Delusions of Domesticity: Why do they make it so hard?

Arizona continues to be, um, not the best project I've been on. heh This trip back, I'm in Yuma. Up to now, I'd been getting straight flights from Indy to Phoenix and either driving down or catching another flight to Tucson. This time, I flew from Indy to the east coast (Charlotte) and then back west to Phoenix... then had a three-hour drive in the dark on a two-lane highway with tons of construction... to get to Yuma. 16 hours after leaving home, I finally made it to my hotel at 11:30pm. A couple days later, I leave the office I'm working in, start the car... and can't go anywhere. The car won't go into gear. *sigh* So I mess with it awhile hoping it's a fluke and I can get it moving, no luck, finally call the roadside service number and get a nice guy who tries to help. He has to call the office in Phoenix and tells me I'll have to swap cars in Phoenix... three hours away. Right, there's no Enterprise here in Yuma?!? Oh, sure, sure... but they all closed at 6pm... 5 minutes ago. *sigh* Through this I finally get the stupid car into gear and head to a gas station to fill up since I'll be swapping it out and have to return it with a full tank, right? Let's not talk about that the tank wasn't full when I got it. Grr. I stop at a gas station. Can't pay a tthe pump. Go inside... I have to know how much gas I'm putting in and prepay. How the heck am I supposed to know how much gas I need??? She shrugs and says I have to prepay. Fine. I leave and go down the block to a different station where I can pay at the pump. I fill up (after having to back up and pull in on the other side - why the heck do so many cars have the gas tanks on the passenger side now?! The driver fills up the car, right?!). So, the machine prints my receipt... it's blank. I have to go inside and have them print another one. Through all this, I'm still on the phone with the roadside guy and Enterprise and have gone through the whole story no less than four times and been told it's user error multiple times and told repeated how to put the car into gear... a car I drove for two days with no problem. They refuse to give me a different car! Seriously?! The woman at Enterprise finally just said they won't authorize a swap if there's nothing wrong with the car and she hangs up on me! The roadside guy apologizes, but there's nothing more he can do and tells me this happens A LOT. So much for customer service. =( Interesting that there are scratches all around this little plastic cover that says gear shift unlock. Sure, this has never happened before. Idiots. So I get my company's travel person involved. Funny, now that corporate is involved, now Enterprise is willing to give me another car. So after work, I try to leave to head to Enterprise at the microscopic airport here in Yuma (which, BTW, was open until 8:30pm the night before - had I known...), the car won't go into gear again. Yes, I pushed down on the gear shift before I tried to move it over. Yes, the stearing wheel was unlocked. Yes, the car has a major issue! I finally get it into gear, get to the airport and go in search of the car rental counters. No signs anywhere, of course. Find the guy, get him to stop chatting with his buddy and actually wait on me... and he has no idea what the heck I'm talking about when I say who I am and that I'm here to switch cars. The manager didn't bother to tell him anything. Nice. So he calls Phoenix and sits on hold for 10 minutes before getting authorization to give me this other car, tells them yes, it has a full tank of gas. I finally get the keys and surprise! It has just over half a tank of gas. I go back inside... nope, they can't fill it. I just have to take it. I gotta tell ya, if I'd had any choice in the matter, I would have handed him back the damn keys and gone to one of the other car rental companies. I'm so sick of these people! So I went and filled it up and will try to figure out how much gas to put in so I return it with a half tank of gas. =( I know if I ever need a rental personally, I won't be going to Enterprise! Anywhere else has to be better than these people! I get back to my hotel with the new car (this one moves, but it's the most basic thing they could find apparently) and stop at the front desk to fax my paperwork. No one is anywhere to be found. I stand there 10 minutes before some guy wanders through the lobby with a cup of coffee and asks if I'm checking in. Uh, no, you talked to me here yesterday, remember? He takes my paper to fax... then asks this other lady who just walked up if he can help her. Excuse me, you were helping me! Sheesh! After the great service at the hotel in Tucson (Residence Inn Williams Circle), this place is such a great disappointment. Every time I go tot he front desk, they ask if I'm checking in. Dude, I just walked out of the elevator... pretty good guess that I'm already staying here! The same people ask me over and over if I'm checking in. I ask to fax something, they do... and then ask if I'm checking in. hahaha No, I'm just using your free fax, moron. heh I'm stuck here until Monday, then head back to Tucson to finish out the week and head home... where I will hopefully either stay or fly soemwhere else. I'm just praying they don't send me back to AZ. Two months here is MORE than enough!

I do have this outside my window though: