As usual, life has it’s ups and downs. Good moments and bad moments. Happy moments and bitchy moments. Sometimes all of the above in a single day. Sometimes all of the above in a single hour. Kind of like my body temperature–constantly changing. It is not boring for sure. As they say, variety is the spice of life.
The Good
My new Hyundai Kona EV, that was supposed to take six months to arrive, is arriving early. It managed to make it to shore in Vancouver before the big strike that shut down the port. It is on its way to Nova Scotia by train and truck. I was at the dealers this week to finalize the paperwork and should be picking it up the end of next week. Ask me if I am excited. It is going to look something like this:
Minus the Photoshop touch ups that make it look like movie star little car.
In the mean time we have been finding the garage. And I mean finding because it has been used as a very large storage room for almost twenty-five years. We got rid of stuff, we moved stuff, we organized stuff and shifted stuff to the shed, which also had to be cleaned and organized. Believe me, it was a very big job. The charger that I won will be completely installed by the end of the weekend. The lawn tractor will now be permanently parked in the shed. We will be ready. I guess you know what my next blog will likely be about. I won’t be able to resist.
The Bad
Like a scary science fiction movie, the yellow archangel (AKA lamium galeobdolon, golden dead nettle, artillery plant, aluminum plant or yellow weasel snout) is invading my gardens. Now to be honest, I have been battling this plant, which is now considered invasive, on the edges of my yard for about twenty-five years. It was on the property when we moved here. But this year, the stuff is going crazy. After our dry spell in the spring, we have experienced a very rainy and humid summer. Think rain forest. I haven’t had the time or the weather to get the other weeds let alone tackle this stuff. And it is not easy to tackle, It travels both above and below ground. Blink and it grows six inches. It is the stuff of nightmares. Whoever decided to call it yellow archangel couldn’t have spent twenty-five years with it. There is nothing angelic about this plant.
The Bitchy
Just in case you were thinking that my blogs were getting a little mellow as of late, I thought I would share some bitchiness because there have been a couple of bitchy events worth noting, especially since they deal with poor customer service. There is nothing that makes me bitchier than poor customer service.
First is my Dyson experience. I have already worked this through my system so I will strive to be brief so I don’t get pissed off again. I needed a new vacuum. My old one broke so I decided to purchase a Dyson V8 because it was on sale for the same price as I paid for my old vacuum and I knew that I could order parts and batteries for it. The environmentalist in me hates tossing out old vacuums.
Just my luck, the new vacuum broke the third time I used it. After an hour and a half chatting, not talking, I was forced into a chat app, The Dyson rep decided that the power head was broken. But power heads were on backorder so the rep said he would replace my vacuum. I really didn’t need a whole new vacuum but that was the only option.
However, in order to get a new vacuum, I had to send back the old vacuum. I no longer had the box so the rep said he would send me a box and I would receive it in two days. It took 8 days (EIGHT DAYS!) to receive the box, which I packed and sent back using their supplied label and courier account, the very next day. Then I waited and waited and waited.
After a week I tried calling them and emailing them and every time I made contact it was as if I was starting all over. I received so many canned responses that I wanted to scream. They kept saying that they needed to receive the old vacuum before I could be sent the new one. I kept asking why. After all, it was their idea to send the new vacuum not my idea. It was their decision to ship it back on the slow truck to Mississauga. When I asked to speak to a manager, I was put on hold three times and eventually cut off. I was so frustrated that I gave up. Being bitchy can be very exhausting. The new vacuum finally arrived this week. I have a whole lot of buyers remorse over this machine and the customer service experience. I guarantee you that I will never ever, ever purchase another Dyson product for as long as I live.
The second bitchy event had to do with my new braces. Yes, at the age of 65, I had to get braces. The braces are working great, the canned service, also via an app, is not the best. However I feel I have expressed enough bitchiness for one blog, so I am going to remind myself of the good. My new EV arrives the end of next week and I can hardly wait.
Thank you for reading.
Photos: Car – Hyundai Canada, All Others – Jenn Stone
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That yellow archangel reminds me of the Kudzu we have down south. Almost impossible to get rid of.
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“Almost,” gives me a little tiny bit of hope.
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New car. Yay.
Invasive weed. Boo.
I feel your pain there as we have Creeping Charlie which can creep and cover in no time flat. With rain every single day in June and every other in July it’s been a constant battle.
As for customer service, that often requires alcohol.
🥴
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We actually got rid of a huge patch of Creeping Charlie a couple of years ago. I noticed in the fall I could roll and lift it almost like sod. Yes bad customer service often requires alcohol plus a good rant b
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happy about your car and your reclaiming your garage. the rest is so annoying to say the least. I also got the clear braces a couple of years ago, and had an ortho who was amazing, which made all the difference in the world.
