Exchanges with People that Make Your Brain Hurt

[Sirius]

Many many years ago, I was into ceramics. Christmas stuff, mainly, and sold them at craft fairs. Back then we were on a pretty tight budget, so I made a lot of my Christmas gifts.  One year I made trees for both my mother and MIL, like this:
 
 
 
 only with a fancy base that looked like wrapped packages and toys.  I personalized them with the package tags having names of their kids and grandkids as well as Mom/Dad MIL/ FIL themselves.  The "lights" are clear plastic; what you are seeing as glowing bulbs is light shining through them from an ordinary light bulb inside the tree.  Mom was thrilled with hers and still displays it every year as her Xmas tree; MIL was decidedly underwhelmed. (Handcrafted items were only so much second-rate junk to her.)

"So just how do I replace one of those little lights when they burn out?" she snapped. I explained that they couldn't burn out, because they didn't have electricity going through them.  I took the tree off its base and showed her the light bulb inside.  I showed her the posts of the little lights inside, how there were no wires running to them, and explained how they are glued into the tree. DH and FIL both tried to explain.

Nope, she wasn't having any of it.  Those lights were going to burn out, I was refusing to tell her how to replace them and she'd have to just throw the whole tree away in a year or two because it wouldn't light anymore. 
 
 And I guess she did, because I never saw her display it, and it wasn't in the things that we cleared out of the house when they moved to Assisted Living.

I would be thrilled purple with something like that.  And Boo on MIL.

[Piratelvr1121]

That reminds me of a brain hurty moment I had with a former dr's office.  I used to take concerta for my ADD and it's one of those meds that can't be refilled, you need a new script every single time.  You didn't need an appointment every time, you just call in and request it on their prescription phone recording and they'd call you when it was ready to be picked up. 

Every.single.time I went over there when I was called, they didn't have it and couldn't find it, which meant I had to wait another 10 minutes for them to come up with it.  If it weren't for the fact I liked my doctor, I would have been done with it far sooner.  The last straw was conveniently after we moved an hour away. I hadn't found a new doctor yet so I called them up and when they called me back to verify it I said I now lived an hour away and had to be home by 3:30 for the kids to get home.

Well luckily they called around 10:30 saying it was ready, only for me to drive the hour to get down there and find them not even looking as they told me "We can't find it, have a seat and we'll look" as they sat there talking about what they were going to have for lunch instead of actually looking.  They finally got the doctor to write up a new slip or maybe it never actually happened but I was so glad to be done with that office.

[Jocelyn]

Here's one from my co-worker. She's been getting phone calls from a doctor's office for a Mrs. Smith. My co-worker's name is not Smith. The message includes some information about Mrs. Smith's medications. My co-worker has tried calling the office and telling them they have a wrong number, and they tell her they cannot make any changes in Mrs. Smith's file without Mrs. Smith's permission, including deleting an incorrect phone number. She pointed out that they were in violate of HIPAA for giving out as much information as they are, and the answer was the same: they can't change the phone number without Mrs. Smith's permission. And of course they have no way to contact Mrs. Smith and ask for her permission. Finally she told them that she hoped Mrs. Smith didn't have any adverse health effects as a result of her not being able to get the information about her medications, and hung up on them. The next time they called, it was a recording that gave my co-worker the option of pressing 3 if it is a wrong number. We'll have to see if it works...

[Piratelvr1121]

That reminded me of the times I've gotten collection calls for people who had my number before I got it. 

"Is this Amy Jackson (not the name, naturally)"
"Nope, you have the wrong number."
"You owe $300 on this account."
"You have the wrong number"
"this is on your credit report, you may as well pay it."
"YOU HAVE THE WRONG NUMBER!!!!!!"

Sometimes they just say "Okay" and call back the next day, like that'll eventually wear me down into admitting I'm Amy Jackson.  At least when they call looking for a man they believe me lol.

[Mental Magpie]

I would probably interrupt the salesperson and say "No, it's $15. I know you're trying to make me think it's fourteen, but it's not. Are you going to let me talk to my partner, or shall I make this purchase somewhere else?"

Those "xx.99" prices are specifically meant to make you underestimate what you're spending, and if I'm making decisions, I want to make them with good information. That's aside from the politeness issue of interrupting my conversation with my companion. This isn't "excuse me, but that model doesn't come in green" after I say I want a green widget--that's actual information that I might find useful.

I also round up to the nearest $5 to include for taxes to make sure I have enough money before I check out.

[Luci]

I got an e-mail notification last week that a prescription had a refill coming up. I tried to fill it following the instructions in the e-mail, but it didn't go through. I shrugged, as it wasn't pressing, and figured I'd do it later.

