It Must Be Wednesday

I can always tell when it's getting near the end of the day. I am thinking about what I need to do at work to get ready to go home. Can I type another note? Is there actually time to get it done? Do I pull files now, or wait five minutes? No, pull the files because it's Wednesday and more times than not someone is going to call for an appointment and it will take a long time because they probably won't have their insurance information on hand or their work schedule or something. I got the call from an employee assistance program (EAP) for an employee who needed to see a counselor. They need called back so they know when the appointment is set up and it needs done as soon as possible. I called the client and made the appointment. Okay. Then I called the EAP company at their 800 number and that's when the giggles set in.  This is how it went at about ten to five.

I hear the tell tale theme music and then the message "Welcome to AT&T's 1-800 calling network." Already I'm suspicious that I may have mis-dialed the number.  "Please speak or enter your access code now." Okay, I don't even have time to do either before it repeats the message and it sounds a little hostile. Hmmm. So I speak the three digit extension number the EAP rep had given me. "Please speak or enter your access code now!" Definitely aggravated. So, I punch in the code thinking with my accent maybe it didn't understand what I said. (I have a somewhat of a southern drawl). "That is not the access code. Speak or enter your access code now!" No 'please' this time, and it sounded a little mad. At this point it's getting funny because this is an automated message. What's going one here anyway? I enter the number once again. I am not kidding when I say the pitch and timber of the automated voice changed. It got louder and it spoke with inflection on certain words. "That is NOT the access code! SPEAK or ENTER your access code NOW!!" By this point I was certain I had dialed the number incorrectly but I was laughing and I almost didn't hang up. This thing was pissed. I didn't know an automated system could do that. I wondered if it would shout "YOU ARE A MORON! Enter the RIGHT DAMN CODE - NOW!!"

I did hang up and dialed again. Yeah, I got the actual company this time and almost couldn't leave the message about the appointment information.

 Has anything like that ever happened to you?