Ugh!

Welcome to our world.

So Long Lonely Repairman!

Remember those commercials when you were a kid? The poor Maytag repairman was so lonely because the appliances worked so well he was never needed? I am pretty sure those days are long gone. We bought a brand new washer and dryer in June. In July, the dryer required service to replace a bad control panel. Now my washer is broken. Maytag pisses me off. Here's why:

My note:
I am an extremely unhappy customer. I took delivery of a brand new front loading washer and dryer approximately June 15. Within 45 days, I had to have the dryer repaired due to a control panel issue. Now I have a broken door latch and who knows what else wrong with my washer. The model number of the washer is MFW9600SQI and the serial is CSU1807531. Again, the door latch is broken and there is water in the washer. This should not be. I bought Maytag because my grandmother had a Maytag washer with no problem for many years and mine dont even last a year without a service call. It is totally unacceptable. Not only will I never buy a Maytag again, rest assured that I am the kind of customer that will spread the word about this experience. My next pair will be LG.

Maytag's Reply:
Dear Me:

Thank you for visiting the Maytag website. We appreciate hearing from you.

Thank you for taking the time to write in reference to the concern you expressed regarding your Maytag dryer. (psst! It's a washer!)We regret that you are not totally satisfied with your appliance.

Although our appliances are manufactured under strict quality guidelines, occasionally an appliance will not operate as expected, failures can occur, or components may cosmetically deteriorate. We cannot explain what factors may have contributed to the premature malfunctioning or to the deterioration of the parts in your unit.

We have documented your comments, and we apologize for any inconvenience this concern has caused you. Your file is stored in our computer system and available for review.

Please do not hesitate to contact Maytag after a service diagnosis and before a repair is completed. It may be helpful for the Maytag service technician to contact us so that we may insure that all that can be done to remedy your service concerns is being done.

Thank you for allowing us to assist you today.

You are a valued customer and we apologize for any inconvenience this concern may have caused.

We invite you to contact Maytag again either by calling (800) 688-9900 between 8:00am to 8:00pm EST weekdays or by emailing whenever the need arises. When calling please press the available option or stay on the line to reach a representative.

Sincerely,

Susan M.
Maytag Customer Loyalty Team
Maytag Customer eXperience Center
http://www.Maytag.com

My Reply:
So what you're saying, then, is that, while it is unfortunate that I've had a horrible experience with my washer and dryer, you're not really going to do anything about it? Why not expedite my service call? Get a tech here who has the parts and knows how to fix my appliance either today or tomorrow so that I don't miss the opportunity to do laundry for my family of six this weekend. Because what is likely to happen otherwise is that the tech will come between 8 and 5 on Monday when no one can be here, not have any parts, not fix the washer and it will be another week before the situation is resolved.

I'd suggest contacting the guy in New Lisbon that fixed the dryer for us. He was pretty good and works on a schedule that accomodates customer needs. But get my washer fixed by tomorrow PLEASE! Ten days of laundry for six people isn't pretty.

thanks!


Maytag's reply:

NAR_Maytag_CustomerExperience@Maytag.com wrote:

Dear Me

Thank you for visiting the Maytag website. We appreciate hearing from you.

Local service companies are independent business concerns neither owned nor franchised by Maytag. We cannot set their days or hours of operation. We can not compel them re arrange their service schedule and we can not compel them to bring particular parts to your home. To be sure that they would have the parts to repair your appliance they would have to carry every part on the parts list for that model number. We are sure that you can see how this would not be possible. If the unit is in warranty we can assist in getting the parts as soon as is possible. If we order the parts for you we can have them to you in three business days. Please call while the service technician is in the home on the day of service so that we can verify parts needed with him.

We hope that this information is helpful.

Thank you for allowing us to assist you today.

You are a valued customer and we apologize for any inconvenience this concern may have caused.

We invite you to contact Maytag again either by calling (800) 688-9900 between 8:00am to 8:00pm EST weekdays or by emailing whenever the need arises. When calling please press the available option or stay on the line to reach a representative.

Sincerely,

Susan M.
Maytag Customer Loyalty Team
Maytag Customer eXperience Center
http://www.Maytag.com


-----Original Message-----

My Reply:

You could, however, pick up a phone and call them directly to try and expedite my service. If they already know that the little black latch is broken when they come then one could assume they'd show up with the right parts saving an extra trip. You really have no interest in providing true customer service.

