Speaking out- step 1 - for those who suffer in silence

Alright~ So based on my last post..


Generally when most of us call a contact centre Its supposed to be a simple experience.


Myself and my husband having worked in many since 18~ We have come to see both inside from the employee and the customer....


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_hNK_PV4Zo <---I recorded myself on the call (and to avoid legal reasons only my side of the call unless I feel the urge to request a copy of the recorded call...)


... can you tell I work in a call centre? (I silenced the parts where I'm giving personal info... )

Sadly the woman hung up and I did not have time to call back before their service centre had closed. (parental duty's called)

We did make the payment and everything is all connected right now... That small little blip is behind us.

~~~~~~


The reason I spoke up this time..

I know how often these company's do this to people. Because I have been  both the agent and the customer.

When you have 3 kids and you have a billing error.

Working- babysitting and barely getting time to eat... You call up your service provider.

~ Press 1 for English 2 for french.

Billing ? Well they are only open 8-5.. so hopefully your shift and parental duties don't conflict with that.


So you get transferred to an agent. Give them your info- and... Opppps! Wrong department!

Transferred to another agent. who'm often you have to give your info to.... again.

and depending how long you've been on hold both times. (because they have been cutting employee's staffed to save money)


You've already wasted how much of your time?


Prior to parenthood I couldn't understand what people would complain about. 2 hours on a phone call to fix their internet service? pfffft shut up and stop complaining!



But I have been trained to not point out billing errors unless you mention them.
I have been trained, to tell you sorry its company policy.

I have been trained to know how to judge how you feel and manipulate you to calm down.


I am a call centre agent ~ and I'm sick and tired of watching my co-workers and friends be fucked around

As well as customers who pay wayyyyy too much for their service.(not specified to anyone company in particular.)

more communication issues:
Still waiting to get through to the EI call centre for my parental benefits.

I have lost count of how many times I've tried..... Work needs to know

Here I am stuck in the middle ~ As many of us are and feel like there is nothing that can be done.

Bring it onnn!

I'm done playing these games.

The amazingly fantastical callcenter adventure -- Mental health -Lets talk about it!

Welcome to cosmic soup.

Here's some back story to go with this one:

My husband and I are currently on shared maternity/paternity leave.
My weeks are almost out for my claim and I wanted to borrow some of my husbands to be able to stay home with our daughter for a little while longer.


But every time I call... Their call volume is unexpectedly too high and I get hung up on.
I haven't been able to speak to anyone since I started my claim.



Seeing as my employer needs to know about when I'm going back.... I try to call to touch base to let them know I'm still trying to get through to the EI call center.


I call: ~ **Automated msg: We're sorry~ This number is not in service. Please check the number and try your call again.~**


.... so I try other numbers..

My friends, family... Same thing!




So wanting to know what's up I call my phone company.




me:~ "Yea hi my phone isn't letting me dial out I was just wondering why."

agent: Oh yes, it appears you have been disconnected for non payment ... today.


me: But I just made a 100$ payment not that long ago.. I didn't receive any notice of this.



 I told them I could make a payment tomorrow and said I did not feel safe without having an active phone line.

But I was told that nothing could be done unless I could make the payment tonight...

This really hit a nerve.

My woman powers chimed in: 

Cast:(~ bringing up the PAST ~)

<~*flashback sequence*~>

4 month's ago we had moved to this new house. ~ and they had messed up the move order...




I was a few weeks away from giving birth to my daughter and really needed the phone hooked up in case of emergency. My husband works overnight out of town and I don't drive.

but they told me there was no way they could hook up my phone and were sorry for the inconvenience of having to wait a few weeks for a tech.
( I didn't currently have time for my prepaid cellphone either.)





*</flashback>*


Then I apologized to the agent for being one of those calls...
I worked their jobs ... I know what its like...

it sucks

Then asked "for a supervisor...

I was then placed on hold....and waited ...and waited... and waited...


To be hung up on...in the end....




But this time instead of getting angry~ I choose to get creative.



So it just so happens Bell is doing a fundraiser!!!


You want to talk about mental heath? 




Sure! I'll share my story~ whats yours?

House of broken dreams

So update!~

Our landlords have been having some issues making their payments, and lost the house.

So now we are living in renters limbo....


I've noticed a lot of people are in the same situation who are quiet about it.
So this is a heads up that there are many people suffering in silence who have lost much during these stressful times.
~

I have this issue where injustice pokes me...



I feel like there has to be something we can do to prevent the games these financial institutions are playing with the dreams of young individuals.

The dream to have a house their children can grow up in... then Bam~ Lost your job?

Goodbye everything!~

Its not fair...


Not to mention the fact these places charge overdrawn fee's and are also the ones that handle insurance.

They own everything, while others are losing everything.


All for money.


Then the house is auctioned... to some one else and the cycle of broken dreams continues.


~

This forces me to really have to socialize and communicate (or try to since I seem to be getting few answers).

I've been trying to communicate with all seeing as we are stuck between a renters contract and the bank now being the owners.

So we shall see what happens~ But I have high hopes for something wonderful ~



****

Let us return hope to the broken hearts.

How to become socially akward...

Growing up I was generally a very social individual.

Truthfully over the last 7 years, I took a dive within myself to figure out some of my deeper stances on life and philosophies.

I have come to learned there is always a cause to every action... and in this case:
~

I had achieved completely removing myself from the lives of people I cared about~ and slowly over time I began to forget how to socialize.

Another issue is that social language generally evolves over time making it difficult to jump back in. ~

I began to realize most things I could easily connect with people about in the past: movies, shows, I was no longer current on.

Somewhere since college I became lost in the daily routine of working to pay my bills.

Then ~ Upon becoming a mother, I nearly completely shut myself off from the outside world.... for almost 2 years.

The story:

My husband is the only one who has his licence (up until 2 years ago neither of us did.)
He was working overnights, so how things ended up working out while I was home on maternity leave~ He slept - I watched our son~

We both never stopped..




The positive that came out of all of this- Was closely observing the evolution of the mind.
Children, how they looked at the world and explored.
(It really helped me to learn how to communicate and teach my son before he was able to speak.)
The expirience was very cleansing.
I had the opertunity to observe the fractal of life and its infinite beauty.


He brought me back to who I was and truly am. ~
Singing music all the tie~ Sewing ~ creating ~ drawing.

But... now facing the outside world I feel as though I'm surrounded by a new block.

I recognize my inner world for what it is.
But to be myself~ I need to return to where I use to be socially....


So I dedicate this blog to documenting this adventure. 

I know there is an entire world of socially anxious people~
I dedicate this adventure to you.

May we know we are not alone when facing our fears, our problems or worries.

Namaste

The Internet~ is the book of life -

Everything that you post on the internet generally stays on the internet.


Sometimes this can lead to a pile of regret...

For me I once posted an article associating my name with my weight and video games like DDR for weight loss.



Truthful as it was... I suppose it was facing the humility of not being comfortable with myself when new people (generally people who lived on the internet) would discover this page.


But for some people.... Its much more personal then that.


Its caused a few rare cases that have spiraled into chaos....and sadness...



It has begun a so called: Crusade on bullying....... (Crusades are not generally  good things historically for the record...)

Now we can blame the internet for that, we can blame bullying for that: 
Having been a chubby girl, I am no stranger to  bullying.

But I have observed that suppression of anything leads to far more problems psychologically.

Instead regarding bullying... perhaps we should be asking : Why is this person bullying?

(Usually a much deeper emotional problem is the cause of this.)

