Dear Ex-Mother-in-Law

It was one hell of a ride wasn't it? Well, for me it was. 

For more than 10 years I allowed you to talk to me like a peasant. I allowed you to criticize me, I allowed you to give me emotional pain, and I allowed you to have power over me. Why? All because I wanted you to like me, to love me like a daughter but that day never came and now that I am no longer married to your son, you probably never will. 

I am still appalled that you hated me so much that you thought it was OK that your younger female friend took interest in your son, my husband. I am still taken aback that you thought it was OK that the two of them carried on with a love affair for five years and you not tell me until days before she moved into the home that your son and I built together. You really did hate me huh? I wasn't ever good enough for your son.

DID YOU KNOW

Did you know that your son never got you your birthday or your Christmas presents? That was me. I went to the store, picked out the perfect gift, brought it home, wrapped it, and shipped it off to you. All your son did was sign the card. It was the same procedure for Mother's Day. The 'All God's Children' figurines that sits in your credenza, yes that was me too. 

Did you know I chose you over my own family when it came down to the holidays. Yes, my sister couldn't understand why I always had to spend time with you and not my own family when we would drive down to Florida. Why? Because I just wanted you to accept me.

Did you know that your son's friends pulled me to the side to let me know that it was disrespectful for you to treat me the way that you did. I addressed the situation to your son but of course he came up with an excuse for you.

Did you know that when you would go out to spend time with your son, whether it be an evening stroll or a Sunday brunch, that I made the suggestion for him to take you out? He would have preferred to watch the game or sleep in. 

Did you know that while you were out with your son that I would clean your kitchen top to bottom because your refrigerator was growing mold? Yeah, this was around the time you were still recovering from your fall. You're welcome.

Did you know how much your words cut me to the bone when you said to my face that I "was the daughter-in-law from hell?" Do you remember that immediately after you insulted me that I asked if you wanted to get anything from the store because you've been confined to the house for weeks after moving to a town where you knew no one? That was the day you decided to buy The Secret. Is it working for you?

DO YOU KNOW

Do you know how much I think that you're a hypocrite when it comes to your religion? Do you really think it's Godly to have an affair with a married man for more than 25 years? How about the other married man, who turned out to be the father of your son. I guess it's true when they say that the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree. 

Do you know how much it sickens me to see you treat my daughter like she is a second class citizen but turn around and treat my son like he is the king? Where you surprised when I finally put my foot down and said "no more?"

WHY

Why are you so racist toward every race except yours? Why do you think that my Jamaican culture doesn't deserve the respect that your culture does? 

RELIEF

Now that I am divorced from your son, you say that I will always be part of your family, but that is my choice not yours. It feels good to be free from you and your slick, sassy, undermining comments. It felt especially good when I respectfully put you in your place when you tried to pass judgement on my friends and my new family. What a sigh of relief.

There's so much more to address but for now I am done. 

Have a good life,

Your Daughter-in-law from hell

*Never sent

Thanks Nine West

I have to admit, I thought the correspondence with Nine West over my tattered purse was over but boy was I wrong, and totally surprised.

(Nine West Refund Policy)

As I mentioned in earlier post, my intention was never to get a refund from the company because the refund policy on my receipt implied that I wouldn’t be able to get one. The only message I wanted to get across to Nine West was for the company to look into the quality of material it was using for the lining of their purse.

As a consumer, I find that customers give up on a brand because the quality changed for the worse.  As a loyal customer of nearly 15 years I couldn’t let this happen to Nine West. Their shoes are imperative to my eclectic style. What would I do if Nine West started to make crappy products? This is why I reached out to them in the first place, and then hounded them on Twitter so that they didn’t just ignore the e-mail I sent to them about the failing product. (see: Dear Nine West)

After a couple of letters and my refusal to mail the purse to the company’s quality assurance department on my dime, with the understanding that the company may or may not refund or replace the purse, or S&H, I thought it was best to just stick to the matter at hand. “I am not asking for a refund but I am asking that you reconsider the choice of material you use for your higher priced items like your purses.”

