Day #354 Window Guy

The Hollander family in Youngstown, Ohio runs the nicest window company, and I’d like to brag about them.  A few days ago I received an astonishing phone call from them. I’ll need to give you a little background, though.

While I was working at the beekeepers booth at the Gwinnett County Fair, I took a little break to walk around and see the other exhibits. One of them was for Weather Tite Windows. I stopped for a moment and spoke with a young man named Sam. I told him I was in a hurry to get back to the honey bee booth, but that I’d try to stop by later. He was nice enough to bring me a brochure.

I told him about a harrowing experience I’d had when someone from another company came to give me an estimate. That guy was HORRIBLE! Pushy, pushy, pushy! I finally had to ask him to leave my house. And I complained to the company, but never received any sort of apology from them. “If you send somebody like that,” I told Sam, “I’ll be very upset with you.”

“No, ma’am,” he said. “All our people are really nice, and we depend on the quality of our product to sell itself.” He told me a few more things about the company—there weren’t any visitors at the bee booth right then—and I signed up to receive a call so we could schedule an estimate.

The lady who called the next day was as pleasant as could be. And the fellow who came to show me their windows and give me an estimate was downright likeable. I ended up telling him that I would do business with them, although I had to get a few more royalty checks before I could schedule the work. I don’t believe in paying by credit. I save up for what I plan to buy.

A couple of days later, when I was back working at the fair, I stopped by the Weather Tite booth again and told the young woman what a pleasant time I’d had dealing with their company. I mentioned Sam specifically, and Jim Wall, the estimator.

The next day, Aaron O’Brien, the president of Weather Tite Windows, called me to thank me for such positive feedback.  It brought to mind something that happened when I was in line at Publix on 9/28. The woman in front of me asked if she could write her check for $200 (about $18 over what she had bought).  When the clerk handed her the change, she accidentally handed back the check as well, underneath the bills. The woman returned the check, and the clerk seemed surprised at that. Why would anyone be surprised by honesty? Shouldn’t fairness be automatic? Shouldn’t acting honorably be the norm?

In an economy such as we’re experiencing now, it must be tempting to go for the hard sell, to rake in the customers, to push a more expensive window when someone doesn’t need it. Weather Tite doesn’t do any of that.

I’d be willing to bet they hire only nice people. If you’re looking for an estimate, give them a call.  They’re in Ohio, western Pennsylvania, Florida, and Georgia.

And I’ll let you know as soon as I get my new windows. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be a good experience.

BEEattitude for Day # 354:

       Blessed are those who act with courtesy and consideration, for they shall sleep soundly at night.
 

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You Can’t Get Your Dog in My Next Book

The Contest is Over!

I’ll announce the winner in tomorrow’s post

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Day #349 The Rock of Integrity

Before I forget – my friend Cindy emailed me to thank me for including her in that funny “weight loss” post – but she said she hadn’t come up with the idea. It was something she found somewhere or other on Facebook and simply reposted.

As a writer, I always appreciate being credited with what I’ve actually written, but the internet has made dissemination of disinformation so incredibly easy. It’s tempting to say, “Oh, who cares?” After all, it’s not the end of the world if I say Cindy came up with the shampoo/dish detergent idea when it was really So-and-So from somewhere or other who first wrote it.

No. It’s not the end of the world. But it is one little fragment flaked away from the rock of integrity. The more often we chip away at that rock, the smaller it will become.

I’ve wondered over the past week, working occasionally at the Gwinnett Beekeepers booth at the fair, whether I should even claim to be a beekeeper anymore. After all, in another week or so I won’t have any hives on my back deck. When I’ve discussed bees with people ogling the observation hives, trying to spot the queen, I’ve been selective about who I’ve mentioned my allergy to. To most of them, I’ve simply said that I’m a hobbyist beekeeper with two hives on my back deck and that I love my 60,000 girls. Which is technically true.

Is there a similarity between crediting the wrong person for a funny story on Facebook and acting like a beekeeper when I’m not one anymore?

I’m not sure of the answer to that.

All I know is that, with the printed word at least, I’m going to continue to try my hardest to give credit where credit is due. I’d expect that from people who read and enjoy what I write, and I will certainly be meticulous about how I present other people’s writings.

If whoever wrote the shampoo/dish detergent blurb will please contact me -- I'd be happy to give you credit for it.

 

BEEattitude for Day # 349:

       Blessed are those who stay in integrity even when it’s hard to do, for they shall always find a sturdy rock to sit on when they are tired.

 

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Green as a Garden Hose, the 3^rd Biscuit McKee Mystery,

is now available in mass market paperback

from World Wide Mystery, a division of Harlequin.

Harlequin.com

 and

 all of my books are available in e-book form

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Get Your Dog in My Next Mystery!

From now through the end of September, anyone who donates $10 to WAG, also known as the Walton Animal Guild, will be automatically entered in a drawing.

If you win, your dog will be in my next Biscuit McKee mystery!

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The donate button is right on their home page

Every $10 donation is automatically entered in the drawing

See Blog #324 for the details.