Ok, it is official, I have been dumped in every way imaginable! So as some of you know I am an office manager of a law firm. We have had the same IT tech guy come since I started working here and he had been the IT guy before that. I had been calling him to come in and after a week he finally came in. I had two computers that needed to be added to the network. He was almost finished with the first when his phone rang. He answered it and said one of his other clients is having an emergency and he needed to get over there right away. I am pissed because I have sat for a week with no computer and another secretary had sat for three days unable to do any work. I call the next day and leave three messages. Call the day after that and leave four messages. Finally on the third day he called me back. He said that he felt that this "relationship" was no longer going to work out and he felt as if I should "move on" and "find someone new". Wow if this is how he lets his clients go I can't imagine how he lets his girlfriends go. And then it got me thinking, wow I have been dumped in every way possible! Then a good point was made by my friend Daniel, If I can't manage to hold on to my IT guy, how do I ever expect to hold on to any other guy! With continued hope - Mel.

In my never a dull moment kind of life, I have added another reason why I HATE Miami to my list. In March of 2003, I received a speeding ticket. I was on the way to my best friends surprise engagement party and I was as usual running late. I was going 85 in a 70, but honestly I was keeping up with traffic not setting the pace. I was pulled over and rightfully so. The cop was so nice he said that he was moving to Orlando in a week and I could take that any way I wanted to. I took it as hey, fight the ticket, the cop won't show, I get off. So I immediately fill out the form and submit it to the County Clerks office. I wait 30 days and I hear nothing. I then decide to call the 800 number on the citation and have them search the ticket. They say it is not in their system. I call back in another 30 days and still nothing, no ticket in their system. I call back around 90 days after that and they have nothing for me. No court date, no money owed, nothing! The gentleman told me that because they write a ton of traffic tickets a day sometimes they don't get imputed into the system by mistake. He said it happens more times than he can admit to. Also, if there is no records of it within 60 days of the issuance of the ticket it is null and void - due process. I think sweet, I beat a ticket and didn't even have to do anything!. Now in July I had to renew my license and in the back of my mind I was thinking about this ticket. They DMV says nothing license is still good and they issue me my renewal. Then yesterday I sit down to go through my bills. I receive a collection notice from the Miami-Dade clerk of the court for $288.00 in court fees!. I go online type in all the information and bingo there it is. In December of 2003 there was a court date on my ticket. The office and myself are both listed as no shows. They through out the ticket, but I still owed the $288.00 in court fees. I am so pissed off. I did was I was supposed to, by calling on the ticket. Trying to get it all taken care of. Now it is to, late I have to pay this obscene amount and be on my merry way. With continued hope - Mel.

I have decided that maybe I should just stay in for lunch, it is a lot safer that way. I decided I would go to Chili's for lunch today, even though it is not a favorite of mine. I walk in the door and the hostess askes "How many today?" I reply with just one. She repeats quizzically, just one? Just one, I repeat. She then gets on her headset and asks whoever is on the other end "Where do we seat parties of one?" Has this never happened there before, is it a crime to eat lunch by oneself?! A man (who she was talking to on the headset) comes over grabs a menu and seats me at this little two person table. He couldn't just drop the menu and be on his merry way, no, he has to add this table is plenty big for just one! Then the waitress comes. She asks me if I would like anything to drink while I am waiting for the "other" person to arrive. I told her I wasn't waiting for anyone and it was just one today. She cocks her head to the side with that puzzled look and blurts out just one? At this point I could say no more other than to just place my order. I can't get over ALL of there reactions to me eating alone, I didn't think anything about it as I eat lunch alone everyday of the week. Chili's on the other hand has some weird thing about people eating alone. I won't be dining there anytime soon!