You know those days where you are so hassled that you wish you could just be left alone? I’m having one. And the funny thing is, I haven’t even left the house, and I’m the only human here today. My hasslement came in the form of an email this morning. Because what I have to say about this is the absolute and verifiable truth, I am going to name names and not protect the offender, to a certain extent, because I’m tired of incompetent idiots getting away with being incompetent.
A few months ago, I applied for, paid for, and began to take a class to become a Kansas Master Naturalist (through Kansas State University, the Sedgwick County Extension, and Dillon Nature Center). I wanted this certification a lot, I thought, until a number of factors caused me to rethink my earlier eagerness. Anyway, I dropped out after 2 or 3 classes. I hate to quit anything, but honestly, sometimes, mature decisions have to be made. Things have to be done for the good of the many, for the sake of the big picture, etc., etc. Anyway, I had paid my fee in advance, and it wasn’t huge in dollars, although in this economy, every dollar matters. At the time I signed up for the class, using their designated website (which is pretty bad and severely lacking in specific information), I paid my fee in advance. There was no mention of any kind of potential refund, so I really didn’t expect one. I had no expectation whatsoever of getting a refund of my tuition. So, when I notified the program director that I had to quit, imagine my surprise when she offered me a partial refund. I was thrilled! The “textbook” was completely worthless to me, so I returned it in March along with a letter recapping all that had transpired to date. Luckily, I kept a copy of that letter.
So, 2 months passed and, believe me, I know it takes a long time to get a refund whenever Kansas State University is involved. This week, I emailed the program director, asking if she knew how long it might be. I have a huge vet bill coming up this month and every dollar will help. Plus, it’s MY money. She emailed me back that she would check on it. All was well, or so I thought.
This morning, the program director accidentally sent me the email she was supposed to send to her bookkeeper, and in this email, she basically accused me of lying when I said I hadn’t gotten the refund yet – she asked the bookkeeper to check on it to make sure I didn’t get TWO checks. Had I gotten just ONE dang check, none of this would have happened! What a great way to start the day. I was having a pretty good, yet busy morning prior to that. I would like to say that I’m in full control of my own destiny, but this episode got my blood pressure sky high in a matter of minutes, to the point where I have a headache and bulging neck veins. I emailed her back (after several drafts to make sure I wasn’t verbally abusive to her) and I called her out on calling me a liar. I calmed down somewhat by washing the spinach that I had harvested this morning (it was beautiful), only to find another email from her in which she never apologized, although she did admit that there is a difference between “forward” and “reply” in email (is that an admission that I was never supposed to see that earlier email?) and she acknowledges that it may have been her that dropped the ball in getting my refund. She says it could be issued as early as next week. Great. I’m sure the time taken off my life by this hypertensive episode is worth the measly refund that I never expected to begin with and wouldn’t have expected if it had not been for her offering it to me in the first place. Don’t get me wrong – I’ll take the money. As I said before, it’s MY money.
Probably just about everyone who emails has accidentally forwarded an email or hit “reply all” or done some other ridiculous email mistake at some point since email took over our lives, but most people have the decency to apologize. I’m waiting.
