astrid696

[astrid696]

I mostly work at the larger location of my 2 stores and don't get to read much. At the start of our story, I’m elated as I'm scheduled to work a full shift alone at the small store I'll have time to read! While we do have downtime at the larger location, we also tend to have multiple people on staff and I cannot focus enough to read in a manner that I enjoy. I do all the usual openings task for work, set up my personal devices, and as I open my Kindle, I see something that derails my plans for the day.

Displayed on my screen is a sad, mostly empty, white page reading, "Low battery. Please charge device," blocking me from what should be dozens of books. Saddened, but not deterred, I plug in my device to charge. l go about playing a video game I brought instead and make a note to check on the charging process later. A few hours pass so I open the Kindle cover and find myself facing the same message of low battery. Thinking nothing of it other than, "Wow, it was really dead," I go back to my game.

As I'm packing up my things at the end of the day, I decide to press the power button to check the battery percentage again when I see something odd... The screen hasn't changed still ?? Okay? something isn't right. I am absolutely sure the charging components are functional so it has be some something with the e-reader, but I need to head home now so I'll look at it then.

I get settled in my comfy clothes later and google search the error message to see if it's a common issue. It is and huzzah, there are fixes! "Whelp, let the corrective montage begin," I chuckle to myself as I picture a video media styled time-lapse of a similarly mundane task and get to work.

I hold the power button for 40 seconds to reset it as suggested by many online platforms (Reddit, amazon support, quota, etc.) to no avail.. Hmm, so not just an error message. Maybe it is _really_ dead. Not ‘never turn on again’ dead, just ‘need hours to get out of bed’ dead

I plug it in for 24 hours, in hopes that the screen would show me my digital library once that small button of life is pressed afterwards... only to greeted by the same message staring back at me.-sigh- Go to factory reset again as at least now it should be fully charged and... Nothing, no response.

Thinking that the charging port might be damaged, I put it on wireless charging for another 24 hours in attempts to accomplish what the charge port could not. My friends, it was not the charging port and the third attempt of a factory reset still isn't helping anything.

After days of sitting in anticipation and my bubble of hope being repeatedly deflated, I STILL don't have a working Kindle. My current reads (books) patiently waiting for me in the darkness of that device's storage drive.

I try a different approach the next day. Maybe if I plug it into my computer, I can find the device and force a reset that way. I looked online and found that this path has worked for some users so I move forward with the plan...

I grab the cable that is already plugged into my tower, turn on my computer, plug in my Kindle, and wait for the My Files screen to pop up. There's this not-so-subtle ringing of alarm bells going off in the furthest part of my brain with a little sign saying 'device not found' (that we've all seen after plugging in a flash drive) trying to take up all the visual space in my mind's eye, but I ignore it. I open My Files manually and search for a new storage device. Nothing found so I disconnect the cable a few time. After that, I have to concede that my computer doesn't even register my e-reader is plugged in.

I am defeated again, but I will not give up.

I don't know what else to try, though.

Nothing I have done has been able to fix this error.

I tell my roommate my journey so far and they ask if I want advice for this, to which I nod. They turn towards me and utter words that are not to be spoken lightly, "Have you reached out to tech support?" Tech support?!?!? I haven't needed to call on any tech support for years! We know the horror stories in our household. IT Crowd is one of our favourite shows and I WAS tech support for a few years, no less. I sit there with an incredulous look on my face and no words are needed to convey what I want this person to understand. I amusingly sigh and they, with silly grin on their face, turn away laughing and I can just hear the unspoken words said in jest... "They might be able to help you turn it off and back on again."

**Now for those that don't know the woes of tech support: More often than not, a phone call IT receives is a reminder in the human races lack of technological understanding instead of fixing actual device or software errors. The people who work in this department are a testiment to the resilience of the human mind with the things they have to deal with. I love helping people, but when the question I ask the caller is, “Have you tried turning it off and back on again,” while then having to figure out which button they think the power is… I am not fit for all jobs. If you want a comedic version for now, please go watch the first episode of IT Crowd.** Back to the story:

I don't want to call tech support. I don't like talking to strangers on the phone as it takes a lot of mental energy to do and all I want is to curl up on the couch with a large blanket while eating chips when I'm done… I can definitely figure this out my myself.

So I ignore that option for a several days. I try the same things over and over again, hoping something might change, but never does this is the definition of insanity. I then ignore the Kindle itself for a few days; my books abandoned so that I don't have to talk to a stranger who will think I'm an idiot. My Kindle hasn't worked for going on 2 weeks at this point.

This morning my roommate was leaving for work and they saw the error message still on my Kindle. "Maybe it's time to replace it," they say empathetically, "There's a reason my current one is called Kindle 7 as I have to get a new one every 2-3 years. How old is yours?" I have had this Kindle for just shy of two years. 6 days from now, on March 5, will be it's birthday and I don't want to replace it yet. I tell them the age with a sigh and a nod that says 'I'll think about that option' as they walk out the door, waving goodbye.

I go about my day with the electronic in question in my peripheral view and after a few hours, I decide I would prefer to talk to a stranger than buy a new device. I muster up the courage needed while trying to calm the social anxiety to call this stranger for help.

Now... what happens next is only explainable by the gods as I have no clue what happened

I pick up my phone and with my kindle in hand, dial tech support. The automated system prompts take a few minutes and I fidget with the button on my Kindle while waiting to reach a human being. As the last auto prompt listens to my request for a person, the charging light on my Kindle blinks between orange and green a few times.

A person comes on the line; I explain that I have a Kindle that I need help with as I stare at the blinking light. He informs me that I need to be transfered to Kindle department (expected).

The second I hear the transfer music, my Kindle's screen changes to an update page that loads through so quickly that by the time the hold music ends less than 30 seconds later, I am staring at my collection of books and laughing.

I realize the Tech has asked for my name and I give him that. I follow up with the short explanation of why I'm laughing/no longer need his help. We commiserate and hang up the phone after connecting over an unwritten rule of working with electronics. "If it doesn't work, show the problem to someone else and the universe will automatically fix it while they're watching."

TLDR: After 2 weeks of not having a functional kindle, it randomly decided to start working again as soon as I called the IT department for assistance.