back home to make some Spinach Artichoke Dip (that is an awesome recipe, and easy enough to half). My mom's family had planned a lunch at the nursing home to celebrate what would have been my grandparents' 54th anniversary, were my grandmother still alive. My aunt made some fantastic lasagna, my uncles a beautiful salad and garlic/butter bread, and my mom a pasta salad.

But when Bobby and I got in the car to head to the nursing home - the car wouldn't start.

After a couple minutes of retrying the key, it finally did start. The battery will likely also need replacing. Just add that to the list.

On the way to the party, we called Erica and told her to just be careful driving today. Call us superstitious, but it seems like we are having really bad luck with vehicles today. At the nursing home, chatting with my uncle, he said he's almost been run over by a car this moring, as a pedestrian. After the party, the car again wouldn't start for a few minutes.

My aunt, uncle and mom came by to chat and try a few wines. Dad and Murray joined us when they were done with at the brewery. We grilled up some burgers and ate leftover pasta salad.

When they all left, Brian and Jessica came over with her brother. Jessica told me that my Civic had been egged last night or early today, but they were able to wash it off before it dried. I'm telling you, a very bad day for me and cars...

This Makes Me Sad

I admit it - I'm a Googlephile. I know that many of their services can be improved, but I'm still a big fan. One of the blogs I subscripe to is Googling Google - it basically keeps up with things Google is up to. This morning's post was really simple: Google colors their ads for Gay Pride week. Essentially, if you search for the word "gay" you'll see a rainbow stripe down the page to the left of the Ads section. Not for everyone, just if you search for "gay." It seemed a non-issue to me.

Reading through the comments at the bottom was really saddening. There were a number of commentators saying that because of this they would be ceasing to use Google products or support the company. There was a lot of outright gay bashing. I realize that living in Southern California I am often surrounded by people more accepting of homosexuality, but the outright hatred some people have is disturbing and saddening.

When I hear this kind of hatred being justified with religion, I want to point out that if these people actually followed their own religion, they would remmeber that it is not their place to judge - only God's - and refrain from judging and hating others. I'll admit that I am often very judgemental of others. But rarely do I express it out loud; it normally stays in my head. Why? Because I don't think I have the right to tell people how to live their lives.

Mediocre Results

I had such great plans for this weekend. No, not "things to do" plans, more meal plans. I'd been surfing Epicurious the last few weeks and picked a few recipes I really wanted to try out, and I figured the holiday weekend would allow me the chance to try them. I'm really trying to make and eat new things, otherwise I find myself in a rut - making the things I know, and know I like.

I left work early on Friday, and did all my grocery shopping. I had multiple stops to make, but my hope was that I wouldn't have to return to the store for the remainder of the weekend. This was my meal plan for the weekend:

Friday Dinner: Gorgonzola Burgers with Portabella Mushrooms
Saturday Lunch: Tuna Melts with Tomato, Potage a l'Oignon
Saturday Dinner: Salmon with Fennel, Steamed Broccoli, Banana Coffee Cake with Chocolate Chip Streusel
Sunday Lunch: Mixed Green Salads with Grilled Chicken
Sunday Dinner: Chicken in Riesling, Chocolate Ice Cream
Monday: Salmon Spring Rolls with Coriander Dipping Sauce, Mixed Baby Green Salad with Ginger Dressing, Asian Style Pork Spareribs with Jasmine Rice with Garlic, Ginger, and Cilantro, Mango Sorbet

Ambitious, right? I had deserts and everything! I tried to balance the meals so we weren't eating heavy foods for both lunch and dinner, and with Monday, I was making an attempt at courses. I like the idea of courses, of small portions of variety. Bobby's never hungry in the morning, so I wasn't planning breakfasts - that would just be random.

