I had another run in with death this week…No, not a friend or family member. This time it was me. How, you might ask?

“Ms. Dippel, we are having a problem verifying your credit for your cable installation…..(uncomfortable pause….) um, Ms. Dippel, uh, has anyone ever told you that you show up as “deceased” on your credit report?”

Yup, that’s right. I’m apparently deceased. I wish someone would tell my mortgage company so I could stop making those payments. “Sorry, all debt collectors, Michelle can’t take your call. She’s deceased. Please leave a message at the tone…beeeeeeep.” Honestly, if the guy hadn’t been so uncomfortable, and a widower himself, I might have been a bit testy about it. Instead, I was nice as pie to him, and called Michele to vent for a good 20 minutes. What else? Really? The cable guy has to tell me I’m dead? Really? Where the heck is my “get out of jail free” card?

One more bump in the road of life. A minor one really, I mean it could be worse. It could be true! It’s not true though, and I’m still here. In the words of a favorite Monty Python character: “I’m not dead yet, I’m feeling much better”.