Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog

I got home the other day to see a slick ad hanging from my doorknob. “DOES A FRUSTRATED INTERNET USER LIVE HERE?” it asks. Why, yes, I thought. A frustrated internet user DOES live here. So I yanked the ad off the door and flipped it over, hoping to see an announcement for Fiber To The Premises. Alas, the flyer only claimed that “Verizon Online DSL is now here to help.” Having disavowed giving any money to the local cable company long ago, DSL is a step in the right direction. I quickly dialed the number on the ad, gave my info, and sat there with wide eyes, ready to spit out credit card numbers, references, whatever they wanted. The helpful operator there reported that DSL is not yet available for my line.

Now why the hell would Verizon spend that money to advertise specifically to a household where the advertised service is not available? What a ridiculous waste of money.