Thing is, the Universe works in mysterious ways…

The following is Nine West’s response to my last letter. (see: Taken Aback by Nine West)

Hello T.C.,

Thank you for contacting Nine West. I am in the quality control department of Nine West. Your email was forwarded to me and oddly I received the same color Austin purse in our office today with the same issue. 

We have not had any issues with the other 3 colors that we have so I'm hoping this is just a fluke. I know you are not asking for a refund but we would like to send you a reimbursement. This will be in the form of a Nine West gift card. 

You do not need to send the bag back to us. Please provide us with your mailing address and we will send the gift card to you. Please allow 2-3 weeks to receive this gift card. 

We appreciate you being a loyal customer!!

Now, isn’t that something? I immediately replied with my address and the following:

Thank you Nine West,

You are in fact the best.

You've really made my day!

I am happy to inform you that I have since received my gift card for the full price of what I paid for the purse, tax included. It came in the mail two days after I replied with my home address.

Nine West is truly the best brand for me.

Thanks Nine West!

Taken Aback by Nine West

Dear Nine West,

Thanks for your response. (see from Nine West) While I appreciate the effort Nine West is trying to make on figuring out if the purse I purchased is in fact a quality control issue, I must admit that I am a bit taken aback.

I do not want to purchase a box, and then go to the post office to stand in line, to ship off a damaged purse, and then wait three weeks for a decision in hopes that I get a gift certificate. The part that infuriates me is that the shipping is non-refundable.

Are there no other options?

I sent Nine West customer service pictures of the damaged purse along with the receipt, which shows that I purchased the purse on March 11, 2014 from store 7457 in New York City. (I've attached those photos again.)

Nine West, thank you for your offer in trying to resolve the damaged goods issue but as I previously mentioned a non-refundable shipping and handling disclosure is not something that I wish to agree to.

I figured getting a refund of any sort would be an inconvenient hassle that is why I stated in my initial email that I am not asking for one. “Now,I am not asking for a refund but I am asking that you reconsider the choice ofmaterial you use for your higher priced items like your purses.” 

Still a loyal customer of Nine West,

T.C.

*Not expecting another reply...case closed. *Update: 6.30.2014 - I was wrong. See: Thanks Nine West

From Nine West

Thank you for reaching out to Nine West. (see Dear Nine West)

We apologize for the dissatisfaction as well as any inconvenience you may have experienced with our product. We intend on always meeting your expectations and would like to make this an even better shopping experience for you. Please note the following so we can assist in rectifying your situation.

The merchandise should be within one year of purchase.

Upon receipt of your product, our Quality Control team will review the product and determine if there are any structural or quality problems with the product.

Reimbursement for the product will be in the form of a Nine West gift card only

The value of reimbursement will be determined by the receipt (if provided) or the last known value (if no receipt provided)

If the merchandise does not qualify for reimbursement, we will discard it unless you request otherwise.

*Please allow 3-4 weeks for us to properly view your return and make a determination.

We do not reimburse for shipping

Instructions for sending product to Quality Control for review:

• Kindly note that shoes must be wiped down and cleaned prior to sending

• Place product, including completed form (below), in box

• Wrap or tape carton securely.

• Please use a traceable method for delivery. In the event your package is lost during transit, we will be able to assist you with the tracking of your package.

**** Please note that reimbursement will be made in the form of a gift card only, no exceptions will be made for a check or refund back to credit card. Gift cards are not redeemable for cash.

Please fill out below form and send along with your return to the below address:

Nine West

C/O Quality Control

1129 Westchester Avenue

White Plains, NY 10604

Customer Name: __________________________________________________

Customer Address: _________________________________________________

City ______________________________________ State _______________________ Zip ______________

Home phone # _____________________________ Work phone _____________________________________

Email Address _____________________________________

Date of purchase ________________________________  Purchase Price __________________

Item brand ____________________________ Size of item ___________Color of item _____________________

Place of purchase ________________________________

Address __________________________________________________________

City ___________________________ State ___________ Zip ____________

Nature of Complaint _________________________________________________________________________

Again, our sincere apologies for any inconvenience we have caused.