The Gorgonzola Burgers were good. I just chopped up some red onion and crumbled Gorgonzola in with the meat, grilled the patties and the mushrooms, and added a slice of Provolone on top of the patties. In hindsight, I think it would be better to make a paste out of the Gorgonzola and melt it on the top of the patty after flipping it, rather than grilling it inside the meat. Other than that, it was pretty tasty. I wanted a vegetable, so I grilled some halved endives to go with the burgers, since I'm trying to avoid fries.

My Tuna Melts are always good. Albacore, chopped red onion, garlic salt, pepper, mayo, always on (buttered) sourdough bread (large peices, from the bakery department), always with sliced tomato, and various cheese. I almost never use cheddar or jack. Bobby loves PepperJack and other spiced cheeses; I prefer Provolone, Gouda, Edam, and other milder cheeses. I layer them - bread, cheese, tomato, tuna, tomato, cheese bread. I also tend to put almost a can on each sandwich, so I have to cook them on relatively low heat for awhile so the heat gets all the way through. I usually eat half of one; Bobby eats his and my other half. The soup is a great compliment to the tuna, and I've made it before and know its delicious. I highly recommend it.

Dinner on Saturday - not so good. I'd never had Fennel before. I knew it is anise-flavored (read: licorice flavored), and I've never been fond of licorice (in fact, I can't stand it), but I think it is such a pretty looking vegetable, and it's in season right now, so I thought I would give it a try. I figured it would be a lighter flavor and just maybe...

Unfortunately... No. The whole kitchen smelled like licorice. I skipped the Pernod (I didn't want to buy a bottle of liquor I'm never going to drink, and I wanted to lighten the anise flavor anyway), and it was still too licorice-y. The salmon at least came out ok, and since I had the broccoli we could just avoid the fennel. I won't be making anything with fennel again.

Lunch on Sunday was again something I've made before and liked; also just very simple. Jon came over to chat for a bit, and I just happened to have one extra chicken breast, so he joined us for lunch as well. I just cut the veggies and grilled the chicken, then gave everyone cheese, nut, and dressing options.

The Chicken in Reisling was okay - not great, not bad, just there. I think I would make it again, but use onion and garlic as well, and flour the chicken or add something to thicken the sauce some. I can tell I didn't use enough salt as well. Since it was just the two of us I just used two chicken breasts, instead of a whole chicken, but next time I think I'll use thighs, or something smaller; maybe even just some boneless breasts - the breasts I used were so large that they stuck up way out of the sauce.

I knew that if I didn't use them up this weekend, all the leftovers in the fridge would just go bad in there, so instead of making something special for lunch on Monday, I just made some tacos with some leftovers from earlier in the week. I was really excited about the Asian style meal I had planned. I love spring rolls and was eager to give them a try; the spareribs recipe was something we'd had the week before at my parents, and I called for recipe on Saturday morning.

Sadly, this was my most disappointing meal of the weekend. The spring rolls completely fell apart in the oil, and the wrappers didn't even crisp up - just got gooey. The salmon at least cooked, and didn't come out greasy, but it was just salmon - not spring rolls. Not an appetizer. I tried dipping the salmon in the dipping sauce, and that was not so good. The sauce was simply too strong.

I used a little too much ginger in the dressing for the salad - it simply wasn't what I was going for. Bobby hated the dressing, and opted for blue cheese instead. The spareribs were in the oven too long, so they didn't fall apart the way my mom's did, but they weren't tough either. They tasted okay, but not great. I completely forgot to make the rice. The Haagen Daas Mango Sorbet was the best part of the meal.

I think I will try the Spring Rolls again, but use won ton or lumpia wrappers instead of the spring roll wrappers. I will have to edit the sauce. I was sad though. I had wanted to make wonderful meals all weekend, but alas, my attempts at something new were both lackluster. Perhaps next time...

Still in Need

Remember how I said I needed a vacation? I still haven't had it. In fact - I'm not even sure what happened to the last two weeks or so. I just know I worked a lot!


I've been really busy - at the office until around 7pm most nights, often not getting home until 8pm... not really even time to make dinner. I can't even remember.


