Why I lurve my Sunpass

Well, more specifically, the people that work for Sunpass. For those that don't live in/come from Florida, there are several highways and what-have-yous that require a periodic toll during travel: Osceola Parkway, Florida's Turnpike, the 408, the 417, the 528, you get the idea. You have the option of the O-Pass for commuting or the Sunpass for deep-sea travel. The Sunpass is farther reaching, so bangarang, on we go.

I'll share two of my favorite conversations. The first was when I was in my last year at UCF, I'd run out of funds and had tried to hide the Sunpass from the laser robots, but they took the toll anyway (If you're curious, this is what happens and why I'm paranoid about it). I called them, told them I had a new car, explained the sitch:

Mr. Sunpass: Would you like to switch to automatic replenish so it doesn't happen again?
Me: Yeah, that's probably a great idea.
(We do the needful.)
Mr. Sunpass: Would you also like me to mail you a new polarized bag, free of charge?
Me: Yes, actually, that would be awesome.
Mr. Sunpass: Sure, I'll go ahead and do that for you. You know, I had a Corolla once.
Me: ... Yeah?
Mr. Sunpass: Yep! But then I totaled it.
Me: ... Oh.
Mr. Sunpass: ... Anyway. Is there anything else I can do for you?

The second conversation I had just this past weekend. I'm pretty sure I flew through that first toll because that Sunpass flashed red at me. At 5:42pm on a Friday, I call them. Yeah, I'm that girl. I want ANSWERS. So I stay on hold for five minutes until a young lady answers. I'm flying down Florida's Turnpike at 70+ mph with a phone in one hand and the steering wheel and a Sunpass betwixt the other, reading off the 12-digit transponder number. I don't tell her this. What a boner shrinker that would have been. I won't transcribe the conversation, but my battery was good (which they're able to check on THEIR computer system) and my balance was good. HMMM.

In any case, we figured I'd just continue flying through the tolls, hoping for the solid green and the happy beep noise. She also sent more adhesive so I could put the transponder back on my windshield. It fell off long ago and started to stink like a Fourth of July arm-wrestling contest, so I kept in one of the Corolla's many compartmentables. My additional adhesive came in the mail today. For freesies. Why was this one of my favorites? Because our speech was that of college roommates trying to find the mystery smell in the apartment, us on our respective ends of the phone saying "Hmm, maybe it's ... hmm" and then mutually agreeing "Ehh. Screw it, gun it, I'll send you some more velcro."

I think I enjoy that gentle courtesy because in my mind, I imagine them walking to a supply closet, handpicking the adhesive/polarized bag, selecting a Sunpass-stamped envelope, printing out my address label, and then they themselves licking the envelope and sending it on its way.

It's what I imagine, don't ruin the fantasy.