The CL rant is humor btw.... like most CL rants, it's overdone to make a point. I'm sure most of us could rant like that about some aspect of our work or personal lives. If that style of humor offends you, probably don't surfQuote:
Originally Posted by witeowl
Best of Craig's List in your spare time: there are some doozies out there. "Why I Want a Stoner Boyfriend" is one of my all time favorites, as is the Minute Man Bike Path Rant.
Ditto here, Denise.Quote:
Originally Posted by kenyonchris
Yeah, I got that. I liked most of it, but I certainly have the right to be offended by the implications of certain jokes; certain things just aren't funny if you don't have a shared view (humor has to be based on truth). For example, to truly appreciate the post, you'd have to think that someone sounding like a fattie would be a bad thing. (Would sounding like a black person be a funny insult?)Quote:
Originally Posted by Irulan
But that's OK. I was just using it for contrast, not complaining. :)
RM-I understood what you meant & certainly have my stories to tell from when i worked in retail.
Feel free to post your rants on my facebook page :D
I guess many folks don't understand the stories posted over at the customer is not always right.. :rolleyes:
I didn't think there was anything wrong, either. Frankly, I wish I had a shop where people would explain stuff. Like I said, I have no need to go to a shop, since I shop at TE or Terry and DH does mechanics. I sometimes wonder what would happen if I had decided to get into cycling if I was single. I have no mechanical ability and I even need someone to help me readjust my helmet straps when they get too loose. Can you imagine if I went into a shop asking for help with that every month or so? While I know a lot about how bikes work now, the "fancy" shop where I bought my bike didn't seem to know anything about short and shallow bars or short reach brifters... it still makes me mad that I had to do the research for that, even though they gave me a new, smaller frame for "free" after 2 years of riding a bike that was too big.
The fact that every time I went into the shop and saw people I knew, probably helped me in the long run. I think the owner thought I was a stupid woman, who only did what her husband told her. However, when several local racers were in the shop and knew me (from when my son raced), he must have observed, and realized I would blab my big mouth all over town about his bad service.
Irulan, there is a Minuteman Bike Path rant??? I guess this is why I don't go on it..
Loved the story RM--made me very happy to sit at my computer and not have to deal with people that day :D I wouldn't have had 1/2 the patience you exhibited. Really.
As for such stories making newbies feel bad? Heck no. Every time I go into the bike shop I know that I'm potential joke fodder--sometimes it is even immediate and I get to share in the joke.
Whenever we learn something new, we're going to make mistakes. Take for example, learning a new language--you will say the wrong thing and the receiver may chuckle at you. Anything new is the same way. If you don't step in knowing you'll say or do the wrong thing and provide entertainment value, you'll never learn.
What's the alternative--waiting until you've got enough book knowledge to pretend? Eeks. Where's the fun in that?
No, Tales from the LBS doesn't just entertain. They help us all but pointing out how easy it is to make a mistake, how not to be a consumer, and, well, in this case, why some days your LBS welcomes you with open arms and other days they all run to the back room when you open the door.
Yeah,I didn't care for that part either.Quote:
Originally Posted by witeowl
+1 to that. But I thought the rest of it (and all of RM's OP) was hilarious.
I would rather be transported straight to hell than set foot in WalMart. It is like a third world country. I don't do badly behaved children, and for some reason every badly behaved child in the county flocks to WalMart with their indifferent parents. My children would be fitted for pine boxes if they even thought of behaving like WalMart children (and they know it).Quote:
Originally Posted by Kris
I can shop at Target during non-prime hours for groceries and general stuff without too much angst.
(Back on Topic) An area LBS here (actually where I took my broken Colnago) tends to be pretty condescending. I find it frustrating, so I don't go there unless I have to. At the same time, I understand they deal with people with WalMart bikes on a regular basis.
My SO is really picky about anyone touching his bike. He DOES know what he is talking about, is probably a more experienced cyclist than most the bike shop people, but is very, very quiet about it (he doesn't advertise that knowledge. I think he is superman, he doesn't). It really doesn't sit will with him to have his bike tossed around like these bike shop guys do (it is a number, a tag, and a will-call-you). But, fact is, it is the best bike shop in town in terms of experienced mechanics and stock. He makes his point by being very picky about how things are done, and puts the guys feet to the fire if it isn't done right. They could stick my derailleur on upside down and I am not sure I would notice it until I got it home. I assume the know what they are doing, so they do it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kris
Okay, can't resist the drift (and for the record, I'll shop at Best Buy, Lowe's and B&N, but not WM; the closest closely-held electronics and book stores to me are over an hour's drive; I prefer to shop the local hardware store but they often don't have what I need).