This last weekend it finally slowed down. We removed the carpet in the music room last Sunday, and this weekend had inted to remove the tile (yes, there is at least one layer of tile under all the carpet) and lay the laminate floor that is in the rest of the house, but that didn't work out. Bobby had to work on some plans (fire sprinkler designs) and my parents were using their table saw to lay flooring in their own house.


Saturday morning Bobby and I finally made it down to a local cafe I've been wanting to try - Cafe Casse Croute. It's a little French-Canadian cafe, and what drew my attention were crepes. I'd run a Google Maps search for restaurants near our house because I'm tired of driving so far for everything, and I was intrigued. That was months ago. I had the chicken crepes, and Bobby had poached eggs benedict. This was the first time I'd ever had crepes filled with something you wouldn't put on pancakes, and it was lovely. filled with chicken and broccoli and a creamy white wine sauce - just lovely. Both our meals were very good (although I think mine was better), as was the orange juice, the service, and the price. We agreed we would come back again.


I most of the morning watering the backyard really well (we really must install sprinklers) and deep cleaning the barbecue, but I wound up spending most of the afternoon trying to rest. I had a headache all day. I tried taking tylenol, and later some aleve, but they weren't really helping. I haven't had a headache like that for years. I felt stressed and irritable for no reason whatsoever, and as if I had a long list of things I needed to get done, as if I shouldn't be relaxing.


Sunday I woke up around 8:20am - a little late for me) and it was already 78° outside, and I knew we were in for a hot one. I made sure all the windows were closed and turned on all the ceiling fans. Since I was going to be inside all day, and didn't want to do anything productive or responsible at all, I wound up playing computer games all day. Playing all day, and comfort foods like tuna melts for lunch and spaghetti for dinner also helped me finally relax. Unfortunately now I'm back at work, undoing all that hard work.

Hot Water

Before we went to the movies last night, we'd left my parents at our house installing a new water heater. Our hot water heater had been leaking from the top for awhile, creating a small but consistent stream of water down the side of our garage. Since my mom manages the property, she and my dad had come to fix it. Apparently it wasn't fixable, so they were there to replace it.


When we got out of the movies last night I had a voicemail waiting for me. My mom had called to tell me that she and my dad had tried for over an hour to light the pilot on the new water heater, but to no avail.


Now, my parents are pretty capable people. It is not like them to have such trouble with something like this. I called my mom back, and she explained that they must have read over the instructions and double checked every step about 20 times. She was going to call the manufacturer as soon as they opened this morning, but we would have no hot water for the evening.


Well, at least we'd both showered recently. An evening with no hot water wouldn't be too much of a trouble, right?


This morning, the manufacturer said that they could call out a plumber to light the pilot, but because it was still the weekend, the plumber would charge a weekend rate (instead of the visit just being covered by the warantee) equal to about 1/3 of the cost of the water heater. My parents decided that they would just take the water heater back and try another one instead.


We got the old-new water heater packed back up and in the truck, and after a short time my parents returned with new-new water heater. We hooked this new one up, but when we got around to the pilot light - it again wouldn't light.

My mom checked the serial number on this one, and the manufacturing date. Apparently they were both manufactured on the same day (Jan. 1st, 2008 - a mere 6 days ago), and were only about 50 units apart from one another. We spent about an hour, taking turns, reading through the directions for this piezoelectric ignition system, attempting to light it. But alas, we were destined to not have hot water for another night; the plumber would have to come tomorrow.

At this point I was starting to really want a shower, but I wasn't about to take a cold one in this weather. So we headed over to my parents' house to clean up. Hopefully the hot water will be back tomorrow...

Locus of Control

I had a conversation with someone today that made me think back to my Organizational Behavior class in college. I didn't really enjoy that particular class, but there was one concept that really stuck with me: Locus of Control.

