Cell Phone Woes

Ever since Hurricane Wilma hit, I have been having significant issues with using my cell phone where I live. If I travel ten (or in some cases two) miles away in any direction, my reception is perfect. However, from my apartment, my gym, one side of the grocery store (I don't make this stuff up people), all my usual haunts, my phone hasn't been working. For the first several months, I would receive the annoying message that the network was busy. Now it's even worse, as it looks like it is working: I will have full bars; it will attempt to dial; it will do everything you expect a phone to do, and then it will say that I don't have any service. Weird. Weirder still, if I leave my phone lying out in my apartment now, it will die within two hours.

I have spent weeks on the phone with Sprint PCS, explaining my problem, going to the store, being transferred to everyone and their mother. I was even sent a new phone just to shut me up. Two months, and I still don't have phone service. Then two days ago, I got the secret number. I learned that they could report problem tickets and get things fixed. Hooray. Later that night, they called me to let me know that the problem ticket had been issued and the techs had identified the problem. "Great. How long until it is fixed?" "Oh, we don't know that." "Huh?"

Eventually, the representative told me she would check on the ticket for an update and call me back the next day, yesterday. She did just as she said. However, there was still no update, and when I inquired further she confessed that the techs had not really identified the problem, they just acknowledged that there was a problem. She went on to promise to get back to me today.

I'm not sure I can take it anymore, though. How hard could it possibly be to fix this? I mean, two months?? Really? I suppose I could get a land line, but it's just more expensive, and I have to pay for installing a phone that I will only ever use until my cell phone works again. Of course, the question remains - how long will that be.

I know that Sprint is not the greatest. I've had my fair share of issues with them in the past, and I could go ahead and get a new cell phone, with a new company and a new contract. However, in some respects I can't afford to give up my plan. A few years ago I wanted to terminate my Sprint usage. They sent me to their "Retentions Department" - which has since been discontinued, and they gave me the best plan ever. I have been to every carrier, periodically, to ask them if they can match it and they all tell me I'm really lucky and to keep my Sprint account. Plus, I don't have a contract.

T-Mobile seems to have serious issues here when there is a storm, and given that we seem to be getting plenty of them lately, I wouldn't necessarily want to go in that direction. Verizon seems to have the best network around, but they are pricey, and I cannot get their night and weekend minutes to start before 9PM. Whereas, with Sprint, I can get them to start at 6. Six is so much earlier than nine. I even thought of going prepaid, but they nail you on the phone cost.

There really is no great solution.