Fax troubles

After a week of working on my sample wedding album, I sent a PDF to AsukaBook. To complete the order I had to fax my credit card information to the company. I don't have a fax machine so I went to Staples to use the self serving fax machine.

I walk into Staples and an older lady is using the fax machine. She had a bunch of paper in the fax machine. She was looking at all of the buttons, not sure if she was pressing the right one. She finally presses the button and the papers go through the fax. After sending her huge fax, a confirmation sheet printed and came out. She grabbed the paper from the fax and started to study it. After a few moments she asked an employee what the paper meant. The employee told her that it was a confirmation sheet and her fax went through. Finally, she collected her gobs of paper and her purse and left the fax line.

I walk up to the fax, fill out my cover sheet, stick the forms in and send the fax. Or so I thought. All of the papers went through, but the fax read BUSY. The confirmation sheet pops out and said that the line was busy and didn't go through. I tried it two more times, I got the same results. I was a bit frustrated and I wanted to stand there and keep sending it until it went through but a guy was behind me in line. I stepped out of the line to let him send his fax. I walked over to the counter and asked if I had to pay for the faxes that didn't go through. The Staples employee said no, but to keep trying.

I walked back over to the fax line and the guy was still faxing his stuff. Then out of nowhere comes the older lady who was in front of me. She walks right past me and puts all of her papers and purse on the counter next to the fax. The guy finishes his fax and leaves. I thought to myself, just to walk up to the fax and use it. But I didn't. I waited to see what the older lady was going to do. After a couple minutes of standing behind the fax, I finally walked up and tried the fax again. I looked over at the lady and she was writing more stuff on a handful of papers. She wasn't going to be using the fax for a while. I put my papers in, dial the number and get the same results: BUSY. I turned from the fax machine and left.

I walked out to my car and called AsukaBook and said my fax wasn't going through. The customer service girl said to try again because they have been really busy. I really didn't want to go to Staples again, so I decided I would find a different place to send my fax. As I was leaving the parking lot I saw a Postal Plus and it had a fax sign in the window. I parked my car and walked in. I asked the lady behind the counter if she could fax for me. She put in the papers and started the fax. It took about 2-3 minutes to go through, but it finally did.

If I stayed at Staples I would have paid more for the fax and probably would have been stuck behind the older lady again. Postal Plus was cheaper by 69 cents. I like that Postal Plus employees only use the fax machine. Now I don't have to wait in line behind people who don't know how to work a fax machine.