We just wanted a cat...

Ever since we moved in, we've been discussing the idea of getting another cat -- a younger cat to keep Max company.

So on Friday, we visited the local SPCA where we found a couple of cats that appealed to one or the other of us and we went to the desk to ask about taking the cats out of their cages. The staffer at that point spent 10 minutes talking us out of those cats and suggesting others. Fine, we took that under advisement and went back to look at other cats.

One I liked seemed to hate Hubby -- hissing and batting at him; one he liked hissed and yowled when I approached. So we looked at slightly older cats and found another couple of potential pets. Again, the staffer talked us out of them, spending so much time talking us out of taking -- well, pretty much any of the cats, that we ran right up against closing time for viewing.

I understand that the staff probably have a good idea of each pet's temperament -- and this was not the first time we had selected a shelter animal -- but she seemed overly concerned with the fact that we had another cat and a child. We knew going in that there was every chance that the visit would not result in our getting a cat but we never expected to be so dissuaded. It was very disappointing.

On our way out, we did take a peek in the small animals area -- two chinchillas, a rat, a couple of guinea pigs and a LOT of rabbits. I wonder if they would have talked us out of those too?

[photo by MendocinoAnimalCare]

Crappy customer service

Puretracks.com you are on notice!!! Many months ago, I signed up for Puretracks through a cross-promotion where I got "10 free songs." However, when I signed up, I must have missed the ticked box for "send me your crappy eNewsletter filled with offers I don't want" -- because I would have un-ticked it. But, what really grinds my behind is the fact that when I click on their little tiny link buried at the bottom of said crappy eNewsletter that says "click HERE to unsubscribe" (note the actual link also includes "?email=[my email address]") I get a mysterious 404 error.

So, I go to the website where I realize I have no clue what my password is. No problem, I figure, I type in my email and click "forgot password" at which point it tells me there is no account with that email address.

So... I try to contact someone and get another error in trying to submit their email form!!! GAH.

Weeks pass. I keep deleting the eNewsletters. Then I start marking them as spam. Today I thought what the heck, I'll try again.

I still got the 404. There's still no account with my email address, but at least I could email them. Let's see what happens next....

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You'll notice in the photo above that Mr. Colbert is also showing The Bay as being on notice. Here's why:

Last week, when I managed to wheel myself through Mayfair Mall, I eventually needed to use the washroom. I chose to attempt using the one at The Bay but I was unable to do so because some softheaded twit had placed a decorative table in the corner beside the toilet. Normally, I would look at it and think, "oh, OK, nice place to put down your handbag," but in this case it actually prevented me from being able to fit the wheelchair into the "accessible" stall. I even tried backing in.

Since I did actually need to use the facilities, I did not take the time to track down a manager or other employee but figured I would do so on my return home. Well a couple of days later (when I remembered that I was going to call), all I managed to get was a voicemail phone forest that eventually led me to the voicemailbox of a manager which, after leaving my message, kindly told me that the mailbox was full and my message would not be saved. GAH!! WTF???

But here's the thing. I only shop at The Bay rarely and even then it's usully out of some sort of cultural guilt -- it the last remaining Canadian department store and even it's owned by an American. So by saying I'm not going to shop there any more, it's really not much of a threat, but I'm putting it out there nonetheless. With Mr. Colbert's help, of course.

[p.s. to generate your own sign, go to shipbrook.com/onnotice -- just be sure to save the image and upload it yourself instead of stealing their bandwith like a clueless dork.]

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