Customer Service? Is it a thing of the past?

I complain. I mean really, I'm spending Kerry's hard earned money on something I don't need, I better get good service while I'm doing it.

1. Hair in my cranberry muffin means I'm not eating it. Give the woman at Starbuck's a medal for saying "What can I do for you?" in an OMG-I'm-so-sorry voice. I got another muffin, I trust that foreign hair is not in the recipe, and therefore won't be in the second muffin. Unlike the time at McD's where the girl said "What do you want ME to do about it?" as if I had put the hair in my McRib. I didn't get a new one, I don't even remember if I got refunded, I just know I have never eaten another McHairRib.

2. If I call about the crack in our brand new patio table top, I expect someone to answer the phone. The 'switchboard' person asked where to direct my call, I said Customer Service the 1st time. The girl there didn't have a clue what to do so she put me on 'hold'(I really think she hung up), and I waited about 5 minutes for Seasonal to pick up. Then I hung up and tried again, this time asking for Seasonal, no one answered the phone. So I called back and this time the 'switchboard' person said Customer Service should be the ones to talk to, so again, she puts me through, but this time it rings and rings and then someone picks up and hangs up on me. 4 times lucky, right? I try again and this time I say 'screw it, give me a Manager' and she does, with the comment "They don't usually answer their phones". The first one didn't, the second one did. Thank goodness because I can see myself taking a pool noodle to Walmart and beating every living person behind that Customer Service desk. Anyway, I ask him about the cracked table top, he says we can just bring the top back not the whole set...but I'm wise to this, and ask him to check to make sure they have ones to replace the broken one. And he does, thank goodness. I also point out that his staff sucks when it comes to answering phones, he says he'll talk to Customer Service.

So I know that we remember bad things, we tell 100 people about the bad meal we had at Industry, I mean, at a restaurant, we complain to anyone that will listen, don't eat at Industry, and when we have good service, what do we do?

We ate at Dj's the other night, in very fine print at the bottom of the menu it says "A 18% gratuity will be automatically added to the total of parties of 8 or more." Excuse me, but a few weeks ago, I had the worst service and meal at Industry, and I think you have to work for your tip. I would only agree to an automatic tip of that much if the server cut my meat, made sure my water glass was never empty, tied a bib around my neck, and brought me all-you-can eat appies. Where can you work that you make an hourly wage and can expect 18% of an 8 person bill for giving crappy service? We did have good service, someone else payed, and we had 10 people, I am curious to know if the person paying added the tip, if it was pointed out that one was already added to the bill. If it wasn't, and he added a tip, someone made out well that night.

I'm very chatty today.

Two more things...

We have a Japanese Iris in the front yard, it's been there for 10+ years. We were told that it only blooms every other year...not this year...here is my proof, kind of. This is last year's picture and it bloomed this year too but I didn't take a picture.

And by the end of the week, these will be in my belly! Okay, not these ones, this is an old picture but you get my drift. It's cherry picking time! And we are very lucky to have a very good crop this year, some people don't have any on their trees. Our secret? Love and lots of it! (which really translates into good pruning by Kerry, lots of spray, and me taste-testing them daily the week of picking.)