Wicked Winds

Hey weather geeks,

Should we in the Boston area be preparing for the fallout from Hurricane Earl?

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/08/30/tropical.weather/index.html?iref=NS1

An Insurance Rip-Off? What A Surprise!

Last week I finally upgraded my stone age BlackBerry to a beautiful new BlackBerry Curve, which I love mostly because it puts so much Internet in my pants that it's coming out the leg hole. But misfortune struck: I put it in the same pocket of my purse with my old BlackBerry, and the old one scratched up the face of the new one. (And how many love triangles have ended just that way?)

I had purchased $7.50-a-month insurance for the new phone, which I thought was insurance directly via Verizon, but which turned out to be 3rd party. Nonetheless, I thought the monthly payment would cover fixing or replacing it. I called And oh, they will replace it, for an $89.00 deductable. WHAAAAT?

The phone retails for $19.99 with a 2 year contract, and I got it free as an upgrade. I'm not paying $89 goddamn dollars. I'm also canceling the worthless insurance posthaste. But in the meantime I have a new BlackBerry with a scratched up face.

surrealestate's fiance (who doesn't have an LJ) said that some jewelers have delicate tools that can buff the scratches out. Does anyone know anything about that? Gemstone tools on plastic...I'm having a hard time imagining it, but I hope it's true. I'm pay a bit for the service. I'm sad for my my otherwise juicy new BlackBerry.