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I am happy with the braces. And I will go into the orthodontist office every couple of months. In between it is weekly scanning and communicating with an app on my phone. Technology is wonderful but it is only as good as the people using or helping with it. I am looking forward to being able to close my mouth properly in the future.
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It’s all worth it
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Love the new car! I hope that the recent floodings didn’t affect you. We had a similar plant on the edges of the property when we lived on the farm, but it didn’t seem as aggressive. It wasn’t as aggressive as the poison ivy that was everywhere…Dyson experience notes and thanks for the heads-up.
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Thanks. We are not personally affected by the floods. The lake is pretty high so I imagine there are people with lower properties on the lake and river that could be having flood issues though.
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I’m excited for you and your new car. I’m looking forward to your review of it, actually. I’m sorry about your Dyson, so ridiculous. As for braces I had them as adult in my mid-40s. So glad I did it. It was painful but the results are worth it.
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I will definitely be blogging about the new car. I can hardly wait. As for the braces, I know they are working because I have to take them out to eat and can feel the difference. Luckily I got used to them quickly and they are no longer uncomfortable. I know they will be worth it.
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I keep all my boxes from new stuff until the guarantee runs out – normally a year. I just shove them all in the box room.
When you said new braces, I thought you meant trouser braces (which I’ve had to purchase since my waist got bigger and my hips stayed the same!) It’s unusual to get teeth braces in later life isn’t it? It only seems to be school kids with them here.
I know what you mean about the garden turning into a jungle. We can’t garden any more this year (haven’t been able to since early spring) as they are no longer emptying our bins (gone on strike for the year) and I’ve nowhere to put offcuts so everything has had to be left. I’m not much of a gardener but it’s paining even me!
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I have been making my husband get rid of stuff so I couldn’t toss the box into the garage. I actually cut it open an used it for storage of something else.
Mouth braces are unusual at 65 but I have had mouth issues for years. It’s been a domino effect for me. Hopefully these will be the final thing as I will have to wear a retainer at night once they do the job.
I understand the bigger waist issue. I need to wear a belt all the time. I made myself an elastic one that clips closed so I could stretch it when necessary.
Bummer about that strike. I think they would end up legislating them back to work here.
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Just about the whole country is on strike now! It’s getting on my nerves. The railway staff have been on strike on and off for the last 2 years – they cancel all services around 4 days a month at random – the days either side of the cancellations, you can’t travel as it’s too chaotic as they wind down or back up again. The health staff are all striking all the time. Teachers are. Quite a few other groups I can’t recall off the top of my head.
The binmen I do have partial sympathy for but think it’s gone on long enough now. Apparently, the binmen in this area are getting less money than the binmen in the next area north of us. That is unfair as they’re all basically employed by the same council!
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I can understand how that would get on your nerves.
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Sorry about your Dyson. Our issue is with dehumidifiers. We have literally replaced one every year. After 6 to 12 months, they just stop functioning. Very frustrating.
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It sounds very frustrating. I hate the fact that nothing is built to last anymore.
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My Dyson broke too after the third time 10+ years ago. I took it apart trying to fix it myself and never put it back together. Blah.
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I will take my old Shark Rocket any day over the Dyson.
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Friends have complained about the Dyson vacs they have purchased. Sounds like they are not worth the exhorbitant price one has to pay.
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No they are not. And even though mine was on sale, it was still not worth it.
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Bad customer service always puts me in a bad mood. I feel like I’m less patient and tolerant about this than I used to be. Perhaps you will agree that part of the reason we’re less patient is because it seems we’re receiving poor customer service much more frequently. Then, we go through the steps as recommended by the company, it leads to more frustration. I could write an entire book about this subject.
On a pleasanter subject, enjoy your new ride.
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I think you hit the nail on the head. Companies are relying too much on outsourced people and scripts. It is more about the bottom line than good customer service.
The new ride will have a much more comfortable seat then the old one. My back can hardly wait.
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Crazy how such a well known brand for having great products can have such terrible customer service. Maybe they’re spreading themselves too thin now also breaking into the beauty industry? Those kinds of experiences will usually have my blood boiling but after I calm down I usually joke to myself about how it’s a third world problem and there are other things to get worked up about. Hopefully this new vacuum will last you a while!
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I agree. In the big picture, this is a little thing. I usually rant a little, curse a little and move on. But I don’t forget so I will tell everyone what a terrible company Dyson was to deal with. And that I don’t even like my new vacuum as well as the Shark I had had for a few years beforehand. But it works so I can live with it.
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