If Mrs HM Was Hot-To-Trot Yesterday, Then TODAY She Could Win The Kentucky Derby!

Sweet Gummi Mary! As if yesterday wasn't ire-inducing enough, what with the missing item in my package having been replaced by a cheaper item nothing like it... TODAY makes that issue look like a pea slept on under a stack of mattresses by a non-princess!

 

The package issue was Saturday. As I type this, it is Sunday night, and I am still fuming six hours after the "incidents," and having already shared my tale of woe with Farmer H AND The Pony.

Everywhere I went, there were problems. In fact, it's going to take multiple posts to do them all justice. And I do mean ALL. Save A Lot, Country Mart, Casey's, the Gas Station Chicken Store, and Orb K. What are the odds Mrs. HM would encounter trouble at EVERY VENUE SHE PATRONIZED?

We'll cover two of them today.

I had planned my trip. I needed a few items from Save A Lot. Things I only buy there. Like the BBQ sauce, and the store-brand Honey Nut Cheerios. We also need red Solo cups, and Oat Nut bread, bananas, garlic toast, and spaghetti sauce. I had a list. I had my winning scratchers to scan at their machine. I knew which tickets I was buying.

I turned T-Hoe onto the Save A Lot parking area, and saw that both sides of the parking rows were TAKEN! Maybe one empty space on the whole lot. No way was I going to squeeze in and then stand in line in the store. What kind of people go grocery shopping at 2:15 on a beautiful Sunday afternoon on the first weekend of the month?

Anyhoo... I drove out the lower end of the lot, deciding to come back another day. I should have realized this was a case of foreshadowing...

I proceeded to Country Mart, where I had planned to get our PowerBall tickets and The Pony's Cash4Life, and two of the $3 crossword scratchers. Since I had missed my chance at the Save A Lot lottery machine, there were also a couple $5 tickets I wanted.

As usual, I started at Country Mart's left lottery machine. I scanned in a $10 winner. I touched the screen to get one PowerBall ticket for $2. My balance dropped to $8. I waited for my paper draw ticket to come out the bottom of the machine. Nope. A message popped up. "Unable to process draw tickets at this time." 

Well, ain't that a fine how-do-you-do? It did NOT give me back my credit for the not-processed PowerBall ticket! As I was contemplating what to do next, the deli worker who gives me fresh chicken came up behind me.

"Are you buying my winners?"

"Maybe... but right now, the machine has taken me for TWO DOLLARS!"

"Oh. Let me get someone."

She hollered around to see who was working the service desk, and where they might be. It was Mike. The small older guy I see pretty often there. He was outside. She said he'd be back in a minute. So I got my other tickets using the $8 left. Then I waited. And waited. Then I went over to the right side machine, and scanned in another $10 winner, and touched the screen to get The Pony's two Cash4Life with Easy Match. $6 was subtracted from my credit. Then a message popped up: "Unable to process draw tickets at this time."

What in the Not-Heaven? I had thought it was just a problem with the left side machine, possibly being out of the paper needed to print those tickets. Now THIS machine had the same problem! I put in a dollar, and got a $5 scratcher. Then stepped back to wait some more.

The only cashier working hollered to another worker who had just come in from break: "Go get Mike. This lady has been waiting over ten minutes for him to come in and help her with the lottery."

When Mike came through the doors, he apologized.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't know anyone was waiting for me. Do you need me to scan those tickets and see if they're winners?" He motioned to the tickets I had bought.

"No. I need to get my money back for the draw tickets that won't print. I have two dollars in this machine, and six dollars in that one."

"Oh. I am very sorry, but I don't have a key to the machines."

"Can you give me an IOU?"

"Step over here to the desk. I will get your information."

Mike gave me a little spiral notebook, open, and told me to write down my name, and what happened. A man came over behind me with his wife, asking for "Purple formula." Mike told him that the cashier could actually walk over to the desk and get it for him, but that he didn't want him to wait, so he'd get it. Then Mike started apologizing to me again.

"I am so sorry about this. And you're a regular, too! I see you in here all the time. You're SO POLITE! Such a nice lady. I apologize for the machines. The lady who can help you will be here in the morning. She gets here at 7:00. I'll leave her your note, and one from me. She's here until 2:00."

"So I need to be here by 2:00?"

"1:30. She will give you your eight dollars back. Could you maybe write down your phone number? I won't share it with anybody. I can call you when she's doing the machine. Or wait. Just tell me a time when you will be here, and I'll let her know."

"Probably 11:00. Unless that's her lunch time."

"Never mind if it's her lunch time! You come in at 11:00. You're SO NICE. I'm sorry for all this trouble. I am so used to people being mean. Talking down to me. I speak 9 languages! I used to be in Intelligence. But they want to act like I'm not even a person. It's people like you that give us a reason to work. When she runs the report on the machines, it will show up, and we'll get your money back."

"Thank you so much! I'm sure you learned how to deal with people like that, with all your Intelligence experience, but that doesn't make it any easier!"

"I wish everyone was as nice as you. I'm so sorry this happened."

"It's okay. I'll come in tomorrow at 11:00. Then I'll probably put that money right back into the lottery machine!"

So now I have to adjust my schedule! Not necessarily get up earlier, because I've been up by 8:00 since I came home from my Unfortunate HospitVALzation. To make sure The Pony is up, and talk to him before he leaves for work.

At least I had excellent customer service from the Country Mart crew.

TO BE CONTINUED...