This is from the Wikipedia article on Locus of Control:
Locus of control is a concept initially used to distinguish between two types of situations – those in which outcomes are determined by skill in contrast to settings where chance is the main determinant of success and failure. For example, in games such as chess, sporting events such as tennis, and exams in fields such as math, it is reasoned that positive and negative outcomes are determined primarily by ability and level of skill. This does not imply that chance has no influence whatsoever on what has transpired. After all, perhaps the tennis match was affected by a gust of wind blowing the ball, or the math exam score influenced by a guess at a true/false alternative. Nonetheless, outcomes in these events primarily are determined (or, are perceived as determined) by ability. Ability is located within the person; hence, the so-called locus of control is internal. On the other hand, if a “head” or a “tail” will be showing in a coin toss, or whether red or black will be the place the ball stops in roulette, is determined (or, is perceived to be determined) by chance (assuming the game is “fair”). Of course, some may think they can sway where the roulette ball stops or that they can guide the appearance of a head or a tail on a coin toss, so that ability may be conceived as influencing task outcome. Nonetheless, most individuals on most occasions believe that success and failure at these tasks are chance-determined. Chance is regarded as external to the person, resulting in the external locus of control label.

This term has also been used to describe people's personality. Based on whether one perceives his or her fate being driven by inside or outside factors. Again, from Wikipedia:

Internals tend to attribute outcomes of events to their own control. Externals attribute outcomes of events to external circumstances. For example, college students with a strong internal locus of control may believe that their grades were achieved through their own abilities and efforts, whereas those with a strong external locus of control may believe that their grades are the result of good or bad luck, or to a professor who designs bad tests or grades capriciously; hence, they are less likely to expect that their own efforts will result in success and are therefore less likely to work hard for high grades.....This has obvious implications for differences between internals and externals in terms of their achievement motivation, suggesting that internal locus is linked with higher levels of N-ach. Due to their locating control outside themselves, externals tend to feel they have less control over their fate. People with an external locus of control tend to be more stressed and prone to clinical depression.

I find that this personality trait is one of the first things I take notice of in my interactions with others. I listen to the things that they say, and how they perceive the world around them and the events in their lives. My experience has pretty much supported the above observation - that Internals tend to be more motivated and acheive more, while Externals tend to be victims and either flirt with or fully enter severe depressions.

I wonder what it is that causes the difference in perception for Internals and Externals.

Sick

Day after Christmas and I'm sick. This is lame.
I just want to be in bed.

It would be nice if Bobby were home with me, but no - he's working on the jobsite in Big Bear.

Baby Chase gets Baptized

Bobby wasn't going to be able to go, but I said I would.

His nephew Chase was being baptized today, so I woke up a little early, made myself presentable, and drove out to his parents' house to meet up with everyone. The baptism was scheduled for 11:30, so I gave myself plenty of time, and arrived there shortly before 11am.

When we finally made it out of the house it was 11:20, so we arrived at the church later than we should have, but then there was a hitch - the baptism ceremony was actually at 11am, not 11:30. Thankfully, Bobby's family has a strong relationship with the church and the preist, and he was willing to do a private ceremony for them right after the normal baptism ceremony.



Chase's sister Caelyn also participated. When the preist asked the child's name and the parents answered, Caelyn answered as well with a drawn out "Chaaaase."

Goodbye Old Friend?

In the summer of 2005 I purchased my favorite toy - my first digital camera. I was going on a trip through Europe that September and I wanted to be able to document my trip so I could always look back on all the places I'd been.

I wasn't picky; I only wanted three things from a camera - a large LCD screen, a compact frame, and a rechargable internal battery. Other than that I didn't look into digital v. optical zooms, or serviceablity, or anything. A co-worker of mine had a Casio Exilim and couldn't stop singing it's praises. It had been a tough little camera, had a giant screen (2.7"), and a slim, compact design. So I took his recommendation and purchased a Casio Exilim EX-Z57.

I has been a great camera. It made the rounds with me through Europe, then Vegas; it documented many parties, family gatherings, trips to Disneyland and the beach, and was there to welcome new additions to the family. It has been such a great camera that my mom often ditches her own and borrows it when she wants to take pictures. I occasionally go through lulls when I don't take very many pictures, but I always come back.

