Read: [Fun with Earthlink]

Proving once again that the sequel always sucks...

Okay, so after speaking with the Earthlink guy on the 8th, I waited for the refund to arrive.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Finally, on the 23rd (yep, fifteen days later) it arrived in my inbox.

Expected amount: $34.65. Actual amount: $9.90.

After re-reading the original Fun with Earthlink, I realized that I left out part of the story. During my initial encounter with the Support Chat thingy, before he said he'd "credit my account" for the whole $34.65, he said he could only credit me for the two mailboxes, not for the five aliases. I told him that was crap, and pushed him for the whole amount.

I couldn't (and still can't) figure out why aliases were being treated differently from mailboxes. Aliases are just pointers. They don't take up any space at all, unlike real mailboxes. Okay, so Earthlink doesn't offer them anymore - even more reason for them to simply scratch them off my account and not bill me $4.95 a piece.

Apparently, between my second enounter with the Support staff (where I was promised a full refund to my credit card) and the actual arrival of the refund, somebody stepped in with "corporate policy". I cannot fathom why it took two weeks for me to find out this nugget of information, but I do have a consipiracy theory. (That I don't really buy, but here goes.)

After doing some digging, I discovered that many people who cancel accounts with their ISP are billed for another month if they cancel too close to the end of the month. They end up having to refuse the charge. And having to wait two extra weeks made that a serious possibility.

Realizing that I was probably not going to win upon further discussion with the Earthlink team, I decided to cut my losses, be happy that they actually gave me $9.90, and get out while the getting was still good.

So I called Earthlink's Support one more time to cancel my account. Surprisingly, the wait for an operator was shockingly fast. I thought I'd have to wait for hours, and it was maybe two minutes.

The woman answered, and asked why I wanted to cancel the account. I gave her a brief overview of the situation and had her look at my invoices. She acted as if she were looking for a way to "fix" the situation, but, seriously, I flat out wasn't interested. Her promising me a refund might cost me another $21.95, and I certainly wasn't going to let that happen.

She then offered me a low-cost internet service plan with PeoplePC. At first, I wondered if she was trying to be nice. But, on further reflection, this is just part of the cancellation procedure. Earthlink owns PeoplePC. I pray that no one actually falls for the "we can save you money from what you were paying us" offer.

Following this, I inquired about whether or not I would be billed for another month. She said (with surprising honesty) that it was unlikely, but entirely possible. If it happened, I should call back. (Assuming as much in advance, I tried to take preventative measures before making the call. If they bill me, it should be refused. Well, hopefully, anyway.)

She asked me if I wanted the cancellation to take place immediately. Sure, I'd paid for the entire month (and then some), so I thought to myself that I should let it go until the end of the month. Then, the better half of my brain reminded me of the potential consequences of delaying it. So I told her to go ahead and take care of it.

She then cancelled my account. Completely. And it was over.

I say "over", but considering I thought it was over three weeks ago, you shouldn't be surprised if there ends up being a part three.

And, no, it's not gonna be in 3-D. But I may spring for the DTS 5.1 mix.