Customer Appreciation 101

Two years ago, you spent over $500 per month at a locally owned grocery store. One day you came into the grocery store at lunch to buy an apple. The cashier recognized you and addressed you by first name with a cheery smile and said not to worry about paying for the apple. This trend continued about once a month for the next two years. Your spending per month eventually increased to $650 and you never shopped the competitor even though you heard things from the community that there were better prices across the street.

Eventually, the cashier's attitude and business sense were recognized by one of her customers and she was offered a better paying job with better benefits. Although she was reluctant to leave her job because of the many nice people she met, she could not turn down the man's offer.

The day after the cashier left, she was replaced by a gentleman who recently moved into the area and was looking for a job. You arrived at the grocery store expecting to see the old cashier and get your free apple--business as usual. You noticed the usual cashier was out and hoped she warned the new cashier about her regulars. As you leave the grocery store with your apple, you hear a strong voice shout, "sir, you'll need to pay for that apple." You explain that you're a good customer and that you come in at lunchtime every month for about two years and the old cashier never charged you and the owner was present on several occasions when this occurred. Because of this, you never shopped across the street and you were aware that your spending habits had increased because of the good relationship that you had with the business. "Sir, I have been asked by the owner himself to make sure everyone pays for ALL items that leave the store, no matter how trivial or small they may seem," replies the cashier. You retort, "I understand you are just doing your job. I will pay for this apple and any other apple I get." The cashier replies: "I also have some bills for you. We have calculated that an apple per month for the past year comes to $24.66. We understand that you are a good customer and want to repay you by not charging you for the first year that this occurred."

Eyes wide open to who and what you are dealing with, your mind sharpens and hardens in response to the sucker-punch that was just delivered to your wallet. You give the cashier the money for the apple that you bought today and refuse to pay for the previous apples. You know that the owner is taking this approach with all of his customers, preying on the fact that most of his customers in this small town will be upset but will feel obligated to pay for the apples even though they were not originally asked to. Being from a diverse background, you recognize the game when you see it and know that there's no way they could sue you for the apples that were given to you by the old cashier.

Although you are a man of your word and default to your moral compass and common sense rather than a lawyers and courtrooms, the owner is obviously playing the game on a different level that you completely understand and are good at playing but are committed to avoiding because of moral and ethical convictions. Only for defense has been your motto. You refuse to involve yourself in this cycle of greed so you walk across the street for the first time in two years and realize that you should have been shopping there for a long time.

You tell your friends about the situation and why you refused to pay for the apples you were given. Two years later, the grocery store that you used to love going to closes down due to hard economic times and a sharp decline in sales. The cashier and you become friends and he gets a management position at the new grocery store. The immoral grocery store owner retires and relies on his aging rental properties. You send the owner an anonymous delivery of two dozen apples and a note, "How do you like them apples?" The owner does not eat the apples for fear that one of his angry tenants that he's overcharging has poisoned them. The apples are thrown into the landfill where they eventually rot. A flock of birds eat the rotten apples and get salmonella poisoning. Ironically, while the owner is out checking his mail in his robe and bedroom slippers, the birds fly overhead and relieve themselves. "Shit!" Exclaims the man. You look up above your newspaper from your porch at the man covered in bird feces and say, "You got that right!"

Government Audits

I cannot go into great detail about my dealings at work because it may be considered a security risk. I will speak vaguely about the subject matter.

I was asked by our Network Security Team to disable certain functionalities on our switches because it was seen as a security risk. The functionality was already disabled in such a way that enough access was granted in order to monitor and diagnose the network using password protected access. After disabling these functionalities entirely, I am no longer able to monitor activity on the network. If something were to occur, it would be more difficult to discover and isolate. This argument was presented to the team, who agreed that the argument was valid but that they had presented similar arguments to the audit team which were met with resitance. They were happy that we were complying with the instructions in order to show our dedication to the audit team that measures were being taking to ensure the security of our network...

Is this the way Government regulation works? A bunch of auditors dogmatically following poorly written guidelines? When these guidelines are flawed is it easier to just follow through than it is to peel off the beaureacratic red tape and fix the wounds that lie beneath? If this is how our Government works then we are doomed to bow down to a more modern system that allows feedback from multiple sources and seriously consideres their context and content regardless of their source or even tone. I see so many ways that I could do real-world good yet my hands are tied because the system we have created is resistant to change.

Our modern society is one of rapid change and adaptation yet we compromise this by laying foundations and unbending chains of command. Even our educational system is set up on static rules and unbending forces.

I need to write my conspiracy theory regarding this...

My Review of GoFit DTAC Weightlifting Glove w/ Wrist Wrap & Training CD

Dick's Sporting Goods

The GoFit Diamond Tac weightlifting gloves are technologically advanced gloves featuring an exclusive Diamond Tac gripping pattern that increases grip strength and helps fight hand fatigue. The ergonomically cut palm pad provides complete protection without unnecessary bulk and the synthetic leathe...

GoFit DTAC Weightlifting Glove w/ Wrist Wrap & Training CD

Great glove

timdbrown Ahoskie, NC 3/24/2009

 

4 5

Pros: Effective, Comfortable, Stabilizes, Easy To Use

Best Uses: Exercising, Daily Use

Describe Yourself: Frequent Exerciser

Comfortable and provides just enough support to not be bulky. Does not leave discoloration on hands after you take them off. I did not give a perfect rating because I don't yet know how they wear.

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First Blog

What if I hit on something really big here? What if I discuss something that someone uses elsewhere and does not give credit where credit is due? What if I hit on a conspiracy theory and start noticing people noticing me?