So trivial, yet it really ticks you off.

[Zombie_61]

Aw, thank you! You'd be welcome! (I also served red cabbage, which in my mind is the trifecta.)...

Gahhh, you're killin' me here...and making me hungry at the same time!

 

[Trenchfriend]

Yeah, remaining-stock-market, selling single pieces!

Get in, grab one single LR626-battery for your wristwatch, pay 1 Euro and get out, beeing lucky. Good joke, isn't it?

 

[Trenchfriend]

There are so less Seersucker-poloshirts available, in the clothing-stores and on the whole net.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Yeah, remaining-stock-market, selling single pieces!

Get in, grab one single LR626-battery for your wristwatch, pay 1 Euro and get out, beeing lucky. Good joke, isn't it?

On the other hand, liquidation of remaining stock means one day very soon you'll be scouring eBay for what you need, and paying extortionate prices besides. This is never a good thing.

 

[Trenchfriend]

I would buy it in german supermarket, if german supermarket would sell these "1.000 little things". So, the remaining-stock markets are getting more and more important as addition to regular, consolidated supermarkets, here. But the classic remaining-stock markets are no longer existing, here. They are really money-making garden-centers/hardware-stores with additional remaining-stock. Smalltown-area, far from the big garden-centers makes it possible.

 

[LizzieMaine]

We have "odd lot"/"big lot" stores here, which tend to be popular tenants for abandoned Wal-Mart store buildings. If you're looking for a giant pyramid of institutional-size jars of expired mayonnaise, that's where you go to find them.

 

[Zombie_61]

In addition to those, we have a slew of "99¢ Store" shops that sell low-end overstock goods for, you guessed it, 99¢. Years ago I walked into one of these stores, and in the entryway they had a huge sign hanging from the ceiling that said:

"If any item in this store has a price tag on it that is higher than 99¢, it is 99¢."
"If any item in this store has a price tag on it that is lower than 99¢, it is 99¢."
"Everything in this store is 99¢."

Apparently, some of their customers were unable to grasp the concept.

 

[Fading Fast]

In addition to those, we have a slew of "99¢ Store" shops that sell low-end overstock goods for, you guessed it, 99¢. Years ago I walked into one of these stores, and in the entryway they had a huge sign hanging from the ceiling that said:

"If any item in this store has a price tag on it that is higher than 99¢, it is 99¢."
"If any item in this store has a price tag on it that is lower than 99¢, it is 99¢."
"Everything in this store is 99¢."

Apparently, some of their customers were unable to grasp the concept.

All makes sense to me, but in NY, an item can not be rung up for more than the price marked on it or on the shelf identifying it. Stores seem so scared of the regulators on this one, that they bend over backwards to give the customer the better price.

 

[tonyb]

^^^^
OTOH ... I not infrequently find the sale price on a supermarket item not reflected at checkout. It happens often enough that I watch for it.

A few days ago at King Soopers, the local Kroger brand, the whole bean coffee sale priced at $8.99 a pound (three bucks off) was rung up at full price. I brought this to the cashier's attention, who in turn brought it to a supervisor's attention, who in turn refunded the entire cost. So I got a free pound of coffee.This is how you win my loyalty.

Contrast this with what happened at a local "natural market." The sale price wasn't reflected at checkout. I brought this to the cashier's attention, who in turn summoned a smug little a**hole who told me I was mistaken, that it was some other brand of coffee on sale. I offered that I believed he was mistaken. Upshot is that I verified that I was correct (by walking back to where the coffee was kept) before he bothered to look. And then he busied himself chatting up some young woman customer before returning to the checkout stand to rectify the problem. I let him and the store manager and anyone else within earshot know what I thought of their customer service. I think I used all seven words you can't say on television. And several others as well.

 

[Fading Fast]

⇧ New York is down to two major pharmacy chains (with a few one-offs here and there) - Walgreens (also branded Duane Reade) and CVS. And they compete ferociously. Every Sunday, the new sales start for a week and the labels on the shelves change. That said, not infrequently, they fail to change the labels or mislabel something, especially if you are there on Sunday, so you get to the register and it doesn't reflect the physical label on the shelf.

