I'm a liberal pagan living in West, Texas. Yes. That West, Texas.

Monday, April 20, 2009

NO MORE DAM NEWS





I received my cable bill and my Dallas Morning News(DAM) bill in the mail today...Still shocked that they charge $52.01 for the crappy cable. But the biggest shock was my DAM News bill went up from $20 to $42. I immediately called and when I finally got through to an agent, I said I bet you wish you had another job today. He said 'yes, I do.'...So I says to the lucky young chap:"What the fuck?"....with out any notice they upped my subscription from $20 to $42?...and he says to nasty old lady:"Yes, sir, they were supposed to send out a letter and tell everyone about the changes, but they didn't."...nasty old lady to lucky young chap:"don't piss me off more by calling me sir, it's mam', and you're going to have to cancel my subscription, when it expires on May4th. Then he tried to say I could get a 30 percent or something discount...which is still $30 something...said nope...can't afford it...at $20 it was a luxury I afforded myself because I love the paper so much and have subscribed since 1978. Then he tried to sell me the 4 days a week deal..which is Thursday thru Sunday..Said nope..I either get it all...or I don't get it..and I'm on a fixed income and can't afford $42 a month for a paper. It breaks my heart and I am going to be totally lost without it..but thems the breaks..so as of May 3rd...no more paper. I'd get the Waco paper, but it's so crappy even puppies won't piss on it..I can't even begin to tell you how much I'm going to miss it...I know I can get my news on the Internet and can go to DAM News and get it..but it's not and never ever will be the same. I will miss the ritual of opening up the paper, and seeing what the idiots of the world have been up to, what asshole Jerry Jones has signed up for the Cowboys, what my favorite comic characters have been up to. Oh shit...my cross words....I do 3 of them every day...what the fuck?...I'm done..fork me...I can't believe I'm crying over a stupid fucking paper...fuckity fuck fuck fuck!

26 comments:

Mrs. Chlorine Jackson said...

Believe it or not, your cable is cheap in comparison! I pay around 75 bucks a month just for cable and that's not even the best package available! Ridiculous! I understand the paper thing. I don't get the Cleveland paper anymore but I swear I went through withdrawals when I finally cancelled it. Sat. and Sun. mornings without my beloved paper were hard to take for awhile.

Heidi said...

That's terrible, Jackie Sue! Can you get the paper online? Can you keep checking for deals/specials? Newspapers are getting pretty desperate for subscribers so they've been giving some really good deals. For example, I got a kick butt deal on our local paper - Friday and Sunday print edition for two years for $2.00!!!

Otherwise, do you share a community recycle bin in your housing complex? When I lived in my apt, I used to go down at night and get papers that people tossed away after reading.

Jan said...

Isn't there a coffee shop or car wash where they take the paper and you could just sort of stroll in and stroll out with it?

Sling said...

I'm very sad for you.It sucks when things we have come to rely on are snatched from us without so much as a 'fuck you'.
..I will cherish my copy of West news even more.

yellowdoggranny said...

Mrs.jackson..yeah, I know Im going to be wandering around in the parking lot looking like a crazy person wanting my paper..I don't like changes and this one is a major change..we only get 46 channels for that $50 bucks..feck!
heidi:I may call back and see what it would be with that discount..$30+ is high but it might be dueable...I can read it on line, that's not the deal..I like touching and flipping the pages, i like getting the sunday morning paper and clipping my coupons, reading my comics, figuring out my reading sched. for the week in the tv guide..sigh*
jan:yeah, right..not in west..but some one behind me gets the paper too, so might see if they want to split it..I don't mind reading it second as I do the crossword puzzles..if they do too, we're screwed.ha..will check ..
sling:I hate change..hate it hate it hate it..
yeah, thank Goddess for the West news...sigh*

Anonymous said...

That totally sucks! Stick to your guns (or maybe not..."Oh no granny's got a gun...run!!!). OK...just trying to make you laugh... Here's a tip...get up early and steal your neighbors paper...

KrisMrsBBradley said...

I had to cancel my paper a while back, too. It sucked.

Unknown said...

I cancelled my paper years ago, it's just not worth it.

Kulkuri said...

It is possible to do crosswords on-line. Also Soduko. And you can do more than one a day, just go to different newspaper websites. I don't do it on-line as it takes me all week to do the two crosswords in the sunday paper sometimes.

Intense Guy said...

Man that sucks. At those prices that newspaper is going to join the rest of the really big ones going bankrupt and out of business.

That poor penguin...I see how you can relate to it.

Rox said...