Sincerely,

Nine West Customer Service Team

*My response: Taken Aback by Nine West

Dear Nine West

Rattled Purse

(Rattled Purse)

I have been a loyal shopper of your brand for the last 15 years. Almost, every other pair of shoes I own are from Nine West. You have the most comfortable and stylish footwear for my eclectic fashion sense.

In March, I purchased a purse from one of your stores in New York City. After two weeks the purse started to fall apart. I was going to ask for a refund but your return policy stated that I couldn’t.

It’s a lovely purse on the outside, but the inside is falling apart at the seams. (Photos attached) 

($100 Purse)

I’ve tried to piece it back together by sewing it but I later realized that the material that the interior is made of is fragile, too fragile for anything of considerable weight that the average woman would carry around.

The purse was $99 plus tax. This is more than what I would usually pay for a purse from Nine West but it was a birthday treat to me. 

Now, I am not asking for a refund but I am asking that you reconsider the choice of material you use for your higher priced items like your purses.

Sincerely,

Your loyal customer.

*Emailed to company: 9W Response (see From Nine West)

The Perfect Fit

May 28. 2014 3:58 p.m.

Dear Former Editor-in-chief,

“You don't fit with the team. You're like a square peg trying to fit into a tight circle.”

This is what you said to me shortly after I stepped into my new role at your old publication. What you don’t know is that my feelings were shattered because I thought you were right. I thought, ‘What am I doing here? I don’t belong here. I’m so different from the rest of the team.’

Fortunately a co-worker came to my rescue and changed the mood of the pity party I was having for myself. “Maybe he was trying to say that the team is weird and they don’t fit to your personality.”

I felt a little better but every now and again your voice would linger in the back of my mind. “You don’t fit.” Even with my self-doubts I managed to stay true to my personality. I like my sassy ways. I like my vibrant persona. I like that I am not afraid to respectfully speak up when I see something that isn’t quite right.

I can continue to take this as an insult or I can take it as a compliment. You see, I'm not the weird one, the people in that circle are.

Several months later I came across a quote via Twitter by ‏@Tough_Women:
“Why are you trying so hard to fit in when you were born to stand out?”

Point taken.

The only reason why I am still here is because I haven’t found the perfect place to shine. But then I realized that the perfect place for me is right here within my spirit.

Sincerely,

T.C.

*Never sent

Refund in Waiting

March 20. 2014

Refund Department

Greyhound Lines, Inc.

P.O. Box 660691, MS 470

Dallas, TX 75266-0691

To Whom it May Concern:

This is my request for a refund on the tickets enclosed. The tickets had the incorrect passenger name on the tickets, which couldn’t be used.

I have a few suggestions for your online process and customer service. 

• Have at least a 2 hour cancellation option if the tickets are purchased online.

• Upgrade your website so that refund requests can be made through the site instead of through the United States Postal Service. Most longstanding travel corporations that are online have this options.

• As an alternative, consider updating your system so that the travel documents, which has the barcodes, can show CANCELLED once scanned if a disloyal person tries to use the ticket after canceling through the website.

• You may also consider giving customers the option to go to the Greyhound ticket counter, in person, in order to receive their refund immediately. 

• Have an alert that reads: “If you are purchasing this ticket for someone other than your self there will be an additional $18 charge.” This is not seen until you get to a certain step further in the ticket purchasing process. This should be noted every where on the site, especially in STEP ONE from the time the buyer starts to search for tickets.

• It would also be nice to explain why the company is charging $18.

• Have an alert that reads: “Name on the tickets must match I.D. You will not be able to board the bus under any conditions