I've been on both sides of this (worked retail), so I have respect for the challenges and don't want to be a jerk, in particular, if a clerk is going to get into trouble. So I'll mention it this way, "I could be wrong - no big deal - but the price on the shelf, I think, was 50% off even though it didn't just ring that way." Without fail, they'll politicly check (other than a one-off, they never make you feel bad and cheerfully apologize and give you the sale price). And I always check - "you or another employee are not going to get into trouble over this, because if so, please don't adjust the price." They always seem completely unconcerned and say it's no big deal / they say it happens regularly and nobody will get in trouble.

That said, I have noticed some tension in smaller mom-and-pop stores and the above comments have occasionally resulted in me letting someone off the hook as you could see the fear in their eyes. I'm not going to get someone in trouble over a mislabeled price.

 

[Zombie_61]

All makes sense to me, but in NY, an item can not be rung up for more than the price marked on it or on the shelf identifying it. Stores seem so scared of the regulators on this one, that they bend over backwards to give the customer the better price.

We have the same law here in California, so I'm not sure exactly how the 99¢ Store got around that unless hanging that sign that stated "Everything in this store is 99¢" was sufficient for them to be in compliance.

 

[Stearmen]

Got up bright and early this morning for the roofers. Waited and waited, finally called them at 11:30, said they would be here around 1:30. No show, then he said 3:00-3:30, I said can you finish it in a couple of hours, he said yes. 4:00 still no roofers, called him again, said it would be first thing in the morning! Had to climb back up on the roof, caring all the bricks, cinder blocks and 2x2s, to weight down the tarp! So two days down the drain this week. I am so tired of contractors.

 

[Fading Fast]

Got up bright and early this morning for the roofers. Waited and waited, finally called them at 11:30, said they would be here around 1:30. No show, then he said 3:00-3:30, I said can you finish it in a couple of hours, he said yes. 4:00 still no roofers, called him again, said it would be first thing in the morning! Had to climb back up on the roof, caring all the bricks, cinder blocks and 2x2s, to weight down the tarp! So two days down the drain this week. I am so tired of contractors.

Sadly, I have many similar stories. I'm sorry you're going through that. While there have been a few really good ones we've encountered; overall, your time, money, inconvenience means nothing to most of them. It is very insulting and infuriating.

 

[GHT]

Got up bright and early this morning for the roofers. Waited and waited, finally called them at 11:30, said they would be here around 1:30. No show, then he said 3:00-3:30, I said can you finish it in a couple of hours, he said yes. 4:00 still no roofers, called him again, said it would be first thing in the morning! Had to climb back up on the roof, caring all the bricks, cinder blocks and 2x2s, to weight down the tarp! So two days down the drain this week. I am so tired of contractors.

And there was me under the illusion that being stood up by contractors was a British malaise.

Today, I closed my credit card account. It took almost 45 minutes. My card, with the British bank Barclays, is known as a Barclaycard. They were the first to introduce credit cards to the UK and did so back in 1966. Mine was issued to me in that year with a strong finger wagging from my branch bank manager not to go overdrawn on my bank account again. Ha! Telling a penniless student to be financially prudent. My first credit limit was just fifty pounds, my credit limit when I closed the account was a quarter of a million. For the last twenty years or so, I've used the card for business rather than apply for a business card. Sometimes the weekly spend could reach six figures, that's why my credit rating was so high, that and the fact that the balance was always cleared, no debt ever incurred.

Three years ago, my credit card became something new, something I didn't ask for. It has the contactless technology that allows the holder to simply tap the card at the terminal without having to type in any security information. Not wishing to have this technology I cut the card up and sent it back. A new card was issued, but again it had the touch & go technology. The card hasn't been used since.

