Nothing at all to do with politics. I just wanted to demonstrate that my daughter is possibly the cutest kid in the world. (Not that I’m biased or anything.) Learning to sit up is fun:

Just a heads up to anyone who occasionally views my site through an RSS feed. The feed link has changed to https://www.masson.us/blog/?feed=rss2

Also, the URL: http://blog.masson.us is not currently directing to the site. Hopefully that will be resolved soon. In the meantime, try https://www.masson.us/blog

O.k., now I’m happy. I finally got my new computer. It took 2.5 weeks, but it’s here. Now I can customize things to my liking, instead of being a guest on my wife’s computer. It took me about 2 minutes to use IE to download Firefox. It took a bit longer to figure out how to modify Firefox 1.5 so that it would accept the JustBlogIt Extension for Movable type. Google showed me a Firefox hack that allowed it to work. I also downloaded mouse gestures and Sage extensions. I also downloaded PuTTY for my ssh needs and will probably download Thunderbird next. Then I have to get all of my newspapers, blogs, and legislative sites plugged into Sage and into my bookmarks. Ah, geek heaven.

O.k., I’m starting to get grumpy with Dell. As I mentioned earlier, my computer’s hard drive when kaput a little while back, and I’ve had to use my wife’s iBook which is serviceable but which I don’t really like just because of habits formed with Windows computers. So, I ordered a new computer from Dell which was supposed to be delivered a week ago. Guess who is still waiting for a computer?

My letter of complaint pretty much sets out the issues. “Kundan” is the customer representative assigned to this case.

Dear Kundan or other Dell Representative:

I am writing to advise that as of 9:30 a.m. Eastern Standard Time, I have not received the remainder of my order. As you may recall (and as is reflected in the attached correspondence), I received the monitor component of my order on November 22, 2005 but did not receive the rest of the order.

A timeline of this incident is as follows:
Nov. 16, 2005 – order placed
Nov. 19, 2005 – package shipped with projected arrival date of Nov. 22, 2005.
Nov. 22, 2005 – monitor received, no computer. E-mail from Dell stating that there had been a theft of a delivery vehicle.
Nov. 23, 2005 – Dell advises that UPS says the order should be delivered by the end of the day. No delivery.
Nov. 24, 2005 – I advise Dell that no delivery was received. Dell responds that replacement will be processed as a priority and shipped via Next Day shipping and that I will be notified when the order is shipped from Dell.
Nov. 25, 26, 27, 28 – No further activity.

As you can imagine, I am a bit disgruntled when I consider that, two weeks ago, I could have gone to one of our local stores and picked up a computer there. I understand that some of this is out of your control; but I am sure you can understand my frustration. In particular, a web page that would allow me to monitor the progress of this issue would be helpful. However, it appears that once this matter became non-standard, it became untrackable from the normal Order Status page.

To conclude, I wanted to: 1) advise you that no further activity on this order has taken place; 2) express my frustration with this matter; and 3) request a status report and indication of the date upon which I can expect completion of my order.

Thank you for your continued attention to this matter.

/s/Douglas J. Masson

Kundan’s kind reply is very apologetic. He even offers a $50 credit with Dell. That’s nice. But, please note, the response CONTAINS ABSOLUTELY NO INDICATION OF WHEN I MIGHT EXPECT DELIVERY OF MY ORDER.

Dear Mr. Masson,

Thank you for your kind reply.

I understand the inconvenience that you may have felt in this transaction. Had I been in your place, I would, most certainly, have felt similarly.

I understand that you have been presented with a highly stressful and frustrating pressure that you feel we have exacerbated. It is, of course, never our intention to do so.

I apologize for the inconvenience you have been facing due to the delay in the processing of replacement order. We have already filed a claim with UPS for the lost package and awaiting their reply in this reply. Usually we get reply for any claim within 2- 3 days but in your case it is still awaited, which is delaying the processing of replacement order.

Mr. Masson, it has never been our intention to delay the processing of any order either new or replacement. Please understand sometimes things happen beyond our control and we do apologize for that.

I know the inconvenience caused to you is beyond any monetary compensation. However, as a customer care courtesy and in appreciation of you being a valued customer, I would like to offer you a credit refund of $50.00.

