How rank it is

There is a fetid smell emanating from my trash can, which I have strategically placed at the end of the driveway so the stench does not make it to the house. This is the garbage that has not been taken away in over a week by the cartage company that I first contracted with in May AND PAID for services through September. Why have they not picked up my trash? I too wondered this very thing. This is the question that prompted me to call their company Friday evening when I got home from work to find the garbage still rotting in the can in blistering 90-degree heat. We all know how bad garbage smells in mild weather after a day or two in the trash can. Magnify that by a week and several scorcher days and you have the scent of over-ripe landfill in a can.

I can excuse one or even two instances of missed trash pickup, even when I've paid for such a service. Everybody makes mistakes and deserves a pass. So I was nice when I called the week they were supposed to begin trash removal service at my house and missed the first two pick-up dates in June. My interaction with their contact person was polite and understanding. New customer, new house – maybe they took down the wrong address and shit happens. They fixed the problem by picking up the trash the next day. Then they missed another day in July. Annoyed but patient, I waited to see what would happen at the next pick-up. And having my trash removed on the next scheduled day rewarded my patience. All is on track I thought and pushed the matter from my mind.

When this past Tuesday rolled around and once again my trash remained full, my annoyance started to give way to being pissed off. I got distracted by various things during the week and was unable to call the cartage company to bitch. Trash continued to build up in the can and the next trash day rolled around so I figured it was another screw up and they’ll be by. When I got home on Friday to find the trash can full, my being pissed skyrocketed into full blown “What the hell did I pay you people for?” indignation. Knowing full well that it was past business hours, I called their service line anyway and left a blistering message, basically stating fix this you morons or I am taking my business elsewhere. SuperHubby was even taken aback by how pissy I sounded on the phone. I was beyond caring if my tone was rude. Enough was enough. I paid for this service and expected at least a decent showing that they try to carry through with their obligations. Did I mention I paid in advance?

When I went to get the mail from the mailbox on Saturday, I had to venture past the stinky receptacle and felt somewhat sorry for the mailman who must have gotten a nose full of rank when delivering the mail. And there in my pile of envelopes was the letterhead from the company responsible for the current steaming pile of rot, which so caused my ire. I ripped that sucker open before I got to the door and I swear my head exploded. It was a letter alerting me that services had been suspended for a failure to pay our bill. While I found bits of brain matter to put back inside my head, I decided against calling and leaving another message as the words that would have erupted from my mouth would all be profane and counter-productive to peaceful resolution.

Given the irate tone of the message I left on their voicemail Friday, I fully expected a phone call Monday morning from some contrite employee explaining it had all been a mistake and they would certainly clear up the misunderstanding to my satisfaction. This was not to be the case as I waited until mid-day today before I called them back which just pissed me off even more. I mean really, if you are a paid provider of services, please treat your customers with respect. If they call and leave a message, call them back. You are not the only game in town and it only takes a phone call to keep or loose a customer. Those twenty-five bucks a quarter I save by using your service is not worth it if you can’t do that service effectively. You might think losing my business is no big deal but I have a big mouth and will take no prisoners in telling as many as I can that you suck as a service company. Just as I have no hesitation in extolling the benefits and services of a company that does a good job & treats me well as a customer or a product that I like and adds value to my life. So there, invite my wrath as you will and suffer the consequences, no matter how small they may be.

I made the call and the individual who answered the phone was pleasant enough but rather cavalier about the fact that I had been double billed as a new customer and had my services suspended. She even went so far as to complain to me that they had a staffing problem when I asked why no one bothered to respond to my message. They did agree to credit me for a week of missed services but not once did she apologize for the double billing, incorrect service suspension or lack of phone response. She did offer her name in case this happens again, which in my mind translates to: This will happen again as shit is wont to do, deal with it and call me to fix it when it does.

I will be contacting a new trash removal service this week.