I have bought personal computer equipment from Dell for quite some time.  Right now I'm typing this on a Dell, my oldest daughter's laptop is a Dell, my wife's laptop is a Dell, my youngest daughter's aging desktop is - yes, a Dell, and since it is time to upgrade that aging desktop, we called Dell!

Though the equipment that we've bought has always been good, lasted well past it's normal technological life and served us without a whimper, the shipping company that Dell employs - DHL - has consistently failed to meet even modest expectations.

Okay - so when it comes the the delivery of my newest, latest and greatest toy (in this instance, my youngest's new laptop to replace the outdated desktop system) I'm not always the most patient.  But when I'm promised a delivery date via a tracking number, I expect it to be there on that date!

DHL has consistently missed its delivery dates and this is no exception.  I know that Thanksgiving was Thursday, but the package first showed as "With Delivery Carrier" on 11/20.  I was excited!  It wasn't due until the 21st on the original shipping estimate!  Then at about 6:30 PM the status changed back to "Scheduled for delivery".

I called DHL on the 21st to make sure the box was on the truck - and sure enough - I was assured that the package would be here before 5:00.  Well, again at 6:30 or so the status changed back to "Scheduled for Delivery".  Another call to DHL indicated that they had no idea why the package wasn't delivered.  It should have been, but rest assured, on we would see the package on Friday (Thanksgiving was the 22nd).

Wrong.

Friday starts with a call to DHL first thing in the morning (okay, it was about 9:00).  They actually called the local center (or claimed to) and were assured that the package would absolutely, positively be there by 5:00 PM.  I checked on the status again about 3:00 and was PROMISED "Absolutely, sir - that package is on a truck and will definitely be delivered before 5:00 PM tonight."

Wrong.

At about 5:05 PM, I once again call and talk to a DHL representative - and even asked to have the call escalated to the manager of the local facility.  Though the gent on the other end of the line appeared to be trying, he came up empty.  There wasn't even an answer at the local hub!

He said there are no notes in the tracking system to show why the package hasn't been delivered since Tuesday (when it was originally scheduled) but he actually saw that the package was put BACK on a truck at 4:45 (or so) Friday night.  He stated that perhaps there was an issue with the truck or the driver (too much turkey perhaps?) and the truck had to be reloaded.  He again tried for a second time to actually speak to someone at the local center, but he could not get an answer.  He was confident that the system would be at my house sometime Friday evening.

Wrong.

So - where do we go from here?  I've requested that a formal complaint be filed "with headquarters".  We'll see what that does.  I've also been told "Oh yes - I'm sure that package will be there on Monday".  I guess we'll see.

I'm also going to place a call to Dell and file a complaint with them as well, though I don't expect that to do much either.  I'm thinking of refusing the delivery when it comes and canceling the order.  I guess I'll let Dell tell me whether that is a viable option or not.

I've considered trying to contact the BBB for the area here since this is now the 4th time (if I recall correctly) that DHL has missed it's date, but I doubt there is much THEY can do either.  In all honesty, I think I really only have one option...

Start buying Compaq... :-(

Stay tuned - more to come...

No, that's NOT the way I feel, but it is the way my blog has been described!

Much has happened since the last post - I'll try to keep it brief but you know how preachers can get long-winded.

First and foremost, the most drastic thing that happened in the recent past was the passing of my dad into the arms of Jesus.  My dad was diagnosed in May with terminal cancer (which prompted the long-distance motorcycle trip this summer.  Jenny and I were able to go back and visit with him before he became too ill.  He was doing well on his own, but the disease really started to take its toll in the first part of October.  He was becoming frail and asked for a wheelchair to take him from the car to the doctor's office for the first time (in his life, that I know of).  He had fallen the weekend before and had scratched himself up pretty well.  He fell again on his way into the house after the doctor's appointment.

To make a long story short, he had been admitted to the hospital on Wednesday the 10th (I believe) and we discovered on Friday that the results of his latest scan showed that the cancer had metastasized fully through a lot of his body.  He was discharged from the hospital on the 17th and seemed stable.  By 11:30 PST on the same day, we received the call and were told we needed to go to Pittsburgh.  Despite getting on a flight the next morning at 8:30 AM, he had gone to be with Jesus before we got there.

We spent two weeks in Pittsburgh to tend to "things" as well as to allow ourselves to "decompress" a bit.  His death came as relief and a shock at the same time.  I was shocked that he passed so quickly, but was relieved that I was able to use his passing as a testimony to God's faithfulness.  I had been praying - and asking others to pray - that God would take him quickly, gently and with dignity.  My God did all of these!

In the other side of the coin, Faith Chapel now has a new logo, some new banners, a new location and a new spiritual covering!  WOW!

First, the new logo:

The "Welcome Home" at the bottom is reflective of the way we really believe that God desires this church to be a home for His family.  When we get together, it isn't just a matter of showing up for church - it's getting together with the family of God!

The new banners are hung and removed from our new location:

Our new location is in the Multi Purpose room of Woodland Elementary school on 112th St and Fruitland Avenue in Puyallup (midway between Costco and Canyon Road).

Now - for the spiritual covering:  We are now a member of the Foursquare Church!  I am operating under a "Provisional License" while I finish up a class and some paperwork and should have everything finalized within six months at which point the "provisional" classification will be removed.

Joining with the Foursquare Church is a great benefit to Faith Chapel as it primarily provides a spiritual covering and accountability for me.  It also allows us to have a ready source of support when needed - as in the two weeks I was out for my dad's funeral.  It will also allow us to participate in larger scale functions for Men's Ministry, Women's Ministry, Retreats, etc.  All-in-all, it is great to be aligned with such great organization!

Other changes?  Wow - if that wasn't enough for you, I've also been moved to a new group at Microsoft.  I am now working as a Service Manager for the Network Access Protection (NAP) team.  This is a new role that I am filling which has ties back to my previous role in IPsec.  The changes are pretty significant, and just as I felt as though I were back on my feet, we needed to fly out of town for two weeks.  With the speed of which this project is moving, by the time I got back I not only had over 2,000 unread e-mails in my inbox, but I also felt totally lost again.  I'm ramping up much quicker now, but still feel like I'm behind the power curve.  Another week or so should get be back on the ball again - or firmly underneath it...

Well, I did say that I would try to keep it brief - this is about as brief as I get!  Drop me a line and let me know that you actually read this stuff!  pastortom@tomtracey.com

Stay tuned - more to come...