I hope you will be pleased with this offer and send me the confirmation at it?s earliest. Upon receiving confirmation, I will issue a credit refund of $50.

If there is anything concerning your level of satisfaction in your dealing with Dell, please do not hesitate to reply me back and I assure you the highest possible level of my service to you.

It has been a pleasure assisting a Dell valued customer. Your case number for this interaction is ######. Please keep this number for your records; it will help us keep track of this issue so we can better assist you, if you have any further questions or concerns about your ongoing issue.

If there is anything additional you need or have any further queries or concerns, please do not hesitate in replying to me, or else you can contact our online customer care center at:

http://www.DellCustomerCare.com

Thank you and have a great day.

I’m only marginally interested in the origin of the problem. I’m much more interested in when they will give me what I paid for. If there is no progress tomorrow, likely I’ll point out that their problems with UPS are not my concern and turn into one of those customers that folks in the service industries hate.

Update: I was just clued in to this article suggesting that Dell has a strategy to deal with bloggers complaining about Dell’s customer service. So, if any readers out there have contacts at Dell, feel free to rat me out.

The strategy and the article apparently arose out of the Dell Hell series by Jeff Jarvis at Buzz Machine. Wish I’d read this stuff before I’d forked over the money to Dell.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody. I thought I’d take a moment to share some of the things I’m thankful for. I’m thankful for my wife who loves me and tolerates my politico-blogging obsessions and my kids who have great senses of humor, not least because they still think Dad is the funniest person in the world. I’m thankful for a roof over my head and plenty of food on the table. I’m thankful for a steady job, and pleasant co-workers. I’m thankful to practice law in front of the wisest judges that ever graced a court room (psst, some of them read this blog). I’m thankful for my dogs who give me a proper greeting every day when I get home. I’m thankful for parents who raised me right, even if I didn’t always heed the lessons. I’m thankful for a good education and teachers who encouraged me to think rather than merely to recite. I’m also thankful for those teachers who taught me that, sometimes, there just isn’t any substitute for buckling down and memorizing a few facts. I’m thankful that the NFL has football games on that I can watch when my belly is groaning under the weight of turkey and mashed potatoes. I’m thankful I was born and raised in the United States and Indiana….

And, I’m thankful that my son wants to spend time with me, RIGHT NOW. So I won’t go into the rest of the stuff I’m thankful for. Have a good Thanksgiving everyone.

I came across a news story in the Richmond Palladium-Item that brought some childhood memories back to me. The story was about the $1 million donation of Jack & Debra Edelman to Reid Hospital. The Israel D. Edelman Cardiac Center will be named in honor of the donation.

Izzie was the Edelmans son who died in a fire back in 1984 at the age of 19 in a fraternity house in Bloomington. The main memory was of being a little kid at the pool. Izzie was about 6 years older than me. I recall being vaguely afraid of him, probably because he was engaged in some good natured teasing — but being a lot younger than him, I don’t think I appreciated it. On the other hand, he and another guy his age named Bill used to play a game with me at the pool where they’d throw me as high as they could and I’d come splashing back into the pool. For a 7 or 8 year old or whatever I was: Best Game Ever. Then I have some vague recollection of folks at school going to his funeral. Finally, my 3rd year of law school, I lived in a rooming house that was on the same block as the empty space where Izzie’s fraternity house had burned. It was one of those “small world” moments when I came to that realization.

Anyway, it’s nice to see that there will be some lasting memory of a life cut tragically short.

Today is the one-year anniversary of the death of my dog, Shady. My “eulogy” to her was my first post to this incarnation of Masson’s Blog. I’m reposting that entry, typos and all, in her memory. My apologies to those of you who come for the politics.

Shady

I had to put my friend to sleep today, November 15, 2004. She had a big tumor on her liver. The vet said that it was almost certainly cancerous and there was little chance they could remove it. She hs been sick for the past 3 weeks. After a few days, we took her into our local vet. At first, our local vet thought it was leptospirosis and gave her a shot and some antibiotics. She got a little better, was eating again and was showing more energy. Then this Friday night, she wasn’t eating and she was very lethargic. Amy took Shady into the vet. By the time she got there, Shady was wobbly. The vet decided he couldn’t help and that Shady should go to the vets at Purdue who have better facilities.

