Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Why I will not buy a mercedes in Tampa FL

Last October 11, 2009 I went the Dale Mabry Mercedes dealership in Tampa Florida. I was so disappointed with the treatment that I received that location. I know that the country is in a recession and every sales person has to be aggressive to make sales. But that is no excuse for the strong handed way I was treated there.

When I entered the dealership I made it clear to the salesman that I was not looking to buy a car that day. I told the salesman that several times.

He asked me what would my budget before if I did decide to buy. I repeated what I said before. I was not looking to buy a car. I did not know what my budget would be as I had not set one. I just wanted to see what was available and the price ranges.

But he was insistent on showing me the C-class cars.

Okay.

Fine.

The C-class cars look nice. They are MERCEDES! That is a given.

He asked me if I wanted to test drive the car.

No. Again I repeat what is becoming like a song’s refrain “I am not here to buy a car.”

Fine.

He asked me for my name and phone number for their database. He said that he would be in trouble if he did not get that information.

I gave that to him. I was trying to get him to leave me alone.

He asked me if I wanted a drink of water.

Fine.

“Follow me,” he said, “and I will get it for you.”

I followed him, naively thinking that he finally got the picture and I would be able to peruse the car lot in peace.

I felt comfortable and started looking at the brochures that were on display.

Then the salesman asked for some more information. What job did I have? What was the budget for a car?

WHOA!” I said, “Let me make this clear: I DO NOT WANT TO BUY A CAR TODAY.”

He puts his hands up like I am overreacting. He said that he wants to have the information on file in case they get a car in stock that I might like.

I said that I was not in the market for a car. When I am in the market, I will come back and request assistance then.

Then the manager came over and blocked my exit.

He was trying to explain why it was in my best interest to give the information the salesman requested.

At this point, I was at the point of a panic attack. I felt frantic. I felt claustrophobic. My main priority was to get out of there.

While these people were pushing my buttons, I had an inner war going on. I could have begun shouting at them to leave me alone, but I did not want to seem like the “crazy black person”. At the same time, I felt my blood pressure rising and my heart racing.

I did not know what to do.

How did it get to this? I just wanted to look at the cars.

Why were they pressuring me?

Why couldn’t they leave me alone?

Why are they cornering me as if that will change my mind?

My friend who was waiting for me outside saw what was happening to me through the window. He came inside, pushed the manager out of the way, and guided me out of the dealership.

What a relief. Disaster averted.

It was such a harrowing experience. I have been to Subaru, Toyota, Nisan, Suzuki, Ford, Honda, and Lexus dealers. I have never had anything like that to happen to me. Maybe those strong arm tactics work with other people. But I do not like to be pushed into making a purchase I did not want to make.

This occurrence seriously affected me. It happened months ago, but even now as I write, I relive a little of the stress that I felt on that day.

The Stupid Test 36% but it should be call the CLUMSY test

The Stupid Test

Directions: Mark which things you have done, then calculate your score by counting the number of questions you marked. This test is out of 100 questions which means that the number you get as your score is also your percentage.

1. [ ] Forgot to put the lid on the blender, turned it on, and had everything fly out

2. [ ] Gotten your head stuck between the stair rails

3. [X] Broken a chair by leaning back in it

4. [X] Had gum fall out of your mouth while you were talking

5. [X] Choked on your own spit while you were talking

6. [] Had people tell you that you are blond when you're not/or had had people tell you that your blond highlights are going to your head

7. [] Been caught staring at your crush by your crush him/herself

8. [X] Have looked for something for at least 10 min then realized it was in your pocket and in ur one hand

9. [X] Tried to push open a door that said pull

10. [X] Tried to pull open a door that said push

11. [ ] Have actually believed someone when they said that they knew how to make a love potion

12. [ x ] Have hit yourself in the process of trying to hit something else

13. [X] Have tripped and fallen UP the stairs

14. [] Have actually exploded marshmallows in the microwave

15. [ ] Have gotten gum stuck in your hair

16. [] Had gum fall out of your mouth while trying to blow a bubble

17. [ ] Have had the juice from a mini tomato squirt out and hit somebody else when you bit into it