I concede that when setting up a new household, most of the mom-and-pops that would carry things like plastic trash cans for the bathroom have already been driven out of business by WW, so there isn't much of an alternative if you don't want or can't afford Architectural Digest grade trash cans.
But there's a more important difference. A pair of polyester stretch pants with the seams sewn crooked won't kill or seriously injure you or your child. An improperly assembled bicycle very easily could.
I don't find anything offensive about RunningMom's posts... and would shop at her bike shop if she was anywhere around here.
I can't quite say I buy a ton from local bike shops (I'm an evil internet and craigslist shopper), but if I can't get something significantly cheaper online than it is at the bike shop, I definitely go to the bike shop, because I'd rather give them the business and I get instant gratification.
And there are lots of times I go into shops expecting to be laughed at. I called an appliance store the other day asking "for that little copper nut type thing that threads onto the heating element of my dishwasher from underneath" I can't remember what name it had, but it had hat or something. They knew what I was talking about, laughed at my description and got one for me.
I once had a parts guy at subaru laughing his *** off at me... I'd done my first oil change on my subaru, drained out all the fluid, changed the filter, and then tried to start the car and it wouldn't go in gear.... Turns out that subaru uses the same filter size & housing for their oil filter as their automatic transmission fluid filter... And i'd drained out all my transmission fluid and changed the transmission fluid filter.
So being a new car, autozone didn't have replacement transmission fluid or filters, and I had to go to the dealer... So I'm asking for new filters, explaining what happened and the parts guy was just absolutely cracking up. When he gave me the new filters, I opened up the transmission fluid filter and pointed out to him "LOOK IT SAYS OIL FILTER ON THE SIDE HERE JUST LIKE IT SAYS ON THE SIDE OF THE OIL FILTER"
He continued to giggle, but did say "Yeah, it really shouldn't say oil filter on the side of that, and it used to be they made those different colors than the oil filter.... "
I'm sure I was the idiot woman that made his day - but I can completely understand him laughing at me for it. He helpfully got me all the transmission fluid & parts I needed though.
I picked up hardwoods that I'm having put in my living room soon. The guy selling me the stuff said many things that were just beyond my comprehension. He laughed when I asked him to write it down for my contractor as I felt he was speaking a foreign language. Then I said - though in my defense, you wouldn't understand me if I talked shop either, we all have our own language. :)
I enjoyed RM's story too. We all have to rant when we deal with people that drive us crazy. Better to rant to us than to the customer, right?
I don't know what you're talking about. When I taught SpEd, I'm sure the parents of all my students understood fully that the purpose of the IEP (discussed in the presence of an LEA) was to provide a FAPE in the LRE, possibly while implementing PBI based on an FBA. :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Possegal
And, yes, we were constantly reminded to not throw around those acronyms around parents... or even non-Special Education teachers... but we would often slip into old habits. Of course, even without acronyms, it's still jargon-ific.
This board is full of potential bike shop customers.Quote:
Originally Posted by Possegal
Bravo, Witeowl.Quote:
Originally Posted by witeowl
And we have a winner. I go to Target and a large chain grocery store (Safeway) for most of my day-to-day consumable needs (food, personal care, etc) and some of the basics that don't have equivalent local stores or who's equivalent local store's price is far out of my pay grade (trash cans, plastic containers, etc).Quote:
Originally Posted by OakLeaf
Most of the rest of it (including nearly all of my "luxury" type purchases) are at speciality and/or local stores with some exceptions made for online stores like Amazon which I am dearly in love with for my boxed TV series sets. About as close as I get to "big box" on a regular basis is REI. I just enjoy shopping at these places more, and luckily I live in an area where a) the prices remain fairly competitive and b) these guys are still around.
It is a goal of mine to never set foot in a Walmart again. A goal made easy by the fact that my City refuses to let them build, so the closest one is something like 15-20 miles away (HURRAY!).
oh denise, please dont get upset over one cranky response. check out the complete thread, i for one relished the whole post. dont stop posting your "tales from the lbs."
as for the caveman mentality, i've been getting it all my life. when i used to ride motorcycles, my now-ex would love to act like a dolt and see how the sales/service people would respond. i found that quite fun. we kept a little tackle box full of various sizes carburetor jets. when he would go to the shop and ask for a jet, they'd say "what size" and he'd hold his thumb and forefinger about an inch apart and say "oh about this big."
now when i go to my lbs, depending on who's the salesman of the day, they like to direct questions to my DH who has nary a clue. for example: he loves his bianchi - the one DENISE at ESTRELLA MOUNTAIN CYCLERY gave him such an outstanding deal on!! he was quite concerned that the "campagnola" decal on one of the crank arms was scratched and peeling off and wanted to know how to save/restore it. turns out it was a piece of packing tape that covered the decal to protect it during shipping that was peeling off. and yet we'll go into a shop and ask about compact cranks or something and they'll want to direct all their questions to The Man.
hey, so what? choose contentment.
i've seen lots of different people on this forum get offended by a lot of different things. let it fall off your back.
keep on runnin'
WOW! I'm sorry that this thread has upset some people; I truly don't think that it was intended that way. Communicating online is something that people do several times a day, but there are lots of misunderstandings simply because we aren't talking to each other face to face.