Yesterday Bobby, Emma, and I went to Disneyland for a few hours. I'd packed us some snacks and drinks so we wouldn't be tempted to eat there - we've been disappointed by the food there too many times. Just before getting on Star Tours, I closed my Gatorade and put it in my backpack. When I grabbed my bag getting off the ride, I felt wetness.

The cap of my Gatorade had been cocked to the side and so had not closed all the way - the entire contents of my bag was soaked... including my trusty camera.

I immediately dried it off as best I could and pressed the power button, but alas, it would not turn on. I opened it up and took the battery out - it was wet. I was instantly sad - I felt this was truely the end.

My camera had recenlty had a problem and would not start - the screen would read "Lens Error" and shut off immediately. I took the camera in to a repair shop and was told that they would try but made no promises - Casio's are notoriously difficult to repair and the company offers little support. A recent trip to the beach meant sand had likely weaseled it's way into the lens. But they had been able to clean out the sand, and I my friend was back.

Now I fear that it is really done for. I am going to let it dry out for awhile before I just purchase a replacement, but I don't have high hopes. I am sad, I will miss my friend.

Normally I would have taken my experience with this camera and just purchased another Exilim. But I'm afraid that may be a bad choice.

My co-worker that had originally recommended his camera to me had since lost his Exilim and purchased another. He not only had problems with this camera, but with Casio. When he tried to have his camera fixed under the warranty he was met with nothing but road blocks. Casio finally agreed to send him a new camera, which they did not - they sent a refurbished one that also had problems. By the end of the ordeal he'd been through a few Exilims, and had taken Casio to small claims court.

I don't want all that. I just want another trusty little camera with a compact frame, internal rechargable battery, and a large LCD screen. The camera repairman said to avoid Casio and he prefers Canon and Olympus. I'll have to look around.

Wind and Fire

I hate the wind. I've always hated the wind. It may be the only kind of weather I hate.
I love sunshine, I love the rain, I even like the snow, but I can't enjoy the wind.
The wind doesn't gently warm your skin, you can't splash in wind puddles, you can't throw windballs at people or build windmen. It just messes up my hair, throws debris in my face, tosses my car around, and causes the traffic to suck that much more. I suddenly require lotion and extra chapstick and am constantly thirsty.

Yesterday the wind was intense. We were at Bobby's parents' and at time it sounded like the wind would just pick up the entire house. Driving home through the canyon, if you closed your eyes it would sound like hail - but it was dust. When we got home, Lucas, who had been cooped up inside all day, was anxious to go outside. I let him out, and he immediately wanted back in. In the back yard the table with the umbrella had been picked up and thrown across the yard into our chiminea, which was now done for.

Today it is not just windy - it is hot. There are something like 12 wildfires raging throughout Southern California right now flanking us on what seems like all sides- one of which is not too far from my work. I hear the one in San Diego is possibly their worst on record, besting the wildfires in 2003.

View Larger Map

I remember those fires. Walking out of my house in Anaheim it looked like it had snowed lightly on my car, you could see the ash in the air and the sky was a gloomy grey. And it smelled - not like burning wood, but like burnt wood. I remember the sky looking like that for at least a week.

This time the sky is a gloomy grey and again hot, but you can't see the ash in the air because the wind is blowing it all so hard. The dry heat from the fires that the winds are blowing around has permeated my building - not long ago I was complaining about the freezing temperatures in my office... now I am baking. The air is not just dry, but I feel like I'm sitting next to a campfire with the smoke in my face. It makes me tired and my head hurt.

I feel bad for those trying to put the fires out. With this wind efforts must seem futile. I worry that the traffic home will be that much worse now that some of the toll roads are blocked off. I hope this all clears up soon.

AT&T Update

So we received the Tilt that was promised us. Bobby's pretty sure it is not new but rather a refurbished phone that was returned by someone else. The data cable was not to be found in the box. Luckily Bobby forgot to return the data cable that came with the 8525 and was able to use that.