18. [] Have had your drink come out your nose because you were laughing so hard

19. [X] Have called one of your good friends by the wrong name

20. [ ] Have skinned your toe because you were playing soccer or kickball with flip flops on or you were barefoot

21. [] Have put a sticker on your forehead, forgot it was there, and went out in public with it on

22. [ ] Have fallen out of a moving vehicle

23. [x] Have run into a closed door

24. [ ] Have almost shot someone with a real gun while trying to shoot something else

25. [ ] Searched for your cell phone while you were talking on it

26. [X] It has taken you longer than 5 min to get a joke

27. [ ] Have gotten your hair stuck in a blow dryer

28.. [] Have gotten your hair stuck in a fan

29. [X] Tripped on a crack in the sidewalk (in flip flops)

30. [ ] Said o'clock after saying how many min after the hour, example: 5:30 o'clock, or 6:15 o'clock

31. [ ] After someone told you that there was gum on the ground, you stepped in it

32. [] Put on a white shirt even though you already knew it was raining outside

33. [X] Have ever walked up to a stranger because you thought they were someone else

34. [] Ever been kicked out of a grocery store/off their property (in service)

35. [] Touched the stove, the curling iron, a hot pan, etc on purpose even though you knew it was hot

36. [] Picked out your change of clothes, took off the ones you had on and then accidentally put the old clothes back on

37. [X] Wondered why something wasn't working then realized it wasn't plugged in

38. [X] Put the cereal in the fridge, or put the milk in the cupboard

39. [X] Walked into a pole

40. [ ] Wore two different earrings or shoes on accident

41. [X] Put your shirt on backwards/inside-out without realizing it then left your house

42.. []Tried to take a picture of your/someone's eye with the flash on

43. [X] Gotten a ring stuck on your finger because you put it on even though you knew it was too small

44.. [] Walked out of the bathroom with toilet paper stuck to your shoe without realizing it

45. [X] Went to go do something/go get something, then when you got there forgot what is was that you were going to do

46. [] Picked up someone else's drink and drank out of it on accident when your drink was right next to it

47. [ x ] Fallen out of your chair while trying to pick something up

48. [x] Have poked yourself in the eye

49. []Have gotten in the shower with your socks still on

50. []Melted your hairbrush while blow drying your hair

51. [x] Have done enough stupid things to make a test

52. [] Have accidentally stabbed yourself with a pencil

53. [X]Have sung the wrong verse to a song without realizing it

54. [X] Have given an odd answer to a question because you didn't hear the question in the first place and didn't feel like asking what it was

55. [] Told someone you were the wrong age because you seriously forgot how old you were

56. [] Looked into an overhead light purposefully while it was on

57. []Got up early and got ready for school/work, then realized that you didn't have school/work that day

58. [ x ]Have tripped on a cord after someone told you to watch out for it

59. [x] Talked to yourself when you thought no one was around

60. [X] Have ever laughed at a joke that no one else thought was funny or a movie

61. [ ] done the Macarena to the electric slide or vice versa

62. [] Said funner then had someone make fun of you for it

63. [ x ] Have repeated yourself at least twice in the same sentence

64. [] Brought up an inside joke with the wrong person

65. [X] Didn't do the backside of an assignment because you thought that there wasn't one because you had already looked and forgot that there was another side

66. [] Did more work than you had to on an assignment because you didn't read the directions

67. [] Corrected someone's grammar/pronunciation then figured out that you were the one that was wrong

68. [X] Put something in a special place so that you would remember where it was, then forgot where you put it

69. [X] Put ice in your drink after the glass was full of liquid and had it splash out-

70. [] Told a lie then forgot what it was that you had said and got caught

71. []When wearing goggles, you pulled them away from your face and let go so that they would come back and snap you in the face

72. [ ] Forgot to make sure that the lamp was off before you replaced the light bulb

73. [] Ran into a door

74. [] Told someone that you hardly ever do stupid things, then immediately did/said something stupid

75. [] Told someone to watch out for something, then you were the one that ran into it

76. [] Have purposely licked playground sand

77. [] Have purposely and repeatedly flicked yourself with a rubber band

78. [] Gotten so hyper that someone actually thought you were drunk when you weren't.

