Why Now I Hate ALL Airlines

Have you any idea how much I can't stand being in the hold system of airline companies? You may since I have devoted several posts to the topic, but before it was because of Continental. At this very moment I am stuck in the labrinth of American Airlines phone system, and I am ready to poke my eyes out. They have this supposedly "helpful" thing where you give all the information to a computer who talks to you before you get to the live agent. Now I am left wondering whose time this system is supposed to save, for the way it works is, the computer asks you a question, and you answer it, except chances are the computer doesn't hear you - EVEN THOUGH YOU ARE PRESSING THE MICROPHONE SO CLOSE TO YOUR MOUTH YOU ARE EATING IT, but that's okay because you enjoy repeating yourself again and again. You also enjoy finding yourself SNAPPING at the computer who is apparently choosing not to listen, thus causing passing coworkers to give you strange looks, wondering what would cause this normally sweet and docile receptionist/jack-of-all-trades to suddenly yell out in a Turrett's Syndrome manner of speech.

And then when you have finally gotten the computer to understand complex verbages such as "Yes" and "Yes" and are mercifully in the grasps of the the squeeky saxaphone hold music, another call comes through and you forget to push the hold button before answering it, thus ending the call with American Airlines and requiring that you START THE WHOLE DAMN PROCESS AGAIN. So when the saccarine voice of the computer agent lady asked me dumb questions again and pretended not to here them again so she could ask them just once more of this frazzled receptionist/jack-of-all-trades, it was all I could do to keep from screaming "suck it, bitch!" But instead, I just said "yes" and "no" in increasing rude tones, in the hopes that somewhere along the lines I would be validated. But that doesn't happen in the real world, silly.

I want to shoot myself and whomever thought it would be a good idea for us, the poor unfortuate patrons of corporate goliaths who want nothing more than to bilk us of our time and money, to talk to computers in the hold interim, because you know what???? When I finally did get to a live agent, I had to answer all the same fudging questions AGAIN.

Yes, I hate all airlines and their asshat hold systems. They can kiss my grits.