Twice today I received a call from a store I had visited in December, where I had placed an order. I had been looking for a large basket. I wanted to put pillows in it when we go to bed. I have as assortment of decorative pillows that I place at the head of the bed. I place them over the quilt hiding the pillows we sleep with. It adds a nice finishing touch. I thought that the basket could also hold other things I'd like to keep out of sight when guests come.
I also found a pretty pillow I liked and I wanted to use for the living room couch. It was big and sturdy and would support my back while sitting on the couch. I had to have both items special ordered, because they weren't in stock. They were both supposed to be in about a week after Christmas. I forgot all about it when I got a call that the pillow was in. I waited another week or so before going to the store, because they said the basket would be in then too. I paid for the pillow and asked what had happened to the basket. The person I spoke to checked and was surprised it was still on order. After all it was now February.
Where was this basket coming from? Ethiopia or some exotic place deep in the jungle? Were they growing the fiber to weave it or something? I've seen the same basket in magazines and catalogs. It's very large, but it's not made of anything special or exotic. It's made of bamboo fiber that is not from an endangered species. I could have grown my own bamboo and woven my own basket by now!
This morning I got a call that the basket has been in for a couple of weeks and why hadn't I picked it up yet. Why hadn't I picked it up yet? What? Huh? I actually gave up on that basket a month ago. I told the person on the phone that I didn't know that it was is in, but I no longer wanted it. It had taken too long to come. Instead I just switched my laundry basket with another large container and I used that instead. It worked almost as well, it just wasn't as big. I asked if they would cancel it and refund my deposit. Who waits more than 3 months for a basket? They had said it would be in in a week.
She said they called and left a message. I assured her I never got one or I would have come in. I think her over insistence that they had called, helped me to decide to cancel it. I carry my phone with me even when I take a walk. You never know when a family member may need you in an emergency. It rings... I answer it, or the messages go to voice mail. It's that simple.
She was the same person, who had an attitude the day I placed the order. I realized that after I hung up with her. I noticed that there seemed to be a lot of tension there that day. They were having computer problems; boy do I know that story; and she had to stop what she was doing to fix it. She wasn't happy about it as I recall. I remember thinking that I should just leave and tell them I changed my mind, because the energy in the room was charged with anger and resentment. Not exactly a pleasant shopping atmosphere.
I've been simplifying anyway, why did I want to buy it? Well I guess because it suited a need to keep from cluttering up my room. So I waited and waited for them to fix the problem and couldn't wait to leave. Always pay attention to those kinds of feelings. They are trying to tell you something.
So imagine my surprise, later today day while I was on my walk, the salesperson called to get my credit card number for the refund. But not until after she gave me a bit of a lecture about how she had called several times, then said numerous times. I am really not a complete idiot. I promise. I do know how to answer my cell phone and check the voice mail. I've had my cell phone for more than 6 years. Yeah, time to get an upgrade too I'm thinking to that Blackberry I haven't set up yet. Now that I can't quite figure out!
I told her I hadn't gotten any calls since I picked up the pillow last month. She got rude to me and I said, " Well I did answer it twice today". She said she called me on this phone and my other number. My other number? My other number! The number that wasn't in service when my Internet connection went down? Wait a minute! What was that...?! Well then I knew that I wasn't totally crazy. I apologized to her and told her that the other phone was disconnected. I added that I had given her my cell phone number as my primary contact number when I made the purchase. She started to argue and I calmly explained that the other phone hasn't been working and then I disconnected it.
I tried to keep the conversation light and ended the call. She was looking for a fight and I didn't want to become negative. Nor did I want to add to her anger. I wanted to diffuse it. I wasn't going to try to set her in her place. What was the point? She would only become angrier. Obviously from both interactions, she was clearly having a bad day or was in a bad mood. The old me would have argued with her but not the new me. She was lucky that I am less defensive. Her behavior was not acceptable. The old me would have called the manager.
You see since the phone connection was cut off, so was my voice mail. You know from reading this blog that I had to go to the library for close to 2 weeks to work on the Internet. My new connection took over another week to be set up. I have been on this connection for a week. That's a month. What I didn't write about was that I had tried to call my voice mail several times in that first week my Internet connection was down. When I dialed the number, it was dead. Then they disconnected it from their service and I had the phone disconnected. So how was she able to leave a message on a disconnected and non-existent voice mail? Hmmm?
Now you get the picture. Hopefully she will be more respectful to the next person to whom she thinks she left messages.
