Like Halloween.

Open Houses are like Halloween - or at least, like Halloween usually was in my old neighborhood. I'd decorate, prepare, provide treats, and wait to see what random number of trick-or-treaters would appear. Some years I'd anticipate a small number of kids and get an invasion. The following year, I'd prepare for the crowd I'd had the year before and get...two. This comparison popped into my head many times over the weekend.

The sellers, the listing agents and I pulled out all the stops to make the houses sparkle, there were cookies and cold drinks, I had information on the home and the area, and...I have plenty of leftovers. The cookies will be given away, so I don't eat them myself, and the cold drinks will reside in the back of the fridge until the next time.

I blame the heat - Asheville isn't used to blazing sun and 90 degrees, and anyone with any sense was indoors or neck-deep in the nearest body of water. It was not a normal, pleasant June weekend, and only the truly dedicated would have any desire to be out slogging through houses. There were a few visitors on Saturday, but yesterday, at the house I expected to draw the bigger crowd (new on the market, very popular neighborhood) there was only one neighbor-mom, out walking with her toddler.

Oh well. It was fun and I'm getting my agent groove back, and that's what really matters to me right now.

Abrupt change of subject/rant:

I've now gone over a week without a working clothes dryer, and Sears Home Services can rot in hell. My dryer quit putting out heat about a week ago. I think I know the problem - I'm willing to bet money that the improperly placed vent in this apartment has caused lint to back up, tripping the thermal fuse. So, I arranged for them to come out and fix it last Friday afternoon - it was the soonest I could clear my schedule to be here for them. So I rushed home from open house prep to be here and waited, and waited - got my flyers ready for the open houses, and waited, and waited...all afternoon. They stood me up. Naturally, I called to express my unhappiness with this, and spoke to the dimmest and most indifferent "customer service" people on earth:

Me: I had a service call scheduled for today between 1 and 5. It's now almost 5 and nobody showed up.

Sears Gal: Let me look that up for you. I see the technician is scheduled to be there between 1 and 5.

Me: I realize that. It's a quarter to 5. Where is the technician?

Sears Gal: I will have him call you in the next 10 minutes to tell you his anticipated arrival time.

Half an hour passes, no call. It is now close to dinner time on a Friday evening. I call Sears again, and can't get through (I'm picturing thousands of other pissed off customers doing the same thing all over the country.) I resort to their online chat, where after a brief delay, a Sears Gremlin named Allan comes on to chat with me.

Me: I had a service call scheduled for today between 1 and 5. It's now after 5 and nobody showed up.

Allan: Let me look that up for you. (Asks all of my contact information, very, very slowly, when the other gal supposedly looked it up with my phone number.)

Allan:

Allan:

Allan:

Allan:

Me: Allan? Hello?

Allan: I see the technician is scheduled to be there between 1 and 5.

Me: It's now 6.

Allan:

Allan:

Allan:

Me: This is ridiculous. Worst customer service experience in a long time. Cancel this appointment. I'll use another company in the future.

Allan: I've canceled the service call.

That was it. No attempt to fix the situation, no explanation, no apology, no acknowledgement that this was an epic fail on their end, and they at least had the professionalism to pretend be sorry they blew it. They simply did not give a rat's ass, and didn't bother hiding it from the customer. Unfortunately, as we were communicating online, I was deprived of the old-fashioned satisfaction of slamming the phone down in disgust.

So, it's Monday morning, I've been getting by by drying things on the shower rod in the hall bathroom - fortunately much of my work wardrobe can be handled that way - but of course sheets and towels and such are another matter, and I now have a very full hamper. I'm about to call a local company that got good reviews online; let's hope they can get here today or tomorrow. And Sears Home Services can rot in hell. /rant over.