Not sure why, but this week has been very busy, with a large number of customer complaints and special requests and a large volume of telephone calls.

At one point this morning the office tech pointed out that every single one of our 10 lines was either solid (meaning call was in place) or blinking (meaning call was on hold), and asked how was she going to be able to transfer a call (you need an open line to transfer a call to it). Good question.

Our junior office tech insists on taking calls via speaker phone--at full volume; another employee talks loudly incessantly; and a third group was on their speaker phones for a required webinar. It was insanely loud, jumbled and chaotic.

Thank goodness for ear plugs. I put a phone to one ear, ear plug in the other. I know it sounds weird, but it worked. It's quieter in the office for the moment, but we all feel like we're waiting for the other shoe to drop, since every day has been like this. In about 15 minutes, it will start all over again as people start heading home from work and grab their cell phones to call and complain.

So many of the complaints are things about which we can't do anything--employees who are off ill, hot weather, equipment malfunction (no Janet Jackson jokes, please). We can only say that we will attempt to improve service, but hot weather is here as it is every year, and 15 years of age is not an adult (and therefore cannot sign a contract or enter into other adult type legal interactions) ::sigh::

Everyone is edgy and irritable. I hope we can put all telephone users back on regular phone handsets and cease using the speaker phones. That will help a great deal to calm things down.

Life goes on....