My husband's Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle experience with his U.S. Bank/REI card.

So my hubby and I are fine with credit cards monitoring suspicious activity and putting freezes on our accounts when something looks fishy.  That's great customer service.

What isn't great customer service is when a bank freezes transactions that shouldn't be frozen after specific instructions from the customer himself.

Jeff regularly flings himself out of perfectly good airplanes for fun.  He does this once a month, at the same place--and he has done so since Memorial Day Weekend.

Lately, US Bank/REI has decided that, wherever Jeff is, his credit shouldn't come with him--the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle of Bad Customer Service.  Every month, he tries to charge something at the jump site.  Every month, his account is blocked.  He calls the bank and explains the situation; the bank agrees that the charges shouldn't be blocked; Jeff goes home.  (Of course, when he goes home and tries to pay for parking, the same bank blocks his credit there, too.)

This cycle of folly continues each month:

• Jeff calls the bank to explain that there's no fraud on charges from these two particular sites.
• The bank says that it understands and won't block the charges again.
• Jeff goes to the jump site, charges something, and finds out that the charge was blocked.
• Jeff calls the bank.
• The bank promises not to block the charge.
• Jeff comes home and tries to pay for parking.
• The bank blocks the charge.
• Jeff calls the bank.
• The bank promises not to block the charge.
• Repeat ad nauseum.

The cycle of folly has now ended after the bank, yet again, blocked the charges and then explained to Jeff that Jeff must call the bank ahead of time to explain that he is traveling and to ask--basically, with a "pretty, pretty please"--let his charges go through.

No more.  Now Jeff has a card with a different bank.  And we wonder why banks have such a bad rap.

An update for editors everywhere.

From my buddy Kathleen Lyon, some thoughts about editing (here) in response to my frustrated screed (here). 

Thanks, Conglomerate!

For the shout-out (here).

Serious customer service problems at Premium Media Design.

Tried to order some software.  My tale begins thus:

1. Clicked on website. 
2. Put software in cart.
3. Chose PayPal option.
4. Logged on to PayPal.
5. Paid for software.
6. Returned to site to find nothing in my cart.
7. Repeated steps 2-6.
8. Nada.
9. Wrote to Customer Service.
10. Nada.
11. Called the phone number, which referred me to Live Chat.
12. Clicked on Live Chat.
13. Nada.
14. Wrote this blog post.
15. Am sending a link of this blog post to Premium Media Design.

The best part?  I've figured out what the company means by "we will give you the best service POSSIBLE."

It's not possible.

Mixed thoughts about this post on Above the Law.

I do get what Above the Law is saying here, and I also take the point of Anonymous's comment about my screed against bad law review editing, but I've also seen the difficulty that some law students have in transitioning from college to professional school.  There has to be a good way to teach them that the little things matter.

And I'm now, after 20+ years on the job, at the point at which I require those who write papers for me to execute this affidavit.

Am I a curmudgeon?  Yep.  Do I think that some clear expectations might help students become more professional?  I sure hope so.

UPDATE (2/11/14):  Thanks, Above the Law, for including me in your non-sequiturs yesterday!

Brava, Scarlett Johansson!

I'm so glad you spoke up against the boycott!

Thanks, Above the Law!

Appreciated the shout-out!