LA Observed reader Marc Litchman emails with one of those shake-your-head stories about trying to get through to the more-depleted-than-ever business side at the Los Angeles Times.

I know circulation isn't your department, but nonetheless I thought the following might be of interest, if only as an insight into the haphazard management practices of the occupying Chicago Tribune.

I'm moving from Calabasas to Long Beach. No big deal, make the call, transfer the subscription, right? Wrong.

Paper takes two weeks to catch up to me in Long Beach. In the meantime the LA Times charges me for two subscriptions -- one for Calabasas, one for Long Beach.

I call the customer service number. I am connected with the Philippines.

They have no record of me as a customer. Yet if I log into their website, yep, there I am.

Manila suggests I put my complaints in writing and send them to....

145 S. Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA

Duh. Thanks for the update.

Meanwhile I get three calls a day from Times telemarketers trying to sign me up for the paper that I already take.

There are days when I receive three papers here. Yet they've double billed me for one and say they have no record of it.

A week ago I said enough, yet the paper keeps coming. I called Manila today and they say they have no record of the cancellation.

But I got a cheery recorded call from the Times this a.m. thanking me for my subscription and urging me to call their 800 number.

So if you're 20 million short in profit, I think we might have a place to start looking.

While it''s still fresh, also be sure to catch TJ Sullivan's observation about the Trojan-centeredness of the L.A. Times headline on Saturday's big upset at the Rose Bowl. Was the better news peg UCLA or USC? You make the call at Native Intelligence.