Hi. My name is Greg and I'm a sportaholic. I have finally come grips with the fact that I love sports. At almost any cost.
What finally opened my eyes was a call yesterday to DirecTV. I come home yesterday I find that my cable had been changed to a reduced package. This was unusual because 1- I have the Premier package (which gets almost everything) and 2 - I am current on my bill, which is already my third highest household expense. I couldn't call them fast enough because I didn't want to miss one of my favorite shows, PTI.
After talking to DTV, the mix-up was cleared up and life was normal again. But then came the needle. The rep casually suggested if I wanted the NFL Sunday Ticket, which shows ALL the games in the NFL EVERY week. I had already decided that I couldn't afford it this year. She then offered a me a incredible FIVE dollar reduction in my bill for a year. Sixty whole dollars less for the year if I signed up. Tempting as that was, I still said no. Then she offered a one-time twenty credit in addition. It was then the justification set in. The total cost of the package was $224.94. Minus the credits, The cost of the package was $139.94! Less than $150 dollars! Sold.
After signing up, I then went to plan B. I had already thought about reducing from the Premier package to one of the lesser plans, saving me about fifty bucks a month. When I was transferred to that department to switch, the hustle continued. After saying how they appreciated my business (i've been a customer with them for seven years after they seduced me with -- you guessed it the Ticket, which was free my first year), they gave me a $150 credit to keep my same package. You already know what I did.
So, within a span of less than a hour, instead of hoping to reduce my bill by 50-60 bucks a month, it will actually increase (after I came down from my sports high & did the math) by 45 - 50 dollars.
So, in speaking to all of you fellow sportaholics, don't live in denial any longer. Face your demons head on and fight. I plan to fight mines as soon as the NFL season is over.
