I'm not ready to make nice...(long)

[pats16v at columbus.rr.com (Erik Patterson)]

Moral of the story?

Cathy kicks ass.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "C Boyko" <roccit_53@scirocco.cs.uoguelph.ca>
To: <scirocco-l@scirocco.org>
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 8:41 PM
Subject: I'm not ready to make nice...(long)


> Well, here goes a nice rant. WAY too long since I had one, isn't it?
> Anyway, I went out seeking an intake manifold for one of the many projects
> around here, and since I have time off this week, I get to be parts bitch.
> The only place we could find one was two hours distant. So I phoned first
> to determine that it was the correct one, he gave me a price that was $45
> less than just the top half was available for locally. So I thought I'd
> better clarify that it was both halves.
> (His part of the conversation in quotes, mine between, actions in 
> brackets)
> "Which manifold do you want, intake or exhaust?" Intake, and I clarify
> engine code/model years etc. "It's one piece, and that's the price" My
> computer shows it as two parts. "(aggressive tone) M'aam, we do this all
> day long and I don't care what your computer says, it's one piece". And 
> you
> have one? "Yes". So I'm thinking they remove it with the mid gasket 
> intact,
> as one piece, fine.
> Off I go the next day (today), a two hour drive. I get there, there isn't
> one already detached, but there's one bolted to a block on the floor. I am
> then offered one of the black air intake hoses as the intake manifold.
> Mildly insulting. Nope, says I, I want an intake manifold (point to
> manifold). Which the nice guys with the wrenches then extract and place in
> the box I brought. It's got all sorts of vaccuum stuff hanging from it, 
> but
> I figured they'd just as soon have me dispose of that stuff, since they
> would have to anyway.
> So now I wait for the nice guy I talked to on the phone, after a good
> fifteen minutes of me patiently waiting in the narrow space between the
> piles of car parts and the "counter", he finally comes out to collect
> payment. "Where's the stuff" Here in the box. "This is the intake manifold
> (picks up upper half) This is not the intake manifold (picks up lower
> half)"  I asked on the phone if it was both parts "(he stands up taller in
> order to tower over me/spaces himself within my personal space/raises his
> voice to a good yell) Ma'am, now don't you give me any attitude. THIS is
> the manifold. Not that other stuff. So you told me you wanted a manifold,
> not this other stuff" I explain in my best calm but firm teacher voice 
> that
> I'd  asked if it was both halves, and this 'other stuff' is the lower 
> half.
> "No it isn't, this is the manifold, this isn't" (I extract the printout
> from that 'software which shall remain nameless' from my back pocket) This
> refers to it as the lower manifold. "(pause) So did you want the other
> stuff or not?" Just the manifold, both halves, you can take the hoses off
> if you like. He stomps off with the parts, to the back, tinkers for an
> excessively long time to remove a few vaccuum lines. Leaves the injectors
> in, they are not an issue it seems. But those vaccuum lines, wow those 
> have
> resale value....I pay the agreed upon price, and drive home hopping mad.
> So the sum of that was that I asked for a price on an item, showed the 
> guys
> with the wrenches what I wanted, and got that item at the price quoted. 
> Why
> in the hell the attitude? I really thought he'd have felt better if he
> could just hit me. And I do fights as a weekly part of my job (I work in a
> rough school), I'm a pretty good judge of aggression by now. I did nothing
> to provoke the attitude, of that I'm sure. Except maybe being born with
> that one hunk of a chromosome that was a wee bit too long to suit him.
>
> Anyway, I survived. Most parts guys are decent, but once in a while you 
> hit
> a beaut. What this man did NOT know was that I'd skipped lunch. And those
> who know me understand that is not a good thing to mess with. I'm certain
> that the legend of the "pizza rant" still lives around here :)
> Cathy
>
>
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