Lost in Translation

Who doesn't love those fun automated phone menus that many companies now use to make your customer service experience as frustrating as possible?

I recently had a question about a mass mailout and needed to contact the United States Postal Service. And YES, I looked for the answer on their website first. But if the answer had been on the website, I never would have subjected myself to the miserable phone system in the first place.

Anyway, I really wanted to call a specific post office in my neighborhood since they were going to be the ones who would presumably help me with the mailout. Well, forget that. My only option was to go through the automated phone menu. Of course, the main problem with these menus is that they never offer you a category that is even remotely related to your topic. And with the voice operated systems, there is even less chance of you getting what you need. So after several failed attempts navigating through subcategory after subcategory, I finally yelled, "GO BACK! GO BACK!"

To which the chipper automated voice politely responded: "Sure, we can help you mail a package to Iraq."