why was I such a good student, and do the homework of watching the boring Google Apps videos if the class is going to do all the same information all over again? Wasted a couple hours watching them, wasting time now. :: yawn ::

Wow! Shaun Del Grande of the Del Grande Dealer Group called me to once again apologize for the shitty treatment I received at Oak Tree Mazda—which he assured me is one of the top something-or-other dealerships in customer service. He read my letter and thought the salesman's behavior was "ridiculous," and he's going to be talking to him and turning this into a learning experience. (The salesman, of course, is normally "fabulous.")

He pulled up my record and commented that the price I'd gotten for my car was the lowest he'd ever sold one for, and they'd taken a loss of over two thousand dollars (which is what the dealership had told me when we were trying to push the price down, but I didn't know whether it was truth or tactics). He surmised that maaaaaybe the salesman thought he'd "given me enough," but even if that explained his reasoning a bit, it was still obviously unacceptable. He did say that there was a 90-day policy on things that needed to be taken care of, but he understood that it hadn't been made clear to me. He asked me what it said on the paperwork, and I told him that it said to make an appointment for such-and-such date, but he asked whether it specifically said that the work had to be completed within ninety days, and I said it didn't. I really appreciated that at no time during any of this was he trying to make excuses for what had happened, and at no time did he imply that any of it was my fault.

So he's totally going to have the scratch fixed properly, painting both doors so that it looks right—the unexpected bonus being that he'll have to paint over the big section where someone keyed me—and he'll also look at the transmission issue so I can get both things taken care of in one trip. And he will give me a rental car as soon as I bring the car in.

And the best part? I told him I was uncomfortable about going back to Oak Tree Mazda, and he said that the good thing was that he owned two Mazdas. So I can go to the other one!

He will satisfy my every desire! He really is going for 100% customer satisfaction, I see!

It was a little tacky bringing up that you got a good price from them, but I'll give him points for not making you go back to OTM.

Sounds like a win.

It was a little tacky bringing up that you got a good price from them

He pulled it up after I told him that I found Oak Tree Mazda because they had the car I wanted for the best price (he asked how I'd found them), so that's why he brought it up, to assure me that I sure had gotten a good price. And as he talked about the loss, I started seeing where he was going with it, as I came to the same conclusion that he had: the salesman may have held some sort of grudge against me, having sold me the car at such a loss.

Sounds like a good outcome, though. Nice to know that someone actually read your letter and took action!

Yeah, he apologized for taking so long to respond; he said the letter had ended up in the wrong pile or something. As soon as he read it, he e-mailed me. He gave me his direct number to call him on Monday and touch base on when I can bring the car down. And he'll be meeting me there.

P-C, glad to hear things are progressing.

ION- looks like I'm helping work with some testing before we change over to GoogleApps. Give help with the Mac transition, since there are only 4 or 5 of us. Which means I get early access! Sweet. Yes, I'm a geek. This surprises you how?

Lastly, it was very nice of the Yankees to delay the start of the game until I got home. Literally, I was bummed I forgot to TiVo the game. Sat in the comfy chair. Rain delay ended within 30 seconds! Although, it looks like it's still raining. Hopefully get to see Jeter get a hit before the game is called. His next hit has him breaking a 73 year old record for career hits. Right now he's tied with Lou Gehrig.

I just talked to my dad. My mom's doing better, but staying at least another night in the hospital.

Good ending , P-C.

Happy Fucking Birthday , Trudy. May you find something glittery and sparkly.

and best to your mom , Hil.

and some one make go pack.