Midlife, Midweek, Mumblings

No Soul Musing this week, just midlife, midweek, mumblings.

Or maybe I should say grumblings but that doesn't have the same alliteration.

So why am I midweek mumbling?

It has been a few days, no over a week to be precise, of trying to communicate with bots.

So many bots that I have actually lost count of them all.

Bot 1 - Zoom communication

Bot 2 - PayPal

Bot 3 - Starling Bank

Bot 4 - Fussy Deodorant

Bot 5 - An online product that charged me twice

Bot 6 - A pension provider

Bot 7 - Amazon

Bot 8 - the independent seller on Amazon

Not sure who needs yoga more, me or them!

Let me explain, in case you are interested (if not just scroll to the comments and tell me your bot frustrations, surely I am not the only one❓)

Or scroll down and find the link for the free relaxation.

The screenshot that started this blog is just one of many from my email inbox - well, one of my email accounts, as I have

My personal email

My own business email

My website email

And then the two email accounts that I manage for the hotel

🙈

I bet those of you that have known me since I started teaching all those years ago are chuckling away.

Remembering 90's me

Miss No Phone, No Tech

and now look at me, all tech, no access!

Why all the emails? Why Botwar?

February 2026

Zoom took my annual payment.

I no longer actually need a paid subscription with the way I now work.

I had meant to cancel it before it renewed, but, well, life, funerals, getting ill again - all those things meant I missed the cut off.

So, I cancelled the renewal for NEXT year.

For February 2027

This year is paid, it was too late to cancel the recurring subscription.

18 April 2026

ZOOM - renew your subscription in 30 days, or lose all your recordings.

Hang on, I have paid

A bit p'd off that I have, but figured it gave me and Adam time to download all my recordings and put them in the new Digital Sanctuary that we are building.

And so started the back and forth and the hours - it really has been so many hours now that if I billed Zoom at minimum wage rate, they would owe me a few years subscriptions at this point.

Zoom say they refunded this year's subscription.

My bank doesn't have it.

PayPal doesn't have it.

I don't have it and my account and recordings are gone.

Zoom bot won't talk to me because - get this, you'll laugh

I do not have a paid subscription, my account has been reverted to the Free one.

You can't access support unless you pay for a subscription - you know, the one I paid for but don't actually have!

PayPal bot won't talk to me because it is over 30 days since the payment was made.

Starling bank have been the most helpful - I think I am actually getting humans in that chat. 🤔

It is still an ongoing dispute.

Zoom emailed me three times yesterday

Email one - as we have not heard from you this case is now closed

Email two - thank you for your patience, we are escalating your case

Email three - a copy and paste of an email from a few days ago that says nowt really.

FUSSY?

Yeah, maybe I am for wanting what I actually paid for, but the Fussy issue is a different matter - I will let you follow that one in the FB group

Bot 5

Digital product, all done online.

They charged me twice.

I immediately emailed them.

(And tried to cancel it with my bank - they couldn't as it was pending at the time)

Currently waiting the providers bot to open the email.

The payments are no longer pending, they've left my account.

Bank won't act until I have at least had email from the person I paid, TWICE

Bot 6

At this point I am writing off the money paid into this pension provider and seriously questioning why I ever thought I should be a sensible adult and pay into one.

Bot 7

As part of looking after myself and dealing with my CFS, I have gone back to the dietary guidelines that helped me recover last time.

I needed GF seeded bread, only place in UK that had it was via Amazon.

Parcel delivered promptly, except by squishing six loaves into a 'too small' box, someone had burst the vacuum seal.

Maybe a bot did the packing???

We now have a science project that has gone from green mould, to blue mould and is currently turning white.

I have photos and videos, drop me a message if you are home educating. It really is fascinating.

Sadly my two have graduated homeschool and now go to work, there is zero interest in mould projects.

Have you ever entered the cycle of fun that is Amazon refunds 🫪❓

First they said it hasn't been delivered.

Then they said it's non returnable.

Around in a circle I went, and around, and around 🌀

You Spin Me Round (Like a Record) 🌀

1984 single by Dead or Alive

I tried to insert a record emoji here, you know, like an LP, vinyl. Seems android have done away with it.

Maybe the bots didn't recognise what it was and deleted it 🤔

Oh to go back to the 80's

Life was simpler - wasn't it❓

All this tech has helped, but at what cost❓

How easy I could (and at some points did) become frustrated over these last few days.

Thank goodness for yoga breaths, years of teaching and it is pretty ingrained now

Breathe in, 2,3,4 * Pause * Breathe out, 2,3,4, * Pause *

Or even better the breathing technique that Paramhansa Yogananda gave us that I teach in my REAL method.

Got to love that double inhale, tense, hold, double exhale

Ah, yes. The bots.

Safe to say, I have been thoroughly discombobulated with these bots.

So much so that it has had me revising and reviewing part of my new way of working.

Take a breath here, *drumroll*

I have been using Ai, yes, bots are in my laptop.

I have used 21st century tech to help me 'leverage' (Gemini taught me that 😘 )

I am also about to invest a lot of money in an Ai system to help deliver me to you in a way that reduces digital tech overload for you.

Oh the irony

I have been very particular and spent a lot of time researching a platform that respects my time and yours.

One that will not overwhelm me and that will allow me to work around my current health challenges, whilst still sharing all the stuff out of my head with you.

A platform that will allow you to easily access my

Brain - slightly scary thought

Voice - need a little help getting to sleep, I'll talk you there

Body - just yoga poses, no internal camera shots will be shared

All delivered digitally, using Ai bots

BUT

And it is a BIG but, I am keeping control

I am keeping it small and intimate

The tech is doing the heavy lifting so that you get access to me, just like friends messaging back and forth.

I am so blooming excited to share this.

At the moment I have just a few people helping test it.

There are still a couple of founders places left at the knock down guaranteed for life £65 price - get your bot to message my bot with the word "Founder" and I (not my bot) will message you the details.

For now here is a link to a free relaxation, I am off to practice my Energization Exercises in the garden.

Then I am going to have a go training my new bot.

If your bot didn't like that link post in the comments, my bot has multiple ways of sharing 😆