Friday, March 15, 2013

The joys of shopping.







All the snow gone. A bright start to the day. Back from the bakers to find the heating fuel delivery man  on his hands and knees on the lawn filling up the tank under the rose garden. '' Bonjour M'Ongoose. I reckon you'll only need 2,000 litres . Should see you through the summer ". He then climbs into the cab, taps something into the computer, hands me a printout and then , with a wave and a whistle , heads off down the drive. The heating fuel man is one of those people who seems to be permanently happy.

Happy is not a word you would use to describe the staff at 'Mr. Do It Yourself ', the large nationwide hardware chain. 'Mr. Do It Yourselfs ' employees clearly believe in letting the customer do it all themselves.  I ask a shaven headed young man in a maroon boiler suit where the fencing section might . He looks up briefly , then points ;  '' It's the third aisle down there on the left  if you'd bother to look ". 

Seventeen people in the check out queue. Angus naively suggests to the three young ladies behind the welcome desk that it might be a good idea to open a second till. Amid much pouting he is very firmly told that it's none of his business. He then has to stand in line all the while receiving angry glances from the three irrate young women. The occasional snippet of '' Who does he think he is ? " or  '' Some people are just so rude ". Could have been worse. They might have said ' What else can you expect from a foreigner ? '. Being on the welcome desk must be several pay grades above being on the check out till. 

Despite the best efforts of the wonderful people at ' Mr. Do It Yourself ' we now have enough chicken wire to stop Bob from throwing himself off the terrrace and Sophie from spiraling over the bannisters. Sophie also has a new bed in a rather startling pink.


17 comments:

  1. I have a feeling that when you have Bob and Sophie with you, the customer service will improve everywhere you take them!

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  2. We were thinking there might be rude statements about foreigners. And retailers wonder why so many people shop on-line.

    It's getting exciting...all the puppy stuff. Love their pictures.

    XXXOOO Daisy, Bella & Roxy

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  3. Oh my word, you do know how to start my day just right...Puppy photos in your face...too sweeeeet.
    Love all the new puppy stuff, especially Sophie's pink bed. Does Bob have a blue bed?
    Angus will you be attaching the chicken wire with those plastic ties? It'll be easier to remove after they're grown.
    Pity you couldn't take your business elsewhere instead of shopping at Mr.DIY, that is just down-right awful and rude service.
    ..."if you'd bother to look" really got me riled up, but you handled it all well, no need to take home that bad karma with your new puppy stuff.
    I'm so excited....I can't wait till they're home with you and the Font.

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  4. So the Rickety Old Farmhouse is becoming pink... pink ribbons, pink collars and leashes and soon Paris Hilton will come to tea... lol love all the preparations... Kiri loves his new bunny - sleeps with him he looks gorgeous...Love from Southern Italy Susanne, Foxiie, Daisy and Kiri

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  5. It must be part of the training programme. They are the same in Rodez. I hope they didn't spoil your puppy prep purchasing!
    Love the colour of Sophies bed! The perfect colour for her.
    What fun.
    x

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  6. Just love the idea of "puppy-proofing" the house. Fun times ahead for you. I look forward to the adventures of Bob and Sophie, should be a great way to start my day!

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  7. Squeaky toys too? Or are they just for terriers?

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  8. Ah, puppy fever hits! I love the pink bed. I don't think I could have born parting with my money at a place that treated me like that. Perhaps we should start tweeting it with the #MrDoItYouselfSucks hashtag?

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  9. Apparently customer service training is not a work requirement at "Mr Do It Yourself".
    Preparing for new additions to the family is always fun.

    Blessings,
    Janelle, Maggie Mae and Max

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  10. I am enjoying all the puppy pictures. Did you take enough pictures of the fur babies that we will see them each day till they come home on April seventh?
    Like all the new things that you are buying for them.

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  11. Bob and Sophie will make shopping a breeze. Not even lazy, abrasive, arrogant sales clerks could resist two such adorable pups. And if they do, we all know the answer to that.

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  12. I have never had the nerve to do it . . . but when confronted with such utter rudeness from slobs like that ~
    it would be wonderful to have a huge COUGHING FIT right into their face. just spew those germs all over them.
    no covering of mouth ~ no looking away ~ simply loud coughing right on their nose. LOVE IT! lol.
    and loving those adorable little furry puppies. so beautifully named bob and sophie the brave.

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  13. I am guessing they will both want to sleep together so will share the bed!

    I have seen that shade of pink on Southern Hemisphere rugby union and rugby league fields where pink uniforms, now worn by many teams and referees, appears to be the colour of the match in an almost “I am going to wear pink to show I don’t have a problem with wearing pink” way. Perhaps Bob and Sophie will both get pink leashes and collars for when they go to watch the rugby with you, or would tuning up with anything pink at your local rugby game be a huge step too far for you and/or the French men in your village?

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    1. Stade Paris wear pink so I'm guessing the French villagers would be only too happy to turn out in cerise. Angus and Bob perhaps slightly less so. Blue is perhaps a more Presbyterian choice.

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  14. Exactly when will you and they be coming back? How long do we have to wait? You may have to come back earlier if one of us gets upset or something. Sorry, Angus, thats just the way it is.

    Jo in MN

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  15. That new doggie bed is very smart. I prefer to think of it as Schiaparelli pink. Good idea about attaching the wire with plastic ties, wish I'd thought of that.

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