The “Admiral’s Log”
Everyone needs a place to spout their opinion, for our favorite Admiral, this is the place to get things off the chest (as it were). Don’t look for a lot of content here, rather, a place where, when something impacts, interests or simply angers the old guy, he has a place to bitch about it.
By way of introduction, there are three (3) faces of the Admiral to be aware of prior to reading the content included on this page. (See Below)
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WARNING
Assume any content listed under the “Pissed Off” heading will likely include
many colorful and adult metaphors. (Scott is after all, well, pissed off)
Also …
Feel like you want to comment on one of Scott’s observations or rants, please do so. Simply e-mail Scott and send your thoughts.
You’ll find content added to this page by date … So, here we go …
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Photographers, an |
This month Scott is contemplative and |
So, we’re hanging out on the boat last winter in Las Vegas and Laurie is driving to or from the marina to someplace in one of the Lighter Than Air America trucks (with hot air balloons plastered all over it) and a woman who sees the rig, ends up making contact with her through the web site. She wants to come and shoot balloons. Not the first time we’ve heard that so of course, I’m skeptical.
Turns out this woman and her two friends are professionals and are interested in coming to shoot the Balloon Classic. We talk, bla, bla, bla … work out an arrangement and up from the desert they come to the Spirit of Boise-Balloon Classic. How’d it go you ask ?
Meeting these guys has to be one of the ten best things to ever happen to our balloon rally. Laurie and I love them; they fit right in and have already been adopted into the ballooning family, plus, as photographers, they each seem to have an incredible eye for “the shot” and best of all (and most endearing to me) they seem to place their highest priority on simply capturing the moment and then sharing it.
I couldn’t be happier they found us !
I’d like to think that I didn’t just fall off the spud truck when it comes to making a picture. At last count, I have 262,750 images of my own on file. Good, bad or fuzzy I have saved every image I’ve ever made from my faithful Nikon cameras. I’ve had people offer me money on more than one occasion for images. That’s not what I do and I’m usually so flattered that someone likes something I’ve shot, I can’t get it into his or her hands quick enough.
Did I mention I don’t shoot hot air balloons ?
I get that professional photographers can’t do that, their images are the roof over their head and food on their table, but ...
Moving from contemplative to pissed off now …
So this dude shoots an image of me in one of the Coke balloons descending back towards Ann Morrison Park in front of Boise’s iconic train depot during Balloon Classic. He sends a copy of the image, unsolicited, to one of the attending pilots who forwards it to me.
It’s an OK shot, nothing fantastic or something I’d send to Atlanta HQ, but it’s interesting because it’s such a unique point of view, its looking south and really drew the mountains (about sixty miles south of Boise) right in, as if they were immediately in the image background. It’s a lucky shot, train depot, logo’s turned to camera and the mountains … the stars are lined up perfectly.
The shot quality is low and the photographer has plastered his name and “copyright” 2011 on the image, OK, fair enough. I’m compelled and attempt to contact this guy and ask if I can put the image on the Coca-Cola Balloon Team web site.
I get a reply from him and he tells me how hard the shot was to get, the balloons went the wrong way and it’s only by the grace of God that (this putz) he has ended up with the shot at all. Seriously ? OK well thanks for the note Mr. Adams. (joke, you know, the famous photographer Ansel Adams …anyway …)
He won’t give me the image to put on the Coke site but would be more than happy to sell me the image, then I can use it on the site. I thank him for writing, explain that Coke forgot to put “pictures” in my budget and that’s the end of that.
So then I’m thinking about it and the longer I think about it the madder I start to get.
He is able to be out selling these images because I spent the time (and Peak's Money) to produce this event for the community. I ask to put him on my Coke site because I figure he’d like some play for the image (I did offer photo credit) and the Coke pages are busy ones with collectors from all over the world visiting regularly, but no, not good enough for this dude.
Perhaps I’m missing the point but this guy wouldn’t have the opportunity to take the pictures and “try” to sell them if I didn’t have the event. I’m being too shallow you say … well how about this then :
There was a photographer for the Boise River Festival that in fifteen freakin years never gave me a fucking picture. He was the staff photographer for God sake. I was always certain to get him up in a balloon at each years Balloon Rally, gave him access to good, exclusive sites for the best point of view opportunities and he still wouldn’t give me a fucking picture. Drove me crazy, it was like a slow boil all year long, thankless bastard.