Again - AT&T sucks.

AT&T Customer Service Sucks

About a month ago we got Bobby a new smartphone - the AT&T 8525. In the time since, it has ceased being able open Word and PDF documents and has crashed multiple times - as much as once per day. We decided that this was likely a faulty device and went in on Saturday to exchange it since we were within our 30 exchange/return policy.

They guy at the AT&T store said that they didn't have any other 8525 in stock, but that they now have the AT&T Tilt. We'd never heard of it, but apparently it was the next generation of the 8525 - now including GPS - and had been out for a whopping four days. They didn't have one available that day, but were expecting deliveries all week. He had one that we could play around with and suggested we call back the next day to see if they had received any.

We called back every day, and on Wednesday they had one in stock. So at the end of the day we went back down to the store. It was becoming dangerously close to the end of our 30 day exchange period, and we wanted to make sure we had a good phone.

When we explained the situation to the salesperson, we were informed that the Tilt was only available for new customers - and not available for exchange. Something about how they are only receiving a few units.

But I've signed a new contract - doesn't this qualify me? No - it's only for new customers.
"So what you are saying, is that current AT&T subscribers that are looking to enter a new contract cannot get this phone. It's only available if you are actually signing up a new number."
Yes.

The rep called around to other stores in the area to see if they had a Tilt available for exchange. I tried to explain to him that I wanted him to find a Tilt period. He should not be indicating that it was "for exchange" because if they did not find us a Tilt - I was cancelling outright.

To be fair, I was irritated with AT&T before I walked into the store for a number of reasons:

• When my grandmother had died, I went through the process of changing all the house bills into my name. My grandfather is in a nursing home, and I am now officially paying rent, so it didn't make sense to keep anything in his name. I had no trouble switching any of the bills except for the phone bill - with AT&T. The first time I called, it went fine. But then the bills kept coming to my grandfather. I called back and was told that even though I had a confirmation number - they were in the middle of switching from "the old" AT&T to "the new" AT&T. Since I was with "the old" AT&T, anything I did with them was for naught.


• So then I needed to make the switch with "the new" AT&T. Even though I had all the required information - account number, last bill, his social security number, date of birth, drivers license, mother's maiden name - they wouldn't make the switch without actually speaking to him. As if they would even know it was him. Because their customer service hours are essentially during my work hours, I would have to take time out of work to go down to the nursing home and make a call so that he could talk to them.


• We have AT&T DSL at my work. I'd called a few months back to see what my options were to upgrade the line - we were looking at installing a MS Exchange Server and needed a faster connection. I had talked with the rep at length regarding the different options and pricing. When I called Tuesday to make the desired upgrade, I was informed that my current bandwidth was the fastest available in my area. Then why did the rep bother giving me pricing for all those plans if I can't even sign up for it. I would have researched other broadband options for my Cap Ex proposal.

So at this point I'm becoming a little irate with AT&T Customer Service policy. I can see the reasoning behind reserving a new phone for new contracts - it assures a conitnued income stream - but not only for new customers. This tells me that AT&T does not value their current customers.

I tried my best to be assertive without making the reps feel like I was attacking them. I know Bobby thought I was being aggressive. I explained that I did not want to be involved with a company with such poor customer service and was ready to cancel not only this contract, but the other two wireless accounts, home phone, and DSL that I have with them. We had just signed up for the DSL and had not yet cancelled our cable internet. I could easily switch the phone to Vonage, and Sprint had called recently offering to pay our cancellation fees with AT&T for the wireless accounts.

Now the manager finally becomes involved. He tries to smooth things over. He offers to have AT&T send us a Tilt in the mail - then have us bring in and return the 8525.

I should not have to go through all this to purchase a phone. I should not have to fight with a company to subscribe to their service or purchase their product. We may still leave AT&T and just eBay the phone. We'll see if they improve at all.