Quote of the Day

I just came across this on someone's Facebook page:

I can please only one person per day. Today is not your day. Tomorrow, isn't looking good either.

Anonymous

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Change is Good - #1

I thought I would start a series of "Change is good" ideas. Life is so very short and it can be taken away so abruptly. What if today was your last day? What would you have done differently?

In the past, I've always shied away from change. Its unpredictable, sometimes scary, but then again, sometimes even the smallest change can lead to something spectacular!

So, if you want to play along, today's change is:

Take a different route home tonight. Maybe one that will take longer, but that could be more scenic, less traveled and less stressful.

Take a minute to answer the following question. Hopefully, the change will do you good :)

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Customer Service - Hah!

First, I want to thank everyone for all of the wonderful birthday wishes. I'll back to write on those and comments later.

The thing that's really starting to get to me is the lack of customer service. Back in the old days, there was an overwhelming belief that "the customer is always right." Companies and their employees bent over backwards to make sure the customer's experience was a wonderful one and that they would return. If you went to a department store, a sales person would accompany you. They would wrap, carry and even deliver your packages.

Then, something happened. A discount store opened (I really do forget which one). If you're willing to give up some of that pampering, if you can push a shopping cart, and put your packages in your car all by yourself, then you can shop here for less money. As you know, that caught on like a wild fire.

Then, over time changes have snowballed. You could call customer service if you needed help with something. Then, they (corporations) sent the customer support jobs overseas to people who don't speak English as a first language. This was frustrating, so we started emailing customer service. That could take days to get a response, and the response never really answers our questions. Then came on the online LIVE help. But, you have to register and wait by your computer and they just send you to a link that doesn't answer your specific question either.

But, NOW, here's the ultimate demise of customer service, the latest trend ... post your question to a forum where someone may or may not answer you. If they don't answer you, what can you do?...Post another question. Oh, I almost forgot, AND you have to register with the site in order to post your question. So, you're handing out your name, phone number and address to some big company who can sell your information and make money on you just because their service or product isn't working.

Here is actual text from Hotmail's new "Windows Live Solution Center" (that's an optimistic title):
Q: Why did Microsoft change Windows Live Hotmail’s support offering?
A: Microsoft understands that users don’t want to email a support agent unless they absolutely have to. Users want the ability to solve their own problem – and solve it quickly. Windows Live Hotmail Online Solutions Center brings together the expertise of skilled moderators, Windows Live Hotmail employees, and knowledgeable Hotmail customers. Customers will be closer to the latest information than ever before.

WLHSC deepens customer relationship by offering timely and relevant solutions along with educational resources; reinforcing the Microsoft brand values and fostering loyalty and earning customer trust.

Q: I don’t want to use the Solution Center? How do I contact someone at Microsoft directly?
A: We don’t offer any direct phone or email support for Windows Live Hotmail. Our moderators and ambassadors are always available so posting through the WLHSC is your best way to contact us directly.

I didn't mean for this to be so long, but I'm irritated, lol.

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Birthday

Today's my birthday. I turn 46. If the first 15 minutes of today are any indication, I'm pretty sure its going to be a crappy day. We'll see.

No one ever talks about a woman's "mid-life crisis." Why is that?

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Grasping Blogging

When blogging first came about, I couldn't really get into the swing (or really the understanding of) posting information on top of information. What I wanted to say needed to stay on top. Whenever I had additional information, I just edited the posts. It was like trying to make a webpage on a blog and it wasn't fitting into my scheme of things, so I made one blog after another. Each one basically had one thing to say. Of course, no one ever visited those blogs, and I quickly got bored with them, so they sank further and deeper into obscurity. Now, three years later (at least), I find myself with a whole new set of blogs. This time, while I still made a new blog for each "theme", I'm slowly getting into posting correctly, allowing old information to hide away in the archives. I spend a lot of time going from tab to tab posting what I want to say and still, never really saying anything of any importance. Its more of a series of announcements. Kind of a longer version of Twitter, but not as many options as Facebook.

My mind wonders often and I think about blogging about this, that or the other, so I make a note to make a new blog for that category. It takes me forever to get around to it so I end up with a stack of little notes on the edge of my desk, full of great ideas, I'm sure, but buried forever in my real-world archive.

Thinking maybe I would make one all encompassing blog to voice my thoughts, feelings, experiences and other miscellaneous boring information that no one else will find interesting, I started trying to come up with a name that I liked. Every single one was taken. Then, out of curiosity, I decided to try one from three years ago that I had abandoned, and lo and behold it was still here. "A Faded Rose" is taken from an old song, "Delta Dawn" that was playing in my head one night out of nowhere but from a simpler, less stressful time in my life; so I thought it completely appropriate to use that for my newest blog.

So, here it is. This is my intro. More about me later. If you like what you read, tell a friend. Spread the love, share the craziness, laugh and cry at the wonders of life.

Thank you.

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