Good God, is this the week of weepy tv finales or what? Last night, it was the X files. Tonight, on a whim, I tune into the middle of the final Ally McBeal, a show I haven't watched this year or last, and guess what? All the characters are on the verge of bursting into tears.

Here's my theory: The people doing the real crying this week are those running the FOX network. They weep at the sight of the last worthwhile remnants of this once-great television empire slipping away, leaving nothing but "reality" crap about Alaskan bachelors in their wake. See Simpsons last night? ;)

(But yes, though it may defuse my derisive little punchline, I admit Firefly will almost certainly be worth checking out. Joss Whedon is, after all, a television genius. That cannot be denied.)

[Meanwhile, the Ally weep-fest continues, as the quiet mass irc gradually begins to pick up with Zan Lynx joining...]

Update on the credit card fiasco: Having still not received a statement nearly two weeks after being called at work, I dug up the customer service number, and placed a call during my lunch break today. I was worried that somehow, they had managed to screw things up again. After about a 30 second hold, a representative answered, and I explained the situation.

This person was much more curteous and helpful than the one I had talked to previously. They did indeed have my corrected address, and had apparently sent the statement over 10 business days ago. More than plenty of time. She told me that another statement will be sent to the address that I verified was correct, but I was still concerned with the fact that the current one had not arrived. Maybe a U.S. Postal Service error this time, but you can never be certain.

In the event the statement did not arrive soon, I asked if there was an address I could just mail a check to in order to get things taken care of without further delay. She said I could give my bank routing info over the phone to get it directly wired (an option I was still not willing to agree to). Then she said that if there was a Target store nearby, I could walk in and make payment directly there. Who'd have thought it? This sounded most agreeable. (Funny, the person I talked to before never mentioned this.) She asked how soon I could make a payment, and I replied that I could do it right this afternoon.

It gets better. At this point, she revealed their records reflected that the statements from the past several months sent to the wrong address had been returned, marked undeliverable by the postal service. (Again, very funny. The previous representative never made any mention of this.) Though my current balance included 2 months of late fees, since my story about them getting the address wrong was corroborated by the postal returns, the fees could be removed if I made at least a minimum payment at a Target branch before tomorrow.

Fair enough. I was still a bit unnerved by the fact that the statement sent to the correct address had not arrived (and if it hadn't arrived, what about next month's bill?), but at least the immediate problem could be resolved. I thanked the Target representative for the help, and proceeded to use the remaining portion of my lunch hour to hit the nearest Target, and visit the customer service desk, where they did a quick sweep of my card, and took a check I wrote for the majority of the balance. I rounded it to a nice easy figure; the remaining portion can be taken care of when the statement arrives (with added interest, which I'm not thrilled about, but willing to accept as a consequence of not being more conscientious and proctive earlier).

Well, the courtesy and respect showed by the representative today, in stark contast to the previous person I talked to, may have just saved me as a customer. Diplomacy can go a long way. Assuming no further funny business occurs, at this point, I have no intention of cancelling the account. Who would've ever thought this story would have a positive outcome?

Now, IFC is running a Monty Python movie, which I've heard from many sources to be extremely hilarious, but never experienced myself. So, I'll now direct my attention to the tv screen, sparing an occassional glance for irc. This will conclude tonight's "content".