The Price of Customer Service

So what is it? Day 6? And as you can see… the project is completed. That's eight chairs. Count them. (At least the eight chairs I set out to recover are done.) There are actually more of these chairs lurking around… some in a closet in the chapel, maybe a stray one or two over at the "west wing" (formerly the old convent now converted to guest quarters. Guest-wing, west-wing, get it?)

It wasn't my doing at all. I did it, yes, but one of my Sisters took pity on me and my pathetic yammering about the hammering, and found me a HEAVY DUTY staple gun. Of course we had no staples, but getting staples was one of my more enjoyable activities. I took the empty gun to Palmer's Ace Hardware, the local Brewster hardware store. This was not the orange logo'd multicorporate conglomerate that we sometimes frequent for our garden stakes and lawn care products. No, this was the kind of store I grew up with… you take in your tool (in my case a staple gun) hand it to the person behind the counter and say: "Do you have staples to fit this thing?"

Since the young woman behind the counter didn't instantly know the correct answer, she referred me to a more experienced person. But she did know where the staples were kept and we immediately went to the racks where she showed me the various sizes and types while we waited for the other salesperson to finish with his customer. He actually apologized for keeping me waiting. I handed over the gun, he checked a number on the handle; I explained it was for reupholstering seat cushions and he handed me the correct box of staples. He even showed me how to hold the gun at an angle to get the best blast for my money. No wandering the aisles asking "Do you know where I might find staples?"… being directed and redirected seven times by employees who either don't know or don't care… finally finding the aisle with staples, looking at the gun, looking at the rack, looking for someone to ask again, only to be told "If they aren't on the shelf we don't have them." without them ever bothering to check. Can you tell I speak from experience here?

So… Cost of staples: $3.79. Cost of Customer Service: priceless. (Cost of a compassionate Sister: priceless.) Cost of a completed project: priceless. I'm thinking this is as good as it needs to get.