I get both our local papers once a week (that's how often they are published) and every week it's the same. Pros and cons about the proposed Nuclear Power plant and the court dockets. Ads for jobs. I buy it to support the community. And for firestarter.

I think it's a good idea to find someone to go halfers with you. Either that or you can start stealing them from places you visit and blog about it! Turn it into an adventure!!

I'd rather be called sir than m'am ANY DAY. Hell, I'd rather be called cunt than m'am!!

Big Pissy said...

I understand. There's just something about actually having the newspaper in your hands....flipping the pages....all of that.... :(

sageweb said...

Where do they get off more than doubling your rate? They must want people to cancel.

Jonah K. Haslap said...

I love that picture. It's going on my office wall. In fact, I think I'll have it blown up into a life-sized poster, maybe with a cardboard cut-out for my face. Thanks for sharing.

rosemary said...

First: loved the pictorial in the last post. next.....we are stuck with DirecTV.....asses...and pay a whole lot of money for so-so service. We can't get local channels even with the converter box and I absolutely refuse to pay for a channel that i should get for free. We get 2 papers daily. One is out of Spokane and has a smattering of national and world news the other is a Sandpoint paper with only local stuff. But this place is so right leaning that there is never one single objective story. But, the best time of any day is sitting at the lichen table with Steve, a hot cup of mocha by my right hand, reading the papers. So, I am stuck.....it's either pay the price or pay the price.

Mouthy Girl said...

The art of feeling the paper between one's fingers is slowly being eroded in today's society. I understand the beauty of opening the pages of newspapers, magazines, and books. I have a friend who loves books on CD. No thank you. I want to READ to myself...I want to feel the paper and smell the ink.

I'm so sorry about this, Jac! *hard hugs*

billy pilgrim said...

i cancelled my subscription several years ago. they keep calling and offering me a special deal,3 months for $29.99. i take the 3 months and then cancel again.

it's a win win situation. i get a cheap 3 month subscription and some lovely young lady gets a bonus for signing up a sucker.

Allan said...

That's bad news about the news. I'll miss the DAM posts.Does the library get a copy you could read?

I canceled my cable last month. Don't miss it. Well...maybe a little.

yellowdoggranny said...

I would rather cancel my cable than my paper..and think i might call them back and tell them to let me have the discount for a while and maybe cancel cable..or get dishtv with at&t which is a lot cheaper..i don't know if i can give up my paper..i love my paper..i get my paper in the am, and sort it..first is the front page, then the business section, then metro section, then sports then the life/guidelines section.after i read it from front to back, i rip do the cross word puzzles and cross word puzzle...then i rip the articles out that i want to do a post about..and if there is something that is in it that means something to me, like the death of someone i really admire or love, like an old brooklyn dodger player or old movie star i had a crush on, or some rock and roll god, i cut it out and put it in my box called grandma's heart..sigh*..yeah, im calling them back and see if i can wheedle and whine and kiss some punk ass and get a reduction in the price..sigh*

TheWayfarer said...

They're ass-raping you for cable.
Hell, "Commie-cast Cabal-vision" just lowered their 100-channel package to $29.95 up here, and they've got to be out of their minds to try and charge almost $50 for a newspaper subscription unless it is all issues for a year!
They keep begging me to take the Fort Wayne "Urinal-Whizzette" at $20 for 6 months, and I keep telling them to shove it.

TheWayfarer said...

P.S: Google "Amarillo Globe-News" and see what their rates are...I'll bet it ain't no goddamned $50!

Nan said...

Know what you mean about anticipating withdrawal symptoms from the newspaper. I used to love having the Washington Post delivered when we lived in Virginia. I read it on-line now, but there's something about the feel of real paper that makes the on-line verson a poor substitute.

Anne Johnson said...

As the wife of a print journalist, I have some suggestions.

1. Be strong, go a week or two without it. They will call you back and ask what it will take to get you back as a subscriber. Name your terms. Ask to speak to a manager. Getting $24 a month from you is better than not getting anything at all!

2. Pay attention to how much money you save by using those Sunday coupons. Sometimes the newspaper pays for itself if you can find a grocery store that double values the coupons.

One thing you'll definitely find is that you can't substitute one newspaper for another. Mr. Johnson subscribed to the New York Times and quit the Philadelphia Inquirer. I know the Times is supposed to be so much better --- but I miss the Inky columnists! And Iggles coverage!

TheWayfarer said...

Anne Johnson's sounds like the best strategy.
If there's one thing they love to do, it's hound you over the phone, and there's GOT to be some way to make that pay off!

AngelConradie said...

"...even puppies won't piss on it..."
Love it! I wish I could think of stuff like this when the opportunity arises!

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