I know several shops that don't work on Wallyworld bikes, and that's their choice. Like so many of you have mentioned, I choose to educate people on the difference and have sold many bikes because of it. However, it does take alot of time to do this, and perhaps some shops simply choose not to MAKE the time.,,, it's not up to me to judge them for that.
Every one of us has something that we don't have a lot of experience with, and it's wonderful when people will take the time to educate us.
I for one, have been in the situation where business is slow and it's very scary. The bike world is not one where we will become wealthy... it's more of a lifestyle than anything else. It's one where you will always have customers that you love, and others that will drive you crazy... but that's life in the real world. Running a business is simply another life lesson, and one that we learn from each and every day. The issue that I do have with this post is this: for the most part we can't choose who are customers are, all we can do is give them the best service that we can. We will always have customers that are saints, and others who remind us how wonderful some people are. I for one, don't understand where venting about how your business is doing or NOT doing is helpful online. (unless it's targeted at friends, family etc) It's comfusing to read posts like that, and then to see another venting about certain customers. Perhaps I'm too old school, but it seems that it's a huge contradiction and not an impression I would want to leave with people.
This post is NOT meant to upset anyone, I'm simply sharing the view that I have whether it's shared by others or not.
+1Quote:
Originally Posted by Thorn
I perceive Runningmommy as working hard for her customers/biz and trying to meet diverse needs, no matter how grumpy/rude some customers maybe.
The reality is owning a LBS as biz, will not make one terribly rich. While I understand why certain LBS may refuse to deal with wally bikes, it does repeatedly leave a distinctly negative impression on the customer who cannot be blamed particularily if person does not want/is unable financially to invest in a few extra hundred dollars for a better bike. Building a larger customer base is a long-term proposition if LBS wants to survive. Of course, it depends how LBS staff are trained in terms of customer service. It is something LBS manager should consciously teach their staff.
Cycling world does have a certain amount of jargon, some of it technical. Can I name all the parts of a bike? After all these cycling years, no. I just haven't made the effort (even though we have 1-2 bks.) I just have my dearie look at it or take it to LBS for repair.
Dislosure :o: One of my partner's business associates for his cycling facility consulting firm, is owner and manager of a local chain of several bike stores in the Vancouver area. They deal with all sorts of bikes.
Bummer on the caveman.
My bike shop has adapters that fit a shrader drilled rim to make a presta valve tube fit without issues. Perhaps with one of those adapters you'd be able to sell him long stem presta valves for his aero shrader drilled rims.
A set of 2 adapters cost me like 5 bucks or less I think.
Here are some examples I found:
http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/product-M...resta-3335.htm
http://store.bikefriday.com/product_...roducts_id=979
Witeowl, your post made me laugh. When my younger son was in first grade, in 1991, we had him evaluated. When we went to the meeting to go over the results, I totally ignored my DH and went over the testing with the teachers and others at the meeting. Finally, he turned to me and said, "I don't understand a damn thing you are saying..." I then realized how parents must feel and never did that again.
All I know is one fact: I could never work in a customer service type job.
And, I have never been in a WalMart. Or, a Costco, Sam's Club, etc. I do my grocery shopping at local chains (5-8 stores), Trader Joe's, and a local natural foods store. At this time of year, I go to local farms and farmer's markets.
We bought all of our bikes at 3 different lbs'. However, we do buy all of the parts for repair/replacement on line. When my son was racing, it was financially necessary for my DH to learn how to wrench. He is extremely mechanical, so it's not like it was something that was hard for him. I mean, when I bought my second road bike, the shop wired my computer backwards and the LBS I bought my Kuota from has made several stupid mechanical mistakes that my DH fixed. I buy my bike clothing here at TE or Terry. The only time we had to bring a bike to a shop for work is when my DH messed up his disc brakes on his mtb. We don't have the tool to work on that, and since we barely ride those bikes, we won't get it.
Again, I would love to have a shop that wasn't condescending to women near me!