By the time Shady got to Purdue, she couldn’t walk. Amy carried her in. They did an x-ray. There was internal bleeding in the abdomen, but since it was the weekend, they couldn’t really do any more in depth tests. (They said mostly they had to stabilize her, but I think they just didn’t have the right staff over the weekend.) Ultimately, they had to give her a blood transfusion on Saturday and seemed to stabilize her. We went to visit her on Sunday. She was sad to be there, but glad to see us. Still wouldn’t eat. She was very weak. Today, they were able to do an ultrasound and found the tumor. We decided it just didn’t make sense to put her through a tough surgery and a tough recovery when her prognosis was so bad. So, we put her to sleep. There were just no good options. Amy & I held her as she died.

We got her in June of 2000. At first, I didn’t really want a 3rd dog. But, Amy really wanted a puppy, and I decided that would be o.k. as a wedding present. So, Amy picked up a cuddly little black mutt puppy from the rescue she’d been volunteering at. The pup had been found running wild with a pack of wild dogs. Shady was a goofy looking thing. Mostly black with a snow white patch running up her chest and crossing her nose. Thick fur on her neck and chest. Tiny head. When we got her she was small with a great long tail. When she grew up, she had a barrel chest, shor legs, same small head, and her tail remained magnificent. Thick and long, made a great thump. We think she was part black lab, but that certainly wasn’t the whole story. Just a muddled up bundle of dog. “Made up of spare parts” we liked to say.

Such an odd combination of spare parts that she had some hip displasia by the time she was 2.5 or 3 years old. However, she seemed largely impervious to pain. This presented a problem with our “invisible” fence. She’d wander out of the yard and not particularly realize she was doing anything wrong. One time we watched her standing on the fence line with the shock collar on. The collar was beeping, and the skin on her neck was twitching a bit from the shocks. She just wagged. Eventually, we had to get her a belly collar so she could feel the shocks in her belly to get the message across that we’d really rather prefer if she stayed in our yard. Who could really blame her though? Bunnies were constantly wandering into our yard and rudely running off when she came into the yard. If they run, shouldn’t she follow? Now, if they stood still, then she was confused. if they didn’t run, she’d sit down and whine a safe distance away, a bit scared and unsure what to do. Toads, on the other hand, offered no fear. They were simply good playmates. Very fun to paw at. She liked rolling on them but, for some reason, the toads weren’t much on playing back.

One of my first memories of her was as a puppy scampering around the house. We had a little end table with a lamp on it. Shady ran underneath it, got caught up in the cord, and the table “attacked” her. This scared her so much, the poor thing ran to a desk we had against the wall and stuck her head between the desk and the wall, trying to crawl into a safe space and get away from the mean, mean table. That winter, we hadn’t trained her to stay in the yard with our “invisible” fence. So, we tied her on a cord when we let her out. She’d get herself wrapped around the tree. Wouldn’t bark. Could never figure out how to get herself untangled. When you came out, she’d just wag at you happily, as if to ask for a little help. She always *loved* the outside. She’d hang out in the cold pretty much as happily as she’d hang out in the heat. Rain? No problem. The only thing she didn’t like about being outside was lack of company. Sometimes she’d come to the window and bark, just trying to get the other dogs to come out. Often, she’d just lay contentedly on a patch of bricks just beyond the courtyard looking into the back yard. Just enjoying the sights, sounds, and smells. But, neither of the other dogs *ever* had to go out by themselves. Shady was always game to go out with them. This could have something to do with her eagerness to pee on top of any of the other dogs’ urine. Sometimes she’d have to go so badly, and yet she’d wait until one of the other dogs was gone so she could climb over that spot and do her business.

It was good fun to watch Shady and Brooksey, the dalmatian, play. Shady would get excited and scamper away, her back legs almost moving too fast for the front of her body, causing her rear and tail to dip down a bit as she ran. Brooksey, as graceful as Shady was awkward, would run circles around Shady before grabbing at the collar on her neck and dragging her down. Shady would work her way up and the process would resume. Both dogs happily running from courtyard to backyard around to the sideyard and back again. Gracelessness was also apparent when we took Shady on walks. I always joked that she looked like a WWII ship that was nervous about U-boats in the area. Never walking in a straight line, she was always zigging and zagging, running into your legs, running to see what the other dogs were up to, stopping suddenly. Worst walker ever.

