I know lying is wrong, but I'm almost tempted to tell OP to call them back and say that his eye issue turned out to be extremely urgent, and had  he waited a minute sooner his eye would have exploded. Then maybe they'll think twice before showing somebody the door just because the system is down... What do they think receptionists did before computers? Did doctors offices not function? They probably can't be bothered with the arm workout that is writing by hand.