A few days later it came up again, i tried the same method again, and again it didn't go through. This time it told me to call customer service to sort out my account information. I did, and the CSR told me she had no idea why I hadn't been able to fill it. I signed on their site and refilled it then.

Then I get an e-mail saying I can't refill it because my provider won't approve it, and I need to call them. So I do. The person I speak to tell me I can't refill my script before coming in for an appointment. Which is annoying--the last refill would have gotten me through the period when I would have needed it, and after that I wouldn't need it anymore.

Me: But it said I had one more refill.
Her: No, you can't, because it's been a year since you were last in.
Me: That shouldn't matter...I still had one more refill that I'm entitled to.
Her: NO. YOU NEED TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT. (she's speaking very slowly and loudly.) It has been ONE YEAR since you were seen last.
We go back and forth a couple times before I give up and make an appointment that I'm very irritated about.

I get another "we cannot fill your script" e-mail, which I ignore. Then yesterday I got a phone call saying my script had been filled.  I was able to pick it up today.

No matter how many refills you have left prescriptions expire one year after being written. My doctor's office will call in a single refill once the year is up only after I make an appointment, but no more if I break it.

My medicine bottles say very clearly "2 refills before 1-30-13", that being the date the year's prescription was written. Two sources, one being the pharmacist, that it is state law that a prescription expires in one year. This has been the way it's been for me since I filled my first prescription.

My doctor will do the same as HorseFreak's.

[MariaE]

I would probably interrupt the salesperson and say "No, it's $15. I know you're trying to make me think it's fourteen, but it's not. Are you going to let me talk to my partner, or shall I make this purchase somewhere else?"

Those "xx.99" prices are specifically meant to make you underestimate what you're spending, and if I'm making decisions, I want to make them with good information. That's aside from the politeness issue of interrupting my conversation with my companion. This isn't "excuse me, but that model doesn't come in green" after I say I want a green widget--that's actual information that I might find useful.

I also round up to the nearest $5 to include for taxes to make sure I have enough money before I check out.

The fact that taxes aren't included in prices in the US made my head hurt when I visited NYC. I'd have figured out the price, and counted out the coins in order not to have to mess around with it at the register, and then be completely flummoxed when the price ended up being higher, and typically ending up breaking a note after all.

[cabbageweevil]

I would probably interrupt the salesperson and say "No, it's $15. I know you're trying to make me think it's fourteen, but it's not. Are you going to let me talk to my partner, or shall I make this purchase somewhere else?"

Those "xx.99" prices are specifically meant to make you underestimate what you're spending, and if I'm making decisions, I want to make them with good information. That's aside from the politeness issue of interrupting my conversation with my companion. This isn't "excuse me, but that model doesn't come in green" after I say I want a green widget--that's actual information that I might find useful.

I also round up to the nearest $5 to include for taxes to make sure I have enough money before I check out.

The fact that taxes aren't included in prices in the US made my head hurt when I visited NYC. I'd have figured out the price, and counted out the coins in order not to have to mess around with it at the register, and then be completely flummoxed when the price ended up being higher, and typically ending up breaking a note after all.

I've never been to the US, or the New World at all. If I were ever in a position to to visit the States, this business with taxes on purchases, so that "it's more than the price tag says", is one of the two things which I would dread beforehand. The other, would be what appears to me as the entire waitstaff / tips "can of worms".

(Probably, I'd find neither as awful in real life, as I envisage -- just, both strike me in the abstract as brain-hurty and anxiety-generating.)

[iridaceae]

As far as taxes go the US as Bill Bryson pointed out, is really a bunch of little countries all banded together so they are jealous about State things. So some States have taxes, some don't and tax rates and what is taxed vary. Just know odds are good that whatever you buy will have taxes and let the clerk tell you the total.

[HorseFreak]

I would probably interrupt the salesperson and say "No, it's $15. I know you're trying to make me think it's fourteen, but it's not. Are you going to let me talk to my partner, or shall I make this purchase somewhere else?"

Those "xx.99" prices are specifically meant to make you underestimate what you're spending, and if I'm making decisions, I want to make them with good information. That's aside from the politeness issue of interrupting my conversation with my companion. This isn't "excuse me, but that model doesn't come in green" after I say I want a green widget--that's actual information that I might find useful.

I also round up to the nearest $5 to include for taxes to make sure I have enough money before I check out.

The fact that taxes aren't included in prices in the US made my head hurt when I visited NYC. I'd have figured out the price, and counted out the coins in order not to have to mess around with it at the register, and then be completely flummoxed when the price ended up being higher, and typically ending up breaking a note after all.