Well, Steve utilized this guy for the Millennium Countdown when I put sixty balloons down Capital Boulevard in Boise and counted down to 2000 with each balloon glowing for a few seconds while we ushered in the New Year.
I put this guy in one of my three helicopters and he was the only still photographer in the world with that point of view. Well, its eleven years later and I’m still pissed off about it.
You guessed it, Wouldn’t give me a picture so I ended up buying three images from him for $150.00 each because the son of a bitch was so damn cheap with me. Yet, I can’t get out of my mind that had it not been for me, he wouldn’t have had anything to sell.
I guess I’m the idiot, after all, I did break down and buy the pictures.
I spoke to my lawyer about it a few hours ago … do you know that a case could be made that I could actually own every image captured at Balloon Classic by each and every human that made a picture ???
I’d have to advertise the fact of course and put signage at entrances to the park but you know what, I might just do that next year.
Man if those bastards had just said thanks and offered me an image …
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Staples Office in Boise says that (and a special thanks to Microsoft & Qwest) |
Read this and you’ll likely save yourself some grief … So who would have thought that something as simple as buying some new software would turn out to be such a gigantic pain in the ass, not me.
What I’m about to share with you is proof positive that all things are connected and that one simple act to make something work better isn’t worth the grief you usually suffer as a result.
First, let me say that none of this would have happened if I had simply kept the great guys at “Fiberpipe” (here in Boise) as my internet service provider. My need for speed and wireless routers forced me to move to Qwest.
Now I believe with all my heart that Qwest is one of the worst fucking companies on this planet for customer service. They’re terrible and it’s usually because you’re talking to some son of a bitch in Manila that can’t fully understand the English language that makes trying to deal with them such a painful experience. I swear to you, our Computer Tech “Matt”, spent fully an hour on the phone Friday just trying to get the Manila human to transfer him to a human, (any human) here in the States.
Quick review, love Fiberpipe, can’t stand Qwest …
It’s been a while since I’ve bought actual software for any of the systems we have here at the house or in the office. If you own an iPhone or iPad, you know why. Buying “apps” for these devices is much easier, usually free and in fact works much better and is less complicated then traditional software is.
In fact, it’s been several months since we have fired up any of our laptop’s … our iPad’s have made them obsolete. You have no idea how wonderful it is to not have Microsoft automatically downloading to our computer’s in the middle of the night. It’s wonderful.
Another quick review, don’t like Microsoft any better than Qwest …
I’ve been using an e-mail software called Thunderbird. Never have liked it much but Matt put it on my office machine after I switched to Qwest because they didn’t support “Eudora”, the worlds most simple and efficient e-mail software. In hindsight, that was my first warning, one that I completely ignored. Goddamn Qwest !
So my current problem started as a “mis-click”. We’ve all had them. Your fingers accidentally “click” the mouse while it’s over something you’re not looking at and, brother, you are instantly, well and truly fucked. Your screen now has something on it you’ve never seen before and you are absolutely paralyzed; you’re done working for the day. Well that’s what happened to me. I did it and have no one else (at this point) to blame for my misfortune.
So to correct the problem with my cheap (actually free) mail software, I purchased “Microsoft Outlook 2010” this past week. Don’t forget, I’ve always been a big fan of Eudora for its simplistic approach to e-mail but when I switched to Qwest from our good friends at Fiberpipe, I learned that Qwest doesn’t “support” Eudora software.
Guess what … shock of shockers. Qwest doesn’t support “Outlook 2010” either! No shit!
Apparently, according to the “rocket scientist, English-speaking bitch” in Manila, (and I quote) “Qwest no longer has any service agreements with Microsoft because they have been sold and are now called “Century Link”. I’m sorry, I’m not sure how to write with a broken English, Asian accent, but I’ll assume you get the frustrating idea …
Quick review, Qwest doesn’t support Microsoft or Eudora software.
(Bastards !)