Your message is clear and cements my opinion that I will avoid purchasing Maytag in the future. I doubt that the Maytag repairman is lonely since when I call the 800 number both washer recall and a dishwasher recall are included in the menu. Keep up that commitment to quality.

Oh...

Holy Motherfucking hell!

Our house - the house we're trying to SELL - needs a new roof. It probably won't pass a home inspection the way it is now so in order to sell it, we'll need to drop another several thousand on a new fucking roof. I guess it's a good thing we took the advance pay, eh?

Here's the bullet points:
1. We've dropped our price by over 20 grand since we listed it.
2. We had to replace our fucking water heater.
3. We've put in a warranty AND an allowance to replace the fucking carpet (God I hate those fucking cats!).
4. We have had one serious looker but they have a house to sell first. Good luck with that. It's Grand Fucking Rapids and no one is selling houses.
5. We're averaging one showing per week and open house attendance is trending downward.
6. We're out in three weeks and the fucking house needs to sell. NOW.
7. We need a new fucking roof.

Ho-fucking-ray.

Guess Where I Live?

Order to boil water issued for Kentwood area
KENTWOOD -- Some Kentwood residents are being asked to boil water before drinking after a drop in water pressure reported by the city water system.

Residents who live south of 44th Street, north of 60th Street, between Eastern and Breton avenues, are being asked to boil water until further notice.

A loss in water pressure may result in bacterial contamination in the water system.

The city has restored pressure and staff are collecting bacterial samples in the area. The city anticipates resolving the problem by Thursday.

From The Grand Rapids Press

Why we shouldn't be allowed in public

Yesterday we had another open house. Don't ask. I mean it. But the upside was that it was a beautiful day and we evacuated our premises by going to the Meijer Garden. I love that place. If it weren't here in Michigan, it'd be perfect. It's beautiful and the kids love the children's garden section.

When the Sharp family enjoys the gardens and sculpture park, however, it does take on a new twist. For example, a civilized person would refer to this picture as "Dancer Looking at the Sole of her Right Foot" by Degas. Sarge calls it "Lady with Dog Poop on her Shoe"


This lovely work of art (I forget it's real name) "Targets"


But I do think this made the butterfly's day.


We've got another open house tonight. We're heading to the lake. Pray for a buyer.

Will I Ever Learn?

My specialty is procrastination. I have been putting off a blog post for a day or two and mulling some ideas when BAM! The perfect opportunity presents itself this morning. A perfect example of why I love being a homeowner rears its ugly head at six-thirty this morning. "Mom?" queries the Queen. "I think something is wrong with the water heater. There is water under the carpet in the hall and all over the storage room floor."

"Fuck." I mumble from my semi-comatose state. "Call your dad."

"Can you do it? I have to go now."

~unintelligible grumble~ "Of course dear. Have a great day. I love you."

"Hi honey. How are you? I need you to come home please. We have water all over the floor downstairs."

"Fuck."

Yes. We do say "Fuck" a lot. I blame the Queen for inflicting this nasty habit upon us. It is either her fault or Uncle Sam's. I feel no personal responsibility for this habit.

So the Sarge returns home and begins to assess the damage/ situation. After a few minutes of listening to some things that will definitely expand the Khan's vocabulary, I make a couple of phone calls. Home Depot and Sears offer same-day installs. I have a Home Depot credit card (remember to do as I SAY not as I DO!) so the deal was done. SOMETIME today and $619.00 later, the problem would be solved. Sarge went to work and I went back to slacking, reading blogs and playing with the Khan when he allows it.

So at 2:30 or so, the Sarge has returned from a rather whirlwind trip to work and the Depot installers are here and THEN it occurred to me that this would have been one example of a picture being worth a thousand words. ALAS! My batteries are dead and the nice Polish man in the basement (I am assuming he's Polish. His name is Pavel but he was introduced to me as "Paul"... Like Pavel is that hard...) was a little taken aback by me heading in to snap a picture of the mess. So no pictures. I will figure out where the AA battery leprechauns have hidden their stash and try to increase the photographic proof of insanity in my blog.

Like you need photographic proof.