Lists

An article by Don Quixote    2 Comments

Lists.

Everyone makes them. Come on admit it. You’ve got lists for everything. Shopping lists. Christmas lists. Lists of things to do today. Hit lists. Everyone has a list of something.

My friend Bobby and I both keep a very special kind of list. It’s a list of companies that piss us off and we’ll never shop from again.

I know it sounds odd, but it’s true.

Are you driving down the road when suddenly some guy in a truck with ladders and tools cuts you off? Well lucky for you he just happens to have the name of his company splashed all over his truck.

Looks like Big Joes Heating and Plumbing has just made the list.

Now granted it takes a lot for me to add a company to my list, but once they are on it, man they are on it.

Here are a few examples:

Mama Mia’s Pizza on St. Joe road (delivery)
- Ordered dinner. We were hungry. Talked to the guy who ALWAYS delivers our order (talks forever about movies making my food cold, but that’s okay). I remind him that our house is at the end of the street and that the numbers are out of order. He knows and it’s not a problem. 45 minutes go buy. It’s dark and raining so we have every light in the house on, the porch light on, everything. There was a party at the drug house. We watched a car pull up in the street. Get out, go to the door. He was inside for a good 10 minutes. We called Mama Mia’s, the driver doesn’t have a cell phone, doesn’t know where he is at, but he is on his way. The driver of the car comes out and then sits in the road for 15 minutes (again, I could hit his car with a rock from my front door). And then drives away. We call again, if the driver doesn’t show up, call them back and they will put in a new order for us. We get a call. It’s the driver at a pay phone. He can’t find the house. I give him directions. Another 10 minutes goes by and he shows up. Guess what? It’s the same dang car that sat in front of the house for 30 minutes. The food was cold. I asked him if he sat out there in front of the house and he said yeah. I told him I wasn’t paying for it and sent him on his way. I called the restaurant told them I refused to pay for cold food knowing the guy sat out in front of the house for that long. The said they weren’t going to send out a new order and there was no discount. They made the list.

Pizza Hut at Northwood Plaza (delivery)
- Similar situation as above. We placed an order. Waited an hour. Called back. Got the same guy we placed an order with. Said he didn’t remember us placing an order. Apologized and sent out a driver. No biggy. 45 minutes later called again. Got the same guy. Said the driver came out and that no one was home. Sent the driver out again. We got the meal for free, but the guy wanted a tip.

My list is pretty long and varied. Names generally stay on the list for a few years, but I’m willing to try them again after that.

I write all this because despite the fact that I LOVE the taste of Blimpie’s (on Dupont) their quality control just doesn’t live up to that of Subway. When Blimpie is on, man they rock, but when they are off, ugh. Which happened to me on Sunday; which is why they just made my list.

Anyone else other there keep lists like this? If so what kinds of things are on your list and why?