Free computer: Message 3: recommitted to lady

James McIntosh jemcinto-cpI+UMyWUv+w5LPnMra/2Q at public.gmane.org
Wed Jun 21 18:35:57 UTC 2006


I cannot take time to answer all the people who sent me e-mails, so here is
a detailed general answer.

The couple working in my apartment building as assistant superintendents
(Mr. Aaron and Mrs. Vanessa M.) have an old PC case and contents.

It belongs to the wife, Mrs. Vanessa M., who used to work for Microsoft
Canada in the Atlantic provinces.

She tried to sell the old PC by a flyer on the laundry room's bulletin board.

She failed. I forget the price she asked.

She took down the flyer, and said that they would just toss it into the
garbage bin behind the building.

I said that it was a shame, and that I would mention it on a couple of
e-mail groups.

I chose to announce it in the monthly meeting of:
   - TLUG: Toronto Linux User Group
     meeting at University of Toronto,
     Tuesday night (June 13th) at 7 pm.

No one was interested, but they suggested posting to their entire e-mail
group.

The husband was not at all impatient.

I interpreted the wife (Vanessa ?) as becoming impatient. I probably was
wrong. I am weak at interpreting emotions.

I decided to post it on two e-mail groups:
   - PCCT: Personal Computer Club of Toronto
   - TLUG: Toronto Linux User Group
and, as an afterthought, on:
   - HAPPEN: Halton and Peel Professionals and Executives Network.

I handled _-=ALL=-_ outstanding telephone calls (detected by Caller ID)
before receiving e-mail.

I got a lot of telephone calls, which I listed most of in my previous
messages.
   - 12:18 12:18 pm Mr. C. M-S
                    As I was looking at the long list of callers
                    to plan the order to contact them,
                    this gentleman called, and I committed it to him.
------------------------------------------------------------------
After I handled all the telephone calls detected by Bell Canada
Caller ID, I received my e-mail and found even more responses.

In total, possibly nearly two dozen people responded.

I did not have time to give individual e-mail answers to everyone, but I
think that I did anyway.

I have already spent hours giving individual answers to everyone
who telephoned.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: I originally stated: "Pick up as soon as possible:".

Case and contents:
   - Intel Pentium II, 350 MHz

   - 128 MB RAM

   - 6 GB hard drive

   - CD burner

   - NIC (network interface card)

Note:
   - This is the CASE and CONTENTS ONLY.
   - This DEFINITELY DOES NOT INCLUDE MONITOR,
     and almost certainly DOES NOT INCLUDE KEYBOARD or MOUSE.
   - I think that she will keep the MONITOR, KEYBOARD and MOUSE.

Note: I originally stated:
   - "Pick up from the area near 401 and Kennedy Road, Scarborough.
     Contact me for exact address. Give me your name and telephone number.".

Note:
   - At 5 pm, I gave to Vanessa the name and telephone numbers
     of Mr. C. M-S., who called at 12:18 pm.
   - At 8 pm, Vanessa still had not called him, so he called me.
     I was out shopping.
   - At 10 pm, I called him. He mentioned their lack of response.
   - At 10 pm, Vanessa and her husband did not answer my knocking on their
door.
   - I decided to try tomorrow.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday's events:

incoming calls, detected by Caller ID:
   - 10:30 10:30 am V T
   - 11:19 11:19 am V T
   - 11:38 11:38 am fraudulent telephone number, using *Call Privacy
telephoned (--   )    -    : V T
   - 12:03:03 to 12:05:19: 2 minutes, 16 seconds
   - (He had not read my e-mail mentioning
      that I had already committed the computer to someone else.)
   - He said that he already had two computers,
     but a third could be useful for testing things.
   - I told him that I had already committed the computer
     to someone else.
telephoned (--   )    -    : Mr. C. M-S
   - 15:00:18 to 15:01:55: 1 minute, 37 seconds
   - Mr. C. M-S had called me the previous night at 8
     to ask why she had not contacted him.
   - I had knocked on their door after 10 pm to ask when they would call
Mr. C. M-S.
   - I had intended to go down to talk to Mrs. Vanessa
     to ask whether she had contacted him yet.
   - I had been received telephone calls
     and receiving and reading e-mails all day.
   - I had not had time to dress yet.
   - I decided to discover the status by asking Mr. C. M-S,
     to save the time to dress and find her.
   - I asked him whether she had contacted him yet.
   - He said that she had not.
   - This was more than 22 hours since I handed her
     his full name and telephone numbers.
   - He is not at all sure that he is interested in picking up a PC
     from a person who is intolerably rude.
note:
   - 00:10 12:10 am Ms. C C.
                    Status #1:
                         She was not home when I tried to call.
                         I did not leave a message.
                    Status #2:
                         She was not home when I tried to call.
                         I left a message.
                    Status #3:
                         She was at home when I called a third time.
                         She denied making any such call,
                         emphasized that she would NEVER call anyone
                         at ten minutes after midnight,
                         and stated that Bell Canada's Caller ID
                         must have malfunctioned.
incoming calls, detected by Caller ID:
   - 15:14 to 15:47 (3:14 pm) C. C.
   - Ms. A. P. of HAPPEN telephoned:
   - She introduced herself as my "crazy friend".
   - I did not recognize her voice.
   - Sunday night about 11:30 pm,
     I sent out the e-mail message about a free PC.
   - Ms. A. P. thought that she had found another night-owl,
     so she called me at ten minutes after midnight, Sunday night.
   - She has a roommate, Ms. C. C.
   - Ms. A. P. forgot to tell Ms. C. C. about the call.
   - I assumed that someone who would call at 10 after midnight
     would be awake at 20 after ten,
     so I called her, but woke up Ms. C. C., not Ms. A. P.,
     who had no idea that Ms. A. P. had called me.
   - Ms. A. P. wants it for her niece's 16th birthday party.
note:
   - 15:48: I took out garbage: rotting from kitchen.
            This was the rotting bean sprouts left over from my meal
            at the Vietnamese restaurant on Spadina
            the night of the Toronto Linux User Group.