(Which shouldn’t be a surprise, they don’t actually have the advertised
“internet speed” either, another disappointment I’ll need to learn to live with)
So my new Outlook isn’t supported. I’ve lost two full days plus Matt’s bill while he has tried to make the software work … Get this, the Manila brain trust suggests that for another $40 per month, Qwest (hereinafter called “Qworst”) are happy to provide us with a static I.P. address that will work, Really, No Shit? Isn’t that’s nice of them !
Command decision time. I instruct Matt to get Outlook off the machine and fix the Thunderbird software, we’ve already wasted too much time (I’m trying to host Spirit of Boise in a couple weeks, its not like I’m swimming in extra time right now any way) and we’ll cut our losses and I’ll just return the software to Staples.
Oh nay nay !
You apparently don’t return software.
Did I mention that “Microsoft Outlook 2010” was $158 bucks with Idaho sales tax. (shit just gets better by the minute doesn’t it)
They don’t take software back if it’s been opened, because of piracy issues. Really ? So I said to the sales guy, “I’m not a pirate, I ‘clicked’ the wrong fucking thing on my screen and crashed the system, purchased your software (in good faith that it would work), it doesn’t, so I’m bringing it back”.
Apparently, printed on the back of my receipt, is the Staples policy for returning software. I can’t read the print WITH my reading glasses on its so small, but I guess I’m supposed to know the policy by divine insight, that “NO ONE” takes software back after its been opened.
Seriously ?
Granted, I haven’t returned anything to a store in years, but I did take for granted that if I bought something from someone that I ended up not being able to use, or that didn’t work, I would get my fucking money back … after all, Staples is a reputable store and based right here in Boise, owned by Boise Cascade.
When did such simple customer courtesy fall by the wayside ?
Two Simple Things …
1)
I’m not a software pirate. I’m a consumer who bought a product from your store in good faith. Staples, you are the face of Microsoft and if you choose to represent and sell their products then you should make your decisions on returns on a case-by-case basis - for no other reason than the simple convenience of your customers.
2)
You could have saved us both a great deal of time and expense if you had put a “policy” sign in, over or next to the software, so that I, an old son of a bitch that doesn’t know any better, would know that I couldn’t bring it back if it didn’t work. I guarantee you I never would have purchased it without asking a few more questions.
One last thing for Staples …
I am telling everyone I know how fucked up I think your policy is. I don’t give a shit if every company on the planet does the same thing, it’s you that I choose to do business with and you that I assumed would, in exchange for my business, treat me fairly and with a reasonable approach to our relationship.
I’m not hiding behind an anonymous forum to tell the world what you’ve done. I’m a credible, reasonable (for the most part), respected member of my community and I’m tired of being screwed by companies that claim to be giving me the finest service possible. My friends are older, responsible adults that think like I do.
You need to take your young decision-making punks and have them look at how customers were treated back in the day because what you do today doesn’t reflect how my generation does business.
Your lack of customer service and support today will cost you much more than the software return, which was $158.00, and you certainly won’t need to worry about my business any longer. I won’t be back. You’ll also enjoy knowing that I have some influence in my peer group and I intend to exercise it with regard to your stores.
While it may be a drop in your bucket, I have the pleasure of knowing that several thousand people will read this and most will absolutely agree with my position.
Sure would have been cleaner if you’d just have refunded my money.
How does this story end ? Well, I’m not sure. I have to navigate the Microsoft website, an activity I rate just above having my balls cut off, then, after discovering where to send the software (by Fed-X or UPS) according to the site, must wait for Microsoft to process my request, one way or the other. So now I can add freight to Matt’s bill and I end up, not including lost time, hundreds of dollars in the hole … but no worries, Staples, the company I spend hundred of dollars with every month for everything from flat screens to external hard-drives will watch my back, correct ???
What a fucking racket !
A final thought: these companies, Qwest, (QWORST) Microsoft and Staples are all contributory to a culture of poor service and should be ashamed. Doing business with any of them is done so on their terms without regard to the consumer whose business puts food on their tables each night. That said, they are not entirely to blame …
Until such time as (we) consumers have a willingness to simply say enough is enough, I’ll do without if you won’t treat me fairly, the problem will only get worse. We enjoy the computer age as much as any one, but it shouldn’t be an excuse to terminate good, personal, customer service.
I resent the suggestion that the policy is based on an assumption that “I” was or might have been pirating software. This makes me wonder;
“Who are the real pirates?”