I for one think it's both appropriate and often entertaining when someone rants here about someone being rude or condescending to them, whether it's friends, family, colleagues or customers. Peoples ignorance, however, is something to be treated gently, not ranted over, but all I've read here were humorous remarks, no rants. Well, except rants against ignorance in people who should know better, like "mechanics" who assemble a bike unsafely.
RM -- Please continue posting about your good and not-so-good shop experiences. I think a lot of us have been in your place -- male discounting a female's advice/guidance but listening to the exact same advice when a man gives it.
RM has taken a TE vacation :(
People spit the dummy too quickly!
In the meantime there's always the customer's not always right site.
:confused: Translation, please?Quote:
Originally Posted by crazycanuck
Ask mr. google and she sends you toQuote:
Originally Posted by witeowl
http://www.urbandictionary.com/defin...Spit+the+Dummy
Australian Term: To indulge in a sudden display of anger or frustration; to lose one’s temper. The phrase is usually used of an adult, and the implication is that the outburst is childish, like a baby spitting out its dummy in a tantrum and refusing to be pacified. (Dummy is a pacifier)
Snork... so it's kinda spitting the dummy to accuse somebody of spitting the dummy...
So I'm confused as to who is spitting the dummy. RM or other people?
But I have noticed a disturbing tendency lately for any topic that's over 2 pages lately to degenerate into crankiness or to be shut down by a couple cranky people that can't take threads with the lightness they were intended to have. There seems to be an inability to debate or discuss something without crankiness or posturing. And that's pretty sad.
What a great sentence. I think that's my new favorite sentence.Quote:
Originally Posted by Catriona
However, I have the same question -- who is spitting the dummy?
I volunteer to spit the dummy for now, till we figure out who else has been spitting up dummies.Quote:
Originally Posted by PamNY
Is dummy a word most Americans know for a pacifier? This came up when watching the Tour one day, when Phil used the term. My family uses it, but Mum was Canadian and that is where it came from for us. My sister commented that she didn't think it was a word most Americans would know as a pacifier. But I wasn't sure. Just curious. :)
I think it's more a british english term. I haven't really heard it in the US. My british relatives use it though.Quote:
Originally Posted by Possegal
Yeah, that's what we figured. And Canadians use a lot of Brit words, so that's why my mother used it. Most of the time I notice the things I say that the kids I grew up with didn't. :) I guess I hadn't noticed that one before.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Possegal
It adds character. Canada with respect to gardening, fish & chip shops, etc., seems to be much more "British" than the US.
Excellent! I'm going for a ride in 96 percent humidity and weekday traffic, so I'll probably be in a mood to spit dummies when I get back.Quote:
Originally Posted by Catriona
I call mine a binky.
Oh, my goodness! I genuinely thought that there were multiple words missing from that sentence, and the idea that it was an idiom worthy of googling never even entered my mind! :o Thanks for the help. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Geonz
I don't know that any Americans (besides you, I presume) would know it for a pacifier. A dumb person, a crash-test dummy, a mannequin... All those, sure. A pacifier? I just can't see it. Well, what do you expect from people who make the storage area of a car share a name with a type of shoe? ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Possegal
I interpreted "spitting the dummy" to mean saying something stupid, a la Red Foxx on Sanford and Son yelling at Lamont and calling him a dummy.
I like the "tales from the lbs" stories, too. And most of the time the stuff you ladies talk about is way over my head. I just read on and try to soak it in and learn.
When I first found TE and was welcomed here, I was asked what kind of bike I had. "Well, it's lavender with white trim," I think was my response. Yes, really. I still feel like a clueless noob much of the time, although I now know I ride a mtb and I can change a tube and adjust my own brakes and clean her up all by myself. I can even identify some parts - cool sounding stuff like "top tube" and "rear derailleur" (is there a front derailleur?), although I'd still call the seat thingy a seat post.
So much to learn, so much to learn.
The only things I buy online are books (usually from Amazon) and bike stuff from TE.
Roxy
language doesn't really have to make sense to the uninitiated!
boy is this thread drifting or what?!
+1, except that IMHO it really isn't necessary "to try to be tolerant of those who are...rude. Rudeness, to me, isn't either on the same plane as ignorance or frugality, so I can't agree that toleration should be a default for those who choose to be rude or disrespectful in their interactions with others.Quote:
Originally Posted by kenyonchris
RM, keep on keeping on...that's why TE is a forum - for each of us to experience the support of our cycling sisters, eh?!
I wish a few people would use them (dummies) on the badly behaved kids in WalMart. Buying unsafe bikes. With parents in stretch pants.Quote:
Originally Posted by Catriona