Random 5 for October 20 – CS update, clipart, changes, fraud calls, Starbucks

Gallery

Posted on by

A positive note on customer service – A week ago I wrote about giving feedback. You can read the post here but in a nutshell I got lousy service and I wrote a letter. It took a week but I got a call from one of the co-owners. They had used my letter as a training tool for their employees. They changed some policies (as I suggested in the letter). This is a small company with less than 30 employees so it’s easy to do but I was glad I had given feedback (instead of the anonymous bashing comment on Yelp!). It has (somewhat) restored my faith in humanity. At least for the moment. #finallygoodnews #stilltimetobedisappointed

What’s with the clipart? – I used to be able to find great clipart for free. There were a lot of sites for people who do not use clipart for commercial purposes. You could provide a source or link and they were happy. Sometimes clipart just floated around many different places with no source. Now every time I look for some it has the dreaded watermark that requires me to pay $20 or so to use it once for something that will give me no financial reward. If I were an artist I would certainly want my royalty fee for my work but the stuff I’m looking for is often stick art. Perhaps I should start drawing! #nomoneyfromme

Side effect of a sick cat – Eldest cat Mollie was under the weather. (She is good now.) There were several vet trips and tests. This does not get missed by the other cats. Second eldest cat Morgan became needy. She likes to be around me and isn’t her independent self. I like it but suspect all will go back to normal shortly. I wonder if she remembers that the same thing happened to her buddy Hazel and one day Hazel never came back home. Pets understand more than we give them credit for. #catsremember

Stalking myself – Yesterday we had many phone calls that listed our name and number as the caller. Spoofing? Why would anyone think that it could be anything but a fraud call if it’s listed as your own number? #reallystupidpeople

Chips of the old block – The granddaughters are here this weekend. They have introduced me to a new drink at Starbucks. I love taking them to the dark side! #mangodragonfruityum

So how was your week?

69 thoughts on “Random 5 for October 20 – CS update, clipart, changes, fraud calls, Starbucks”

  1. The phone came you describe is really odd! I had to read your description about three times just to see if I was understanding. Very strange! Starbucks with the girls! Now that’s fun. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

  2. Enjoy the time with your granddaughters! So glad Mollie is feeling better – you are right, cats definitely remember these things. That’s probably why Morgan is feeling kind of needy right now. How great the business you wrote to took your complaint and suggestions to heart and changed their policies and trained their staff!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

  3. Hi Kate! That’s funny that you wrote about that weird Robocall from your own number. In the latest AARP magazine or bulletin (can’t remember which) they talked about how that is done and how it is more common. Too bad they (AARP) then turned around and SPAMMED you too! Oh well. But good for you for writing that note to the business about the horrible service you received. I think if more of us took the time it would end up being beneficial for us all. Oh, and glad your cat is feeling better. I suspect ALL our pets have a better sense of what’s really going on than we give them credit! ~Kathy

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply ↓

  4. Interesting on the customer service. Says a lot of good about you, Kate, and the company on how all was handled. The “Pets understand more” gave me pause. (Oops, not intentional on the play on words, although, it works:) Fun on the granddaughters. I enjoyed reading about them and seeing them on another post:)

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply ↓

  5. Glad you got some positive feedback – they will keep you as a customer now for sure. I get my clip art at Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/

    They do not require money, even if they say “coffee money” – it is not required. And they have a searchable database, and you can search by photos, illustrations, vector images … I have been using them for awhile, if I need something and I’ve not taken a picture. I also use Pinterest as they are searchable too. I don’t pin to any board or o that, just created an account and they have such a wide variety of info that you can use by downloading or taking a screenshot. https://www.pinterest.com

    Pets are pretty savvy and they take in more what is going on then people give them credit for.

    I had AARP call me 8 times today – annoyed. I answered and said “I’m sorry I gave you my number” but it was a robocall – something about a prescription rally. I hunt up, but they continued calling back – I was annoyed.

