Ok, my parents went to Europe for vacation, and I got the house to myself. A couple weeks into it, our home security alarm starts beeping (very loud, very high-pitched). I wonder WTF? and go hit the disarm button. EXACTLY 5 minutes later, it beeps again. I hit disarm again. And well, you know what happens, yes?
SO 4 DAYS AFTER I CALL THE COMPANY they call back. "Oh, it's just telling you that one of things we intalled on a window is on low battery." (it has still been beeping) Great! Easy fix! Too bad I work all day, and cannot get to to a store soon. And my parents took all the batteries in the house with them, as I discovered after work. It was a truly bad day at work and I treated myself to a pastis. So no more driving. Stupid me.
Then at exactly 2:27 this morning it BLASTS a VERY LOUD VERY HIGH-PITCHED noise. IT's gone off. I get up and go hit disarm. Nothing. My poor grandma and the poor dogs are terrified. Nobody else was there. No burglars, no rapists, no nothing. IT simply malfunctioned. I scrounge for my earplugs and answer the phone. It's the alarm company. "TURN IT OFF!" "I'm sorry, without the verbal password, we can't." "VERY BAD SWEARWORDS THE BEEP YOU CAN'T." I was so angry I put the phone up to the alarm and hoped the woman's ears hurt. I then explained the situation: my parents were gone and I couldn't find the file that might have the password written somewhere. I was the daughter of the owners of the house. "Call 911" I hung up.
The cops came. They couldn't fix it. I called all the relatives in France and asked them where I could contact my parents in Italy. Nobody could get in touch. I called the alarm company back. Their working hours are from nine to five. Not 3:08 am. The business card doesn't have thier emergency hotline on it.
I call my cousin who FINALLY gets in touch with my parents in the countryside of Italy. They have driven to the nearest building to call us. The passcode mum gives me is wrong. We don't have a verbal password, either. She gets disconnected. The company calls back. Same woman. I told her where she could stick it. She said she needed a verbal password. I told her again the account didn't have one. I let her listen to the alarm again. (my ears are still ringing from the noise.) She hung up at some point.
The cops came again. They didn't like my idea of cunningly applied baseball bat or their baton and some wire cutters. They still couldn't help. They left.
Mum called again. From a bar somewhere. She gives me the right passcode and it stops. 5 minutes later it beeps. 3 minutes after it goes off again. Where the hell is my brother's baseball bat when I need it????
It is now 3:57 am. I move a very heavy bookcase by myself. I try to unplug it. I UNSCREW the plug from the socket THEN YANK IT OUT!!!!. 5 minutes later it beeps. It has not stopped. It is now 8:00 am. Nine rolls around and the alarm company will hear from me. I do not care if I'm stuck on hold the whole day. Or I have to drive 3 cities away. I WILL MAKE THEM TURN IT OFF.
And not one of the neighbors bothered to come over and see if anything was wrong.
I feel better.
EDIT: My parents called the company from fucking ITALY and sorted it out! No more beeping!
[Edited on 13/7/06 by JSherlock]
[Edited on 13/7/06 by JSherlock]
I used to have a German Shepard (which actually made me feel much safer, cause he used to bark at anyone he didn't know), but I think he'd bite, rather than mount and molest:LOL