Friday, June 22, 2012

Range Rover Land Rover Why me???

Hello, Hello, Hello, gentle readers!  It is Friday night, I am home and into my second medicinal liquid medication.  It has been quite a week. 

Where do I begin, lets start with the Mustang.  This Mustang was dropped off to be painted,  only.  Right off the bat, it would not start or move.  The owner spend Sat and Sunday in my lot working on it.  Still would not start.  We pushed it into the body dept, repaired it, pushed it into the booth, painted it and called the customer who brought a tow to pick it up.  He was so sorry, he gave me a hefty gift cert to Red Lobster.  Now, I have a Range Rover, known for the pain in the ass security system that we have not been able to start.  I tried everything, including driving to the dealer and having new batteries put in her key.  Well, the whold thing is my fault and she is very angry.  Tell, me what is the difference so I can handle these people. 

My estimator, Nate, is quite the magnet to the ladies.  They love him and he is good with them.  Professional and willing to let the old gals give him the hug they always want.  That part is going well. 

I want to share with you my experience with a taxi cab guy.  This man, new to the taxi biz, came in with a crayon he wanted me to paint his car!!  After a call from the city, we got approval on a paint code.  We painted his first car and he was happy.  The second car, needed a little work, my estimator told him he needed a new hood, or work as it was not going to turn out too well. All was documented.  he did not want to pay for any work, just paint, so just paint he got.  My painter worked in the booth for quite a while to try to counter act the reactions, and got them to the minimun.  So, Crayon guy came in and was so angry that he was shaking.  He stated that he told my estimator that there was problems and just because he refused to pay for repairs, we should have done them anyway.  Dude!!!  No!  You get what you pay for and more from my shop.  It turned into quite a shouting match, and when he told me, Lynn, your are pissing me off, I started to laugh and said hey man, you are not making my day!  OY!!!!  Told the crayon guy, pay his bill and leave!  He did.  being new to the taxi biz, he did not know his car would be beat up in 3 weeks. 

I am tired and have so much personal insights that I would like to share, but I am trying to keep this reading blog a documentation of the business.  I got a gift from another customer today, but I am so unhappy about the range rover......that is stupid to just retain the negative  and not the positive.  I had an appointment with the FP police today, but was canceled due to shootings.  Well, I guess I have to believe in the fact that I am not the most important person in town.  Duh. 

I am still in business after almost 4 years and I guess that has beaten the odds.  We will continue to see how it goes.  Thank you for listening to my insane experiences which keeps me sane to share.  Bon Nuit.  Mon Ami.  Shangri La!

Sunday, June 17, 2012

All The World Is A Stage!

Beloved and Gentle Readers, Mon Ami and BFF, Bon Jour, It is Sunday Morning, sitting in bed sipping coffee, does it get any better?  It has been a good week.....

WEBSTERS:

"good week"  {any week that Shangri La does not cry, run through the shop and falls, tells customers their car was a piece of crap before it came in, stomp her feet and/or crawl under her desk and pretend she is in the Bahamas.}

So, I guess it was good, but that does not mean it was not entertaining.

All my bragging that I was so good at fixing things, came back on me when one of the compressors stopped.  Dave Durango to the rescue and I swear he laughs every time he is looking at my compressors.This time, I am lamenting about the oil leak that seemed to sprout everywhere on the back engine.  Dave opened a box and it was full of oil.  Every part of the engine was full of oil as I had oiled it to death.  That sweet man with the Fabio hair, looked at me and told me he would give me a freebee!  He drained the (over) oil, cleaned the whole thing and it works sweet again.  I am just a little smarter now.  (Just a little)

It seems like cars come in, in groups.  This has been mustang month.  We have finished our 6th mustang this month and it looks to die for.  The kid will be thrilled.  Now we have one in the parking lot to paint and it won's budge.  The owner was in the lot putting a new fuel pump in it when I left Saturday afternoon.  I usually do not let people work on their cars in the lot, but he was such a nice guy.  We will see if they get it running.  I am glad we do bodywork and not mechanics.  A lot less for me to learn.