Another puppy memory I had was typing in my office. Occasionally, I’d just see her trot by with her dollie in her mouth. Just a little rag doll. She was always so gentle with the stuffed toys. She liked carrying them and laying on them but would rarely chew them or treat them roughly. Also, I remember once when she was a puppy, she got out of bed as I was going to work. (Amy was on Christmas break and still sleeping.) Shady still seemed very tired, but for all the world it looked like she was groggily seeing me off for the day. (As she got older, there was nothing groggy about her in the morning. She was always anxious to get out and patrol the yard.) We crate trained her, and she seemed to really enjoy getting in her crate. Over the years, while Amy was working, she’d stay in her crate during the school days. During the summer, it seemed like she welcomed the occasional opportunity when we’d have her get in there. And, of course, she was always welcome to go in there on her own. We joked that we needed to put a little “off duty” sign on the crate.

Of our three dogs, Shady was the most eager to please and the most attentive to us. She would pretty much always want to be in the same room. Often, she would warm your feet as you sat at the computer desk. When she slept, she liked to sleep on top of your pillows. Once she got comfy, there was really no moving her. (Earning her the nickname “Shady Lady Concrete”) However, if you insisted, there was never any active resistance. She was just limp and heavy. She’d never get mad at you for lifting her up and putting her somewhere else. She had an unfortunate tendency to go roll in stinky stuff in the yard (or sneak out into the adjacent cornfield), but when she came in, she’d go to the bathroom and jump in the tub if ordred to do so. On weekends, when I’d sleep in, Shady really wanted me to get up. Eventually, she started letting me sleep. But, if Amy were up first and gave her a simple “where’s Dad?” Shady would run upstairs and jump on me, happy to have been given permission to start my day.

With our newborn, she was the most tolerant. The other dogs are pretty good with Cole, but I never felt at all nervous when he crawled on Shady. Her tolerance was a little odd, I suppose, given how scared she was when strangers came to the house. She’d bark for quite some time, particularly at tall men who were standing and moving. We always figured it was a result of her upbringing with wild dogs, not having been socialized at an early age to a lot of different humans. And, truth be told, we never get a lot of visitors. There was also an element of protectiveness, apparently. Because when we would leave and Shady was alone with the stranger, her tendency was to quickly become buddies with the person.

Shady was also something of an escape artist. We never could keep her gated upstairs with the baby gate we had. Seemed like she was heavy enough and ungraceful enough that she was barely getting enough air with her jumps to get onto the bed. But somehow she could jump that gate. This earned her another nickname, “The Great Shadini.” Later on, when we started gating the family room to keep Cole in it, Shady could be seen leaping from the kitchen into the family room. She just wanted to be close.

I don’t have any momentous closing thoughts. I guess I’m not the first one to ever lose a dog. But, she was a good dog. I loved her. And I miss her.

Monticello, Indiana
November 15, 2004

Because it’s not all about news & politics. And, I think my kids are adorable. Biased? Yup.

Feel like playing golf and helping a good cause? Then consider playing in the Tippecanoe County Legal Aid Golf Scramble. It’s a best ball format with a shotgun start at 10 a.m. on August 26, 2005 at the Ravines Golf Course in West Lafayette, Indiana. The cost is $60 per person which includes golf, cart, and a box lunch. If you want to sign up, call Wendy Watson at Tippecanoe County Legal Aid at (765) 742-1068. Checks should be payable to the Legal Aid Corp. of Tippecanoe County, 212 N. Fifth Street, Lafayette, IN 47901.

Proceeds will go to the Legal Aid Corporation of Tippecanoe County which is a not-for-profit United Way agency that provides low-cost legal assistance to low-income residents who cannot otherwise obtain an attorney. Legal Aid does not handle criminal matters or those involving fee-generating litigation. Legal Aid provides assistance to individuals with legal problems involving adoption, guardianships, child support, name changes, custody and visitation rights, paternity, divorce and separation, juvenile/CHINS issues, landlord-tenant disputes, mental commitments, and debt collection or contract defense matters.

In case anybody’s interested in such things, my wife and I keep a baby blog which has details for the past couple of years since Amy was pregnant with Cole and on through the present.