79. [X] Have been so hyper you actually scared people

80. [X] Put duct tape on your body then pulled it off to see if it would pull your hairs out

81. [] Put duct tape on your hair/someone else's hair then pulled it off

82. [] Put a clothes pin/hair clip on your lip, figured out that it hurt, then did it again

83. [ ] Sat and wondered why men dress shirts have a loop on the back

84. [X] Made up a code name for someone so that you could talk about them to someone else and no one else would know who you were talking about

85. [] Have gotten a hairbrush stuck in your hair

86. [] Used the straw to blow the straw wrapper at someone

87. [ ] Shaved your tongue because you thought your taste buds looked weird

88. []When at a restaurant/cafeteria, you used your spoon to fling stuff at people-

89. [] Have flung forks at people in a restaurant/cafeteria

90. [ ] Sucked on a cup and got a hickey from it

91. []As you were writing, you moved your head back and forth with your pen/pencil

92. [] Have drawn finger puppets on your fingers then named them

93. [] Have wrapped someone in a roll of toilet paper

94. []Have used somebody else's toothbrush without even realizing it wasn't yours.

95. [X] started telling a story and forget what you were talking about or what happened in the story

96. [] when you saw a beware of dog sign, you told the owners to beware of the dogs not realizing they owned the dogs

97. [] You have spelled your own name wrong before

98. [] When lying in bed you look for pictures in the texture of the ceiling

99. [] Have used your calculator as a form of communication in class

100. [] Have popped a balloon in your mouth

Monday, December 15, 2008

Customs Border Patrol do NOT play

I work in import/export compliance. As a result, I signed up for notifications from Customs Border Patrol concerning their news releases. Most of the time, I get updates on changes in laws and stuff like that. Today I got an email about a major drug bust in Texas.
Agents doing their normal checks with the drug dogs found over 1700 pounds of marijuana that was hidden in the floor of a tractor trailer truck. The seized contraband has an estimated street value of $1.4 million.
When I read it, I was thinking that they are trying to win the war on illegal drugs. But then I stopped to wonder about all the other shipments that probably got through undetected. How many crooked officials look the other way? How many people are dying because of drug-related incidents?
And as I pondered all of this, I had to keep in mind that this system is like the shop that is going out of business. I cannot expect there to be any real successes in conquering the evil with the current situation.

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/12132008.xml

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Samson from the Bible


A sister made a coloring book of Bible characters and while I was printing the pages for some of my friends' kids, I thought that Samson probably had awesome 6-pack abs. Why do all the strong buff guys end up with crazy women that ruin their lives? Delilah was a total witch for how she treated him. She should have been the first to give him some olive oil hair treatments to keep his hair long and healthy. Oh well, it is all ancient history now.
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Friday, November 07, 2008

Who cares about a recession? I say Aldi

Aldi is the place for me to do my shopping because I am all about saving money. No foo foo stuff here. I do not mind paying for my own bags. They do not have name brand products, but the quality cannot be beat on most stuff. For example, they got a clam chowder at a fraction of the cost that beats Campbells. And they have strawberry popsicles at half the price that are better than Dole. Who knew?

But do not take my word for it, see what the news outlets have to say.

 

In Tough Times, Aldi Promises Cheap Thrills

(Newser) – It may not stock Coke or tempt shoppers with fancy end-aisle displays, but bare-bones grocery chain Aldi fits these tough economics, reports Time. With Americans downgrading to cheaper stores, Aldi's generic, spartan approach is attracting customers eager to save a buck, or more, on a gallon of milk. The chain cuts costs by offering staples—ketchup, cereal, olive oil—in one brand in one size.

Aldi's well-tested European business model undercuts its competitors by up to 90%, eliminating frills like free plastic bags and payment by credit card while keeping in-store staff to a five-employee maximum. Targeting urban neighborhoods where real-estate costs favor Aldi's minimal spatial needs—no butcher here—the chain plans to expand by 100 stores over the next two years.