I have done an insurance repair for a lady.  Friends, once you smack your car a good one, it will be fixed and usually perfect, but it will never line up 100% again.  There will be small, very small tell tale gaps that an educated eye can tell it had been wrecked.  That is just the ways it is.  Well this lady wants a perfect car again, (she should buy a new one) and is complaining about a 16th inch gap.  I am calling her ins. co. on Monday and let them decide.  I am not letting customers dictate to me such stuff.  She stood there and called it a "safety hazard"!  I took all body men out to look at the car and they laughed.  I actually told the lady, "stop arguing with me".  I think she was so surprised, she shut up.

PEOPLE, DO NOT GO AND BUY A RATTLE CAN OF ANY KIND OF PAINT AND PAINT YOUR CAR....DO NOT ROLL HOUSE PAINT ON YOUR CAR....(SAW THAT ON A JAG, SOMEONE WANTED TO TWO TONE IT, DO NOT ATTACH PARTS TO THE CAR WITH BATHROOM CALK.  TO NOT FIX DENTS WITH WALL PLASTER!

There, I have said it, some of you are now laughing, but I have seen it all and more.  All my love to you all, dive carefully and if not, come into see me before you attempt it yourself.

Have a blessed Sunday, Mon Ami....Shangri La


Friday, June 15, 2012

Just Another Friday Night without a Life

Gentle readers and most beloved,  it is almost 7:00 pm on a Friday night and I am still here sitting......sitting.....writing to you.   It has been quite a time the last few months.  I have great employees now and do little managing of egos.  So, no man drama to report.

I did have a customer come in, a Mr. Patures, with a Mustang he said he only wanted one color as he planned to sell it.  He even told my estimator how his breeding puppies died and he had to spend 20G to buy a new dog and could he pleeeeeeease have a discount.

When he picked up his BEAUTIFUL yellow mustang, he acted like it was a Wonderful job.  Then he called and told me over the phone, that he would make me the laughing stock of Cincinnati for the lousy job, (actually one of the best we have done) etc., etc.,...

He claimed he bought a new front bumper cover, actually, he bought the cheapest one one on the market, $39.00 and claimed we put his old one back on.  WELL....I went in the back of the shop and found his old bumper cover and it is sitting in my office.  We will see who is the laugh of the town.

My gentle readers, I do believe people do this as they believe they will get  money back.   I am not Kroger or Walmart!!!!  He tried to have Visa pull his money back.  They wouldn't because it was not his credit card, it was his girlfriends.  She said she would have nothing to do with being dishonest.  He then told Visa the paint was bubbling off his car.  Now this is a chemical impossibility, but  the woman from Visa was sending scathing emails saying his paint was bubbling off.  Yet, he refused to bring his car back.  He tried the BBB route next. 

I have a man threatening to sue me as we replaced his son's hood 8 weeks ago and it just flew up as he was driving the other night.  He claimed we had not shut it tight.  Of course, in his mind it is my fault. He parked it in my lot and left it refusing to get it and demanding I fix his car for free.  The fact that there was empty cans of radiator fluid and water bottles on his passenger front seat, may indicate that he opened the hood himself many times.  But!  no, no, no, his son, drug thug and childhood con artist and thief is telling the truth because he said he NEVER opened the hood.

I am waiting for that summons.  Why does the average Joe think a small business is capable of paying out large sums of money at their whim?????

I want to tell you about a fishing, canoe overturning event that happened, but am sworn to secrecy.  Well, if I knew he did not know canoeing, I would of told him ahead of time to not stand up, if I had known he could not swim, I would of not come up out of the water laughing.  It was a hot day and the dip did me good.  It seems that it was traumatic to my fishing partner who can only now laugh about it.

I am wearing a knee brace under my tight jeans now and my body man Timmy, pulls my pants leg down several times a day.  Most people find that funny, (Durango), but I find it a courtesy.  It is hot to wear a brace under jeans.  Yuk.

I used to have all girls up front and now I have all men.  It is quite a difference, I will go into that later.  I just try to stay out of some of the conversations.

I send out to all my gentle readers, God's blessings, bon nuit.  Mon amour.  Shangra La