Two weeks ago a woman at my regular craft market ordered two sets of pillowcases from me, with a particular placement of leaves in a particular colour. She drew the design in my notebook and also wrote down her first name and cell number.
A few days later, when it was leaf-printing time, I looked at her sketch and realised she’d sketched 3 leaves on one side and 2 on the other, which didn’t correspond with what she’d said she wanted. So I sent her an sms. No reply. Two days later, another sms. Still no reply. Tried calling, left voicemail, no response. I received no failed-sms message either. She hadn’t given me her surname so I also couldn’t look up her landline in the phone directory.
I figured that, if I’d gone ahead and printed three leaves, the chances are she would only have wanted two, and vice versa. So when she arrived to collect her pillow cases, I explained. She instantly became really really angry and starting yelling about “already having confirmed the order” and clearly I made a mistake with her cell number. Well. I do not like being shouted at and never ever treat anybody that way myself, so I expect civility from others in return – or at the very least not a raised voice. I showed her the page in the notebook where she had done her stupid drawing and scribbled a cell number that bore little relation to the correct one (as it turned out), gave her a long stony look and then bit down really really hard on my tongue… She stomped off, with my strong wish in hot pursuit that her jeans would suddenly split open at the back.
[hashtag: customer_not_always_right!]
Nice piece of work 