 

A

 

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

Go Tennessee Volunteers


I am not a big football fan, but I like Tenn for some reason. I hope they win all their games or at least most of the games.
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Possible Penguin Conversation

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Black Friday Ads and Cease and Desist Orders

It is that time of year again. Everyone is getting ready for the biggest shopping day of the year. BLACK FRIDAY. Since the whole country is in a bit of a recession, there have not been many ads posted so far. I am hoping for retailers to have some crazy sales, especially on electronics. I want a GPS. The only leaked sales ad worth mentioning is Walgreens. They have one of those Bullet-like blenders for 9.99. I learned about the Bullet through an infomercial. You can make salsa in 5 seconds and smoothies in 10. I do not want to pay 60 bucks for the name brand version, but 10 dollars is my speed. Walgreens also has some $12 body butter for 2 bucks. That is worth a trip.

I get my information about the upcoming sales from http://bfads.net/ I laugh at the companies that demand that they not release their sales information. They want it to be a big surprise and so they threaten legal action http://bfads.net/Cease-Desist-Tally-SoFar-5

Companies that send Cease and Desist Orders usually do not get my business. I do not know what they are trying to prove, but I do not get it. To me it is all about saving time and money. I need a game plan for Black Friday. Everything opens at 6-7 and I do not have time to go get the sales papers to decide what I want to buy. I got to be ready when the doors open headed to the specific department to make my claim.

A

Tuesday, November 04, 2008

Fake degrees

Iran got problems but you don’t hear about it on the CNN.

Degree from Oxford but its not legit? Waaa? If he believed that, then he probably gave his bank account information to help some “Nigerian prince” too.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7708431.stm

AMH

Saturday, November 01, 2008

My favorite cheese

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Monday, October 27, 2008

Going to NYC

I got a trip to NYC planned for December. I know it is going to be cold, but I am still excited. My friends and I will be going to Walkill and then SHOPPING in the city. I already know what stores I am going to. I want to get a new bag. Maybe a Dooney and Burke, but definately something that is different. There are too many Coach bags on the streets these days. I hate to look like a fashion follower.
I know what I am going to eat too (1) sausage dog with everything (2) pizza (3) Jamaican patty (4) coco bun (5) oxtails and rice. And that is just the first day!
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Moral of Day Picture- Be a better person

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Saturday, October 18, 2008

Cruise 2008


I went on a cruise last week. I saw so many overweight people that I had to take a picture. And I thought that black was slimming. No color is slimming when the person is 300+ pounds.
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Tuesday, September 30, 2008

10 years seems like forever

On October 7, it will be 10 years since my mom died.
I decided to write a poem to describe my morose feelings.

Losing Love

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Japanese fashion -

http://www.flyingczechman.org/gallery/harajuku/index.php?show=11
How is this fashion? I try to be open minded, but I don't get this look at all.

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Photos and Multiply

I have just started posting to Multiply. I added my pics from Flicker. That went fine or so I thought. I accidentally uploaded my pics 2 times. So the folders are double. I cannot find out how to remove the duplication. And it is driving me crazy!!!!! IF anybody can tell me how to change it I will be so grateful.

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Bronner Bros Hair Show


I met Adele Givens at the Bronner Bros hair show. She was cool. She loves her hair and tells everybody about the products that she uses to keep it looking good. Too bad I don't wear weave, I would have bought some of the products.
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Monday, August 04, 2008

Bronner Bros Hair Show ATL 2008

I went to the Bronner Bros International Hair show in Atlanta. Here Hair = Art. The models were strutting their stuff with style. Painted faces only accented the colorful weave and costumes. All of which added to the drama of the show.
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Thursday, July 10, 2008

comments from readers

I saw this comment and wondered what are these people smoking? Everything is a mess thanks in part to dubya and they still have confidence that he can fix it. So out of touch with reality.

Bush should take action now

Voters: e-mail, write letters and call. Tell President Bush that Congress is now in recess. It is time for him to step forward and appoint the judges we need to take care of business. Also, start offshore drilling and drilling in ANWR. Supporting these Arab terrorists by buying their expensive oil must come to an end.

By doing this, the voters will view the Republicans in a new light and more will be elected to Congress. You will catch it from liberals and the radical "greens," but the Republicans will get the votes from a grateful public who have to pay the price of gas. That is a lot of votes. We need to win this one bad.

John D. Matson

Tamassee

 

Sunday, May 18, 2008

King Creek Falls

By the river on the way to the main waterfalls
More by the river on the way to the main waterfalls
At the main waterfall- it was beautiful!!!!
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