Sometimes you cant even count on your coworkers

In most HSI companies, field technicians doing installs have equipment that has already been activated in the system. We call this provisioning. Occasionally a modem will go out that is not provisioned, in these instances they will call in to us at tech support to flip the switch so to speak. Field techs have a nasty tendency to take advantage of this and call in for us to do things like read the levels on the modem (which they can do easier then us). A lot of our guys are smart, on the ball sharp kids or old hands. The others I'm certain the only question they were asked was if they spoke English or not, and sometimes I wonder about that even. 

My biggest aggravation when it comes to field techs is best summed up in the following call (from yesterday as a matter of fact)

tech: This is tech 1231, I got a modem I think needs to be provisioned. 

me: Sure thing, just give me the account number and I'll take a look 

I get the account number, pull it up in billing, everything looks golden, and I'm just waiting for the modem diagnostics to load

me: Well, it looks like everything is alright in billing, just waiting for the modem diagnostics to load here so I can check the bootfile. (about this time the modem diagnostics load... to an empty page. Not good) Um.. I got nothing here. The modem isn't reporting. What type of modem you putting in there. 

tech: Motorola 

me: Alright, easy enough, what are the lights doing on the front, if the modem is normal and has sync it should have the top 4 solid. 

tech: second one down, receive, is blinking.

(for the record, this means the modem isn't even getting a signal. Tech should know this)

me: Ok, that just means the modem doesn't have sync, you should be able to get up and running once you check the signal and the lines. 

tech: So... nothing you can do for it?

me: Um... not really, this would be the point where we'd send a tech out to fix it... that's you. 

tech: I think you're lying, fix this!

me: I can't. It's a physical problem you have to check the lines outside and in and make sure its getting signal. 

tech: Well.. How about you do your damn job and get this modem online!

(I've had enough at this point and decide, fuck it, both barrels blazing time)

me: You know what, Let me tell you what my job is, My job is to take care of advanced networking problems and to help you guys out when billing or provisioning is jacked up. When a customer doesn't have sync or a connection my job is to send a tech, again that's you,  to the home to fix it. So, how about you drop the attitude, and do your damn job. 

tech: Watch it asshole, I'll tell your supervisor

me: No you won't because I can do the same to you. So how about you do your job, and free up my line so I can do mine?

He hangs up, and from what I can tell hasn't called back in. 

This shit gets me. You are hired to do a job, you chose to apply for the job. It's not like you thought it was something it isn't. At my job recently there's been a lot of this. It really really really aggravates me. Alright I'll end my little rant. Back to the regularly scheduled humor and lightheartedness tomorrow. 

=)