A blessing in disguise...

I took a nice little vacation from technology the past 36 hours. I didn't talk on the phone, I didn't go on the Internet, I didn't use my Blackberry and I didn't watch TV.

No, it's not because I'm becoming Amish, or anything extreme like that. It's because I forgot to pay Verizon. And Verizon runs my world.

Once they turn your service off, it's impossible to speak with human, and if you don't have a copy of your bill and the 3 digit number after your phone number, you're screwed.

I spent at least 2 hours trying to get a human to speak with me, and when I finally did, she tried to transfer me to a voice activated computer system that reacted every time someone in my house put a cup down on a counter or breathed too loud. I made a valiant attempt to find a silent corner of my house to attempt to pay my past due amount through the system, to no avail.

This morning, I succeeded in snagging a human being in the billing office who was willing to speak with me for 30 seconds and give me my secret code. I paid my bill, and order has been restored to my world.

Why, you might ask, was this debacle a "blessing in disguise?" Well, without the distraction of my computer and Blackberry, I spent some very nice quality time with my sister and her family, we watched the kids put on a puppet show and talked. I even managed to read a couple chapters of a book. I felt like a regular Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Yes, that 36 hours without technology was a time in my life I will cherish.

In the meantime, I'm putting my Verizon account on autopay so I never, EVER have to go through that again.