~~~~~

Regarding internet safety we can use this opportunity to see the truth.... 
This is something we need to inform our children about.


Much as Taxes, and finances are not mandatory to be taught in school, internet habits not points of mandatory education..



I feel it is time to recognize the amazingness of the internet, by spreading awareness that this is the global mind united in one place.


I propose we use the internet for what it was made for: the expansion of human consciousness!

With funding to education being cut almost everywhere in North America.. Its the children who are hurting most.


Seeing as they are the future adults that run the world~ perhaps the inversion of today's philosophy needs to take place.


Children > Money


In celebration of education I wish to share this wonderful creation :

https://www.khanacademy.org/

Khan Academy is the first step in free - quality education material.

I'm sure if professionals work together to create a future focused on our future~
Only greatness can ensue.


credit:

Dance Dance Revolution: Konami
Fantastic student debt image ://fewings.ca/

https://www.khanacademy.org/ 

Invitation~

Chad and I's Gaia avi's as couply art.

2006

Even though I was an abundant user of the internet as a teen (21 hours plus per day)...

I was  never an antisocial individual.

A lot can happen in 7 years..




When I met my spouse all we wanted to do was be together. ~

We'd skip school - just to be together

We'd skip work - Just to be together


~

We'd eat, sleep and wonder about life together.




~

If I had the chance to go back~  I would keep everything the same.. 



When we met - we just knew


We dated for a week, got engaged a week later.

~ 




Now we have our 2 kids together~
and since the birth of our son we came face to face with a very big realization.


The secret world that so few parents actually speak of.
They have done, and continue to do for their kids.


Trading family and friends to run a race that never ends.

Reminding us about our past~
Parents who worked their asses off to provide for us.

Whom we remember ourselves missing.

This can't be the way things were meant to be.


During this time we admittedly often chose to spend our free time with one another, instead of our friends..

but we also had a lot of self discovery.

Baking,  philosophy , psychology, art , gaming ... etc


We had a wonderful adventure ~ But now we understand the effects of time and separation.
We've witnessed it...
Fortunately its something we understand. So many of us have been thrown in the endless cycle of bills +debt  ~ Thinking only about our limited free time and how we want to use it.~

Now that we've had a moment to think~ and recharge I'm hoping we can do something new.


- my deepest apologies to my friends-