    I bought a package of Starbucks PSL to save for the holidays … individual instant packages – yum.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

      • I haven’t tried it yet as I got it to have around the holidays. It is instant and I was surprised Starbucks made an instant product. Here is the link to see what the package looks like:
        https://www.walmart.com/ip/Starbucks-VIA-Instant-Pumpkin-Spice-Latte-1-Box-of-5-Packets/164068821
        I like Pinterest when I need to have a specific picture – one time I did a post on the different shades of gray in the sky. I searched for gray crayons on Pinterest and got a ton of photos.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply ↓

      • I decided to try one cup after I commented to you and sent that link. I like it a lot. I also like that it’s instant too because that’s all I drink anyway. I don’t have a coffeemaker since it’s just me drinking coffee.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply ↓

          • I drink Nescafe Classico Dark Roast instant – it is good. We had instant coffee, even when my mom was still here – no room on the countertop for a coffeemaker and I drank coffee all day at work anyway – my mom was more a tea drinker the last few years of her life. I don’t like tea. I usually get some of the Hills Bros. flavored coffees (English Toffee is my favorite) for the holidays. I saw this Starbucks PSL on an endcap at Meijer and thought I’d try it. So that was about 6:00-ish last night. I have not had Starbucks since I stopped working on site in April 2009. We used to get bagged Starbucks or Caribou for the office since no Starbucks was near us. I forgot how much of a kick it had. I got two posts done last night and decided to head to bed. Not sleepy … all night long! Woke up this morning on a couple of hours’ sleep (if that much), so I had another PSL this a.m. I felt like a teenager downing Mountain Dew or a Red Bull. I am not sure it was the caffeine, as much as the sugar content. It is tasty – try it for those big snowy or icy days –
            they are coming faster than you think.

            Liked by 1 person

            Reply ↓

            • I’m not a big fan of instant. There is a flavor difference. One reason I like Starbucks is that it’s strong so when I get the decaf there is some flavor. Many decafs taste like dishwater. (That’s a quote from my mom!) 🙂

              Liked by 1 person

              Reply ↓

              • I didn’t realize you drank decaf … perhaps I never noticed you wrote that in your Starbucks-related posts. Wow – that is a whole different story, because I thought I’d have decaf as my second cup of coffee when I returned from walking and even the Nescafe Classico … just no. No taste to it. When I make my coffee, I use 1 1/2 heaping teaspoons for flavor as I like a strong cup of coffee. Back when I stopped at Starbucks in our building, I’d get a large/tall (whatever it was called) and take it straight … no cream or sugar, even Sumatra, though not my favorite as I found it a little too strong and earthy tasting. I remember Sanka from my waitressing days – the pot of hot water and orange foil packet. My father had an ulcer and drank Postum for a while. Tried it once – awful. My mom used that expression too; that and “it tastes like the coffee bean ran through it!”

                Liked by 1 person

                Reply ↓

                  • This was decades ago and funny, I hadn’t thought of it in years, but last week I Googled something and it was available at the Vermont Country Store. Have you ever looked at their online catalogs? They sell a lot of items that have been discontinued, even clothing. They are pricey though, but they had Postum. But just Googled and Amazon and Walmarts has it too. It is a “roasted grain” drink that makes you feel like you’re drinking coffee. I thought it had a peculiar smell. When I looked at that catalog, I saw an appliance and countertop cleaner/polish named “Jubilee” that my mom loved and when she stopped carrying it in our grocery store, she made me go around to all the hardware stores and buy up the supply. I thought of my mom when I saw it. My mom was big on top but petite and she liked PJ tops that were loose-fitting, not tailored. She found some flannel PJs at the VCS and ordered them, even though they were costly. When they arrived, they were sized wrong and like a 2X, but said Medium. They would not take them back as they were PJs. We washed them in boiling hot water and they did not shrink and I couldn’t wear them, as tall as I am. Never ordered from there again.

                    Liked by 1 person

                    Reply ↓

                    • Looking at the online catalog was fun as I remembered a lot of the products. We got some homespun tablecloths from them before those PJs. They are a waffle weave (the kitchen is done in Early American) and we had looked everywhere for new ones and we happened to get a catalog from them … that was before the internet.