I've never been to the US, or the New World at all. If I were ever in a position to to visit the States, this business with taxes on purchases, so that "it's more than the price tag says", is one of the two things which I would dread beforehand. The other, would be what appears to me as the entire waitstaff / tips "can of worms".

(Probably, I'd find neither as awful in real life, as I envisage -- just, both strike me in the abstract as brain-hurty and anxiety-generating.)

It's even more fun when different counties have different tax rates. In the places I've lived sales tax has ranged from 0 to 9% on items and 5-18% on prepared food (like restaurants). Some states tax food and clothes, others don't as they are "necessities" unless it's a $300 leather jacket. It's aggravating as heck. 

[Luci]

I've grown up with sales taxes and it  doesn't bother me a bit. I just add 10% in my head and know it will be less than that.

I really got confused in New Hampshire (I think) with no sales tax. "Are you sure?" made the clerk's brain hurt.

[BabyMama]

I got an e-mail notification last week that a prescription had a refill coming up. I tried to fill it following the instructions in the e-mail, but it didn't go through. I shrugged, as it wasn't pressing, and figured I'd do it later.

A few days later it came up again, i tried the same method again, and again it didn't go through. This time it told me to call customer service to sort out my account information. I did, and the CSR told me she had no idea why I hadn't been able to fill it. I signed on their site and refilled it then.

Then I get an e-mail saying I can't refill it because my provider won't approve it, and I need to call them. So I do. The person I speak to tell me I can't refill my script before coming in for an appointment. Which is annoying--the last refill would have gotten me through the period when I would have needed it, and after that I wouldn't need it anymore.

Me: But it said I had one more refill.
Her: No, you can't, because it's been a year since you were last in.
Me: That shouldn't matter...I still had one more refill that I'm entitled to.
Her: NO. YOU NEED TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT. (she's speaking very slowly and loudly.) It has been ONE YEAR since you were seen last.
We go back and forth a couple times before I give up and make an appointment that I'm very irritated about.

I get another "we cannot fill your script" e-mail, which I ignore. Then yesterday I got a phone call saying my script had been filled.  I was able to pick it up today.

No matter how many refills you have left prescriptions expire one year after being written. My doctor's office will call in a single refill once the year is up only after I make an appointment, but no more if I break it.

That's the kicker, it actually hasn't been a year. She informed me that my last doctor's appointment had been on December 10, and scheduled my appointment for the same day. So I really did have one more valid refill. I don't know if she got her months mixed up or what.

[Luci]

I got an e-mail notification last week that a prescription had a refill coming up. I tried to fill it following the instructions in the e-mail, but it didn't go through. I shrugged, as it wasn't pressing, and figured I'd do it later.

A few days later it came up again, i tried the same method again, and again it didn't go through. This time it told me to call customer service to sort out my account information. I did, and the CSR told me she had no idea why I hadn't been able to fill it. I signed on their site and refilled it then.

Then I get an e-mail saying I can't refill it because my provider won't approve it, and I need to call them. So I do. The person I speak to tell me I can't refill my script before coming in for an appointment. Which is annoying--the last refill would have gotten me through the period when I would have needed it, and after that I wouldn't need it anymore.

Me: But it said I had one more refill.
Her: No, you can't, because it's been a year since you were last in.
Me: That shouldn't matter...I still had one more refill that I'm entitled to.
Her: NO. YOU NEED TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT. (she's speaking very slowly and loudly.) It has been ONE YEAR since you were seen last.
We go back and forth a couple times before I give up and make an appointment that I'm very irritated about.

I get another "we cannot fill your script" e-mail, which I ignore. Then yesterday I got a phone call saying my script had been filled.  I was able to pick it up today.

No matter how many refills you have left prescriptions expire one year after being written. My doctor's office will call in a single refill once the year is up only after I make an appointment, but no more if I break it.

That's the kicker, it actually hasn't been a year. She informed me that my last doctor's appointment had been on December 10, and scheduled my appointment for the same day. So I really did have one more valid refill. I don't know if she got her months mixed up or what.

You are right. That's an official brain hurt.

[BabyMama]

It was so bizarre. She really must have gotten her months switched, because she was very firm in her belief that it had been "over a year." Or maybe her years only have 340 days. 

[Diane AKA Traska]

Re: Tax not included in price.

The way sales tax is figured in the US isn't per item, it's per full order (on everything taxable, of course, some things are exempt.)  So including tax in the price isn't possible because sales tax doesn't work that way.