High speed internet . . . oh really?

In my last post I mentioned that Libya had the wonderful thing called ADSL - yes... it's available . . . maybe?!?

I decided to take the plunge and get off the frustrating dial-up - graduate to something speedy and fast. I had dreams of being in another realm of the internet at the click of the mouse. Of course, my husband said 'NO WAY! - You play enough on the internet as it is. Just what we need is to have you able to do it at high speed!!' He also didn't like the idea that I could be on the internet and the phone would be able to ring. How on earth could he tell if I was on the internet then when he called to check up on me? Oh the life of an internet addict is a tough one!

But I'm a woman with my own money, so when I got paid I spoke with one of my students who said he would arrange it all for me. The plan was that I wouldn't tell hubby, I'd just leave the phone off the hook once in a while to throw him off. As usual when I try to pull one over on the man of the house my plan fails. (I should know this by now - 23 years is a long time.)

While hooking up the service the company somehow messed up the telephone line. I had internet but no telephone. This was a problem because the internet company (LTT) said the problem wasn't theirs and I should contact the phone company. This sounds like a simple thing, but let me assure you that this is far from simple. Hubby gets involved - and you have to remember that he knows nothing about the ADSL connection. He drops in at the phone company to tell them the phone's not working and they say they will get to it.

Get to it . . . when??? After a day and a half of waiting for them to 'get to it' I go down the road to a telephone exchange and call the phone company's repair service myself. I have this stupid idea that I can solve the problem:

Barid: Hello
Me: Asalamaualaikum
Barid: Walaikumasalam
Me: (In my best broken Arabic) I'm having a problem with my telephone
Barid: What's the problem
Me: I ordered the ADSL service from LTT and when it was hooked up the internet connection works but the phone is not working now - no dial tone, I can neither make nor receive calls.
Barid: Are you Pakistani?
Me: That's not necessary. I just need you to fix the phone please.
Barid: Are you mixed? Where are you from?
Me: Sigh . . . are you going to help me with my phone problem?
Barid: Are you Italian?

He's not going to give in and I am not going to get the phone fixed. God this is so frustrating!

Me: Sigh . . . No. . . further away than that, but it isn't necessary. Please can you help me with my telephone problem?
Barid: Are you English?
Me: No. . . sigh . . American.
Barid: Oh!! Welcome! What is the problem exactly?

I repeat what the problem is and he says he will get right on to it. He also wants to chat me up some more but I cut him off by hanging up on him. I am pissed off, mostly with myself for giving in and telling him where I'm from. He had no business asking where I was from - and I was an idiot. I should have said I was a Russian doctor or something. I decided to tell my husband who became furious and went down to the phone company and had a shouting match with them.

I ended up having to tell my husband that I was having ADSL hooked-up. And of course he wasn't thrilled with that. So I had no phone, problems with the phone company repairman and now an angry husband who happened to be jealous about the phone company repairman chatting me up. Everything has to be a huge production!

Finally after 6 days and countless trips to the phone company, the telephone gets turned back on. But surprise, surprise - the internet connection gets turned off.

More headaches - I contact the internet service who tells me the problem is with the phone company. The phone company says the trouble is with the internet service. Back and forth we go. Now the internet service finally says 'OK - it's the problem with the phone company, but we will take care of it.' And they've agreed to credit my account for the week of internet that I haven't been able to use. They said MAYBE it will be fixed today.

Sigh . . . I am still on dial-up until they get their act together.