            I talked to Mrs. Vanessa, the assistant superintendent.
            She is young, friendly, a whirlwind of energy,
            athletic, and might make a good Girl Guides leader.
            I mentioned that the gentleman had asked about the PC,
            and was surprised that after 22 hours she had not called.
            She mentioned that she is very busy:
               - She had just finished interviewing prospective tenants,
                 and telling them the procedures for becoming a tenant,
                 and what the rules were to avoid eviction.
               - I know that the corporation's headquarters
                 have issued a bulletin to them, threatening firing,
                 because they accept too many tenants
                 who stay only one year, so that the corporation
                 has to do cleaning and redecoration annually,
                 rather than pro-rate it over ten years,
                 so the superintendents have to carefully ask
                 without actually coming out and asking:
                 "So, how many years will you be living here ?"
               - Floorboard tiles in the laundry room have been detached
                 and stolen.
               - She had to go through a stinking collection of bags
                 and piles of garbage in a garbage-disposal room,
                 to identify who had left it all there,
                 in violation of Toronto municipal by-laws,
                 to ask the woman not to do it again,
                 so that no one would report the corporation
                 to the City of Toronto for violation of by-laws,
                 concerning insect infestation and fire hazards,
                 causing big league fines.
               - I know that someone had blocked the laundry room's
                 toilet with feces and huge amounts of toilet paper,
                 and she or her husband had to unclog it.
               - She has a doctor's appointment.
               - She has a dentist's appointment.
               - She said that yesterday she was so busy, non-stop,
                 that she had not had even one minute
                 to eat anything or drink anything,
                 and that most people don't know what it is like
                 to work non-stop with absolutely no food or drink
                 for over 32 hours.
               - She said that she works all day,
                 then has tenants knocking on her door
                 complaining of all sorts of things.
            She mentioned that she is not interested in giving her PC
            to a person who is impatient.
            I mentioned that, actually, a couple dozen people
            were also interested in the PC.
            I mentioned that a woman had called a few minutes ago,
            expressing interest in the PC.
            Mrs. Vanessa gave me her telephone number (and name)
            to pass on to the woman,
            so that the woman could leave a voicemail message.
telephoned (--   )    -    : Mr. C. M-S
   - 16:51:03 to 16:52:42: 1 minute, 39 seconds
   - He confirmed that he is not interested in picking up a PC
     from a person who is intolerably rude.
telephoned (--   )    -    : Miss A. P. of HAPPEN,
                             at the telephone number of:
                             Miss C. C.
   - 16:53:02 to 17:01:52: 8 minutes, 50 seconds
   - I gave her the telephone number for Mrs. Vanessa M.
   - She will call Mrs. Vanessa M.,
     emphasizing that she knows that Vanessa is a busy person,
     and that the pickup date and time will be at Vanessa's convenience.
----------------------------------------------
Wednesday
I am still getting e-mails asking for the PC:

>>  If nobody else wants that old Pentium II as a working machine, I would  
take it for usable parts like RAM, hard drive, NIC and CD burner.   
Main board might also be usable if it will support a faster CPU.

>> But please give priority to anyone else who asks for it as a running
computer.

>>  phone --- --- ----      email     x at x.com

>>  please acknowledge email
>>  thanks,
---------------------------------------------------
>>  Did somebody eventually pick up that old computer?
>>  If not, I am still interested  in it for parts and would go for it Wed
or Thur afternoon or evening, June 21 or 22, whichever is convenient
for them or you.
>>  Please email reply or leave phone message at --- --- ----.

>>  thanks
---------------------------------------------------
>>  I recall you wanted the Pentium II to be picked up quickly but  
interested parties seem to be procrastinating.
>>  Of course, I would not be upset if I dont get it.
>>  Please keep me in mind if the others dont follow through.
>>  I could pick it up daytime or evening, at your convenience.

>>  regards,
---------------------------------------------------
I need income urgently, and this was a bad time to use up 4 days of my time.

My eviction starts in a week.


James E. McIntosh   416-292-8126   <jemcinto-cpI+UMyWUv+w5LPnMra/2Q at public.gmane.org>


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