                      Liked by 1 person

  6. We get a few of those robocalls that show one of our names as the caller. It’s weird and I hope illegal. I cannot imagine how these scammer companies think seeing my name will prompt me to pick up the phone for them. Stupid is as stupid does

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply ↓

  8. Yay about the feedback that you got! So nice to know that you were actually listened to!
    My daughter loves the strawberry tea at Starbucks. It is very sweet!
    So glad Mollie is better! Pets definitely can sense more than we know. If only they could talk, I think they could amaze us with all they know!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

  11. One place you can get free clip art is wikimedia commons. It’s seldom what you want and need, though. A couple of times I got personal photos from other bloggers to supplement my own photos of the Manila Chinese Cemetery. That was fun. I ended up following them on Facebook and on their blogs. But I agree: It’s hard to find clip art. One day I spent hours trying to find something from Alice in Wonderland. I finally found something, but it wasn’t what I’d hoped for.

    Writing a helpful letter is so much kinder and effective than complaining on Yelp. We should all follow your example, even though it takes time.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

    • I’ve never tried that. Sometimes I have an image in my head that I’ve seen and can’t find it again. I’ve started to save stuff I think I may have a use for later. Sometimes I feel badly for businesses that get a really bad review especially if it’s something out of their control, like construction in their area.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply ↓

  12. Good job on the feedback ~ both you and the company! I bet Morgan was remembering when Hazel disappeared . . . and she does not want YOU to disappear!

    Hope you’re having a blast with your grandkids. We’ve had a fun week. New farmer’s market, couple visits to the beach, 3-4 get-to-gethers with friends, Bridge games, etc. All good.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

    • You never know what’s going on in a cat’s mind! Sounds like your weekend is fun. Our weather is crummy. Today is rainy, damp, cold and dreary but the kids are out at Ulta with their Gramps! (That should be a story!) Yesterday was ok and they did an amusement park.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply ↓

  13. Must have been heartening to know your feedback was listened to. Anyone worth their salt won’t sit and pout about things like that they’ll take the opportunity to take a good hard look at whatever a “customer” has told them and see if there’s something that can be done about it. So glad Mollie is OK now – if only they could understand it’s just as hard on us having to take them to the vets, deal with their illness, help them as we can as it is on THEM for having the problem! Have fun with your grandkids…..make some memories.

    Hugs, Pam

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

  14. I agree that something has gotten a little different with the clipart sites. I’m not sure what it is either, but I’ve struggled of late to find appropriate, royalty-free clipart images. Out of courtesy, I always link back to the originating site for all images I use.

    I’ve only paid twice for an image. Once for my site’s main image on the top of my page, and another time was for something I thought was just too good to pass up (I’ve long forgotten which one it is). But generally I avoid paying. I mean seriously, my blog isn’t a money maker. 🙂 – Marty

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

  15. Glad you got some positive feedback on your feedback Kate.
    Also good to know Mollie is better.
    I’m planning on meeting my bestie for coffee when we’re down there next week. I haven’t seen her for two years, and have pencilled in meeting up 2 days after my surgery…… something positive to look forward to!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply ↓

    • It’s the mango dragonfruit. It’s either with lemonade or iced tea. I don’t usually get those drinks and it wasn’t bad. The girls had the iced tea version and it wasn’t too sweet for me but it’s definitely not a morning drink.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply ↓

  19. Clipart has always befuddled me. I always want to use it but I am always concerned about using it… attribution and all that. Don’t like the clipart where they want you to give them some of your stuff. Good news on the positive feedback. So glad Mollie is still doing well. Enjoy your Grands!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

    • Another truly weird thing about clipart is that it floats around. You can see a picture that is marked “free download” at one site, yet another on another site you have to pay. There are sites for teachers that are free and if I can find my subject I try to use those. I had used a kite picture early in my blogging days. (It was a line drawing that I could have done myself!) I attributed it to the artists but they contacted me and asked me to put a website link in it. I did that and they were fine with it.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply ↓

  20. This sounds like a smart business. It’s not whether a business never makes a mistake, it’s how they react to a situation when they do. The fact they took the time to respond to you about what they were doing to correct the problem speaks volume about their integrity. Kudos both to you for writing the letter and to them for ‘listening’ and acting accordingly.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

Don't be shy, I'd love to hear what you're thinking!