Living in a cave in the 1950s

So this is what it was like before the internet existed. Our internet (RCN) has been down since last Thursday. A week prior, we switched from Comcast to RCN, because we kept having repeated connection issues with Comcast and wanted to try something else.

Then, on Thursday morning, at exactly 7:30 AM, we lost the RCN connection, totally and utterly. A cable must be disconnected somewhere, as we don't even get the "night light" channel 3 TV signal. I call RCN, they send somebody out on Friday who spends a few hours tracing lines and trying to figure out what's what. He can't figure out which lead on the outside pole is ours. Not a surprise, since it took the installer forever to find it, because it's not labeled. The installer didn't label it, though. If he had, troubleshooting might have gone a little easier.

Both the original RCN installer and current tech kept asking where the splitter junction was located, and both were sure it should be inside my apartment. After again visually inspecting every closet a second time, I think we finally convinced them that we have no such device or panel.

No luck, he can't figure out what's up and has to leave.

On Sunday, a neighbor shows me the hidden rooms where various connection boxes live for phones and cable. The RCN tech returns on Monday, and our landlord meets us here to let them into one of the rooms with the panel. Except, the landlord's key doesn't work, he can't get the room open. I email the neighbor who has a key, and it turns out that he's out of town, so no luck there. My wife asks another neighbor who calls everybody on her contact list looking for the key, to no avail.

So the RCN tech can't do anything on Monday, either. Still down. After he leaves, I email the management company and ask them for help. OK, they can send out a maintenance man with the key to that room. Our building has a maintenance man? I learned something new today.

Now we're on to Tuesday -- today. Maintenance man stopped by, unlocked the room, and left. RCN tech is now here, and is running wires. Will we get lucky? Will we have internet again today? And if not, what do we do?

Should we call Comcast and ask them to come out and try to undo whatever happened here? Or should we call AT&T and get Uverse? Looks like it's available on our block.