I had an incident a few months ago involving my sewing machine that was serviced at a local shop. I got it home, get it all re-assembled and it was a HOT MESS. The bobbin wasn’t catching and the tension is causing a billion birds nests (if you’re not a sewer, know this isn’t a good thing). The needle-threader wasn’t doing it’s sole purpose in life – threading. Frustrated and irritated that it cost me close to a hundred bucks to have it all cleaned up and have it not work led to me giving the shop a call to see if I could get it back in.
It started off nice enough with me explaining my problems. Then she told me it wasn’t their problem because it worked fine when I left. I told her that all I did is drive across town and plug it in – it’s not working. She said she was sorry and that I was welcome to bring it back in but that they’d charge to do the cleaning again. I told her it’s clean – it just needs to be fixed. She again apologized and told me there was nothing she could do that it was fine when I left.
I was getting HOT.
I told her that it shouldn’t be my problem either when I pay them to fix it all up and then it doesn’t work. She didn’t care. I told her that I wanted to bring it in and have them look at it and that I’d never – until this moment – had a problem with the needle-threader. She sniped back that they NEVER touch the needle-threaders so that was my own doing. (WUT.) I informed her, with a shaking voice, that it was in fine working condition for YEARS until I had just gotten it back. She, again, told me to bring it back in so they could look at it.
For free?
No, ma’am, it’ll be a new ticket so you’ll pay for any time and work put into it.
Not feeling this was fair I started raising my voice asking her how she thought this was even remotely close to fair? I didn’t do anything to my machine except plug it in and I’m being penalized for them screwing it up? She didn’t see it that way and told me to bring it back in – for a charge. I asked if there was someone there today so that I could get this done and she not only told me that I couldn’t cut in line of other paying customers but that the techs were going to be out for at least a week. (DOUBLE WUT.)
I yelled at her that this was complete bullshit and hung up the phone, steaming.
Then Elliot walks in the room, gives me a hug and pins this on my design wall:
I think most of us wonder at some point in time just how our kid(s) will end up as adults… I think ours is going to turn out fine.
(PS – Using some tools, my spit and nearly breaking a piece, I did get it fixed. Thanks, asshats.)
that is so sweet!