Today I closed the account and in doing so, I seem to have thrown a spanner in the works. Back in 1966, credit cards weren't issued to those whom the banks deemed high risk, like penniless students, so practically every card holder would have been in their mid thirties or older, my application, if you can call it that, the branch manager simply crossed out all the questions and signed it off, so my card was issued.

So what has caused all the fuss? Those early account holders have, it seems, all past away leaving me the longest living card holder, despite that, they still cannot issue me with a card without the contactless technology. So fifty-one years of trading came to an end today. Despite their protests that the touch and go technology is safe, I disagreed. If I can spend vast amounts with the card previously and my custom was appreciated, why must I accept the new technology?

Something tells me that this is not the end.

 

[Trenchfriend]

When I see Cpt. Kathrin Janeway, I always think of severve, emancipated math-teachers.

 

[Stearmen]

And there was me under the illusion that being stood up by contractors was a British malaise.

Today, I closed my credit card account. It took almost 45 minutes. My card, with the British bank Barclays, is known as a Barclaycard. They were the first to introduce credit cards to the UK and did so back in 1966. Mine was issued to me in that year with a strong finger wagging from my branch bank manager not to go overdrawn on my bank account again. Ha! Telling a penniless student to be financially prudent. My first credit limit was just fifty pounds, my credit limit when I closed the account was a quarter of a million. For the last twenty years or so, I've used the card for business rather than apply for a business card. Sometimes the weekly spend could reach six figures, that's why my credit rating was so high, that and the fact that the balance was always cleared, no debt ever incurred.

Three years ago, my credit card became something new, something I didn't ask for. It has the contactless technology that allows the holder to simply tap the card at the terminal without having to type in any security information. Not wishing to have this technology I cut the card up and sent it back. A new card was issued, but again it had the touch & go technology. The card hasn't been used since.

Today I closed the account and in doing so, I seem to have thrown a spanner in the works. Back in 1966, credit cards weren't issued to those whom the banks deemed high risk, like penniless students, so practically every card holder would have been in their mid thirties or older, my application, if you can call it that, the branch manager simply crossed out all the questions and signed it off, so my card was issued.

So what has caused all the fuss? Those early account holders have, it seems, all past away leaving me the longest living card holder, despite that, they still cannot issue me with a card without the contactless technology. So fifty-one years of trading came to an end today. Despite their protests that the touch and go technology is safe, I disagreed. If I can spend vast amounts with the card previously and my custom was appreciated, why must I accept the new technology?

Something tells me that this is not the end.

After I cancelled a credit card a few years ago, my credit ratting went way down! I always payed it off in full every month without fail. Absolutely ridiculous.

 

[Zombie_61]

After I cancelled a credit card a few years ago, my credit ratting went way down! I always payed it off in full every month without fail. Absolutely ridiculous.

You can't have a credit rating if you have no credit to rate.

 

[Inkstainedwretch]

I know it's trivial, but I still cringe when I hear "disrespect" used as a verb. Maybe it's because it originated on the street. I mean, it makes perfect sense: if "respect" can be either a noun or a verb, why not disrespect? It still bothers me.

 

[GHT]

I know it's trivial, but I still cringe when I hear "disrespect" used as a verb. Maybe it's because it originated on the street. I mean, it makes perfect sense: if "respect" can be either a noun or a verb, why not disrespect? It still bothers me.

The American use of the term 'un' has become common place here. When fuel, as in petrol (gas) became know as unleaded, it grated on the ear of older people simply because if the additive in the fuel is left out, how can you unlead something that wasn't there in the first place. Alas, unleaded is now an everyday common place word.
In retaliation, I always ask for petrol when I'm in one of those, pay before you buy, gas stations in America. Nobody has ever said "What?" Drat.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Leaded gasoline has been illegal for consumer use in the US since 1996, and for use in newly-built cars since 1975. So if one wanted be semantically correct, "unleaded gasoline" should simply be "gasoline," since it's been the default for decades, and "leaded gasoline" the exception.

I imagine there's a kid somewhere driving a pre-1996 beater with an "UNLEADED FUEL ONLY" sticker on it, and is puzzling over what other kind there is.