I am Sorry Sir, But We Cannot Give Out That Information

So this weekend we get get up to the cabin and part of my usual ritual is to traipse through the snow to check the propane levels in our tanks.  Last week we had arrived on Wednesday evening in preparation for the New Years holiday weekend and I noticed the tanks had gotten low even though we hadn't been up for most of December.  So I called the propane company to see if they could come Thursday or Friday before the holiday since we were having company and our usage would be up.  The woman in the office assured me that 20% full would be enough till they came out the next week.  She told me we were already on the dispatch list for what is now this past week so not to worry.  Fine.

You guessed it.  This Saturday morning the tanks were nearly empty at 5% capacity.  It should be noted that we are on their company's service plan and we also prepaid for our estimated  propane needs for the winter.  Tammy called the company on Saturday morning to see if we could get an emergency delivery and to ask why our tanks were not filled as promised.  Of course the women had no information as she was only the Saturday person and besides, was our driveway clear of snow as this could be the reason for the lack of delivery. They are trained, I see, to immediately blame the customer.   First off, our tanks are accessed via the road (albeit down a steep hill), and I had called last year to inquire about our responsibilities in keeping the path clear to the tanks but was given no guidelines.  The office people seemed to have no idea about the actual parameters of the field delivery.  After much cajoling she finally agreed to contact the delivery guy who "will have to fire up the truck" and she implied what an ordeal it is to make a Saturday delivery.  So blah, blah, blah, the guy shows up 4 hours later and Tammy says "Sorry, I hope we didn't spoil your Saturday.  And he is all like, "No problem.  We were out moving the propane to our satellite tanks anyway.  I make deliveries in Woodland Valley every Tuesday and the path to your tanks is great. ( I built steps this summer-Richard).  And no, you were not on my delivery list last Tuesday." Gee.

You maybe do not give a rat's ass in hell about  propane delivery issues here at my upscale log cabin in the mountains while you have your own issues with the cable company at home.  Nor do you want to read another boring blog detailing the minutiae of some braggart's meaningless life.  Well you should care, because if you know anything about me and my blog there will be a few words of insightful wisdom somewhere in the story.  And by insightful wisdom I mean unfettered griping.  So here is what I got out of this episode:  Large companies do not like to give out helpful information to their customers.  They guard their policies and procedures as if the security of an entire nation depends on their propane delivery schedule.  Okay maybe that's a bad example because some crazy could plan to blow up the propane truck in front of my house if he knew when it would be there.  But think about this; food processing companies do not want you to know where your food comes from.  Internet based companies do not want you to know what cookies they hide on your computer or what  info they collect about your preferences.  Hospitals certainly aren't forthcoming about the side effects of the IV drugs dripping into your body.  And the bank most definitely does not want you to read the small print on your variable rate mortgage contract.  Because one thing is certain; Knowledge is power and if Americans could actually make well informed decisions about things that affect their everyday lives we would all want to crawl back up the tree in East Africa that we came from (or retreat back to Eden depending on your beliefs).

Here is my advice: Do not let other people dictate the parameters of your life.  Don't be a gadfly but don't be afraid to take control of your own life.  Ask questions and insist on answers.  But one thing; do not ask the dentist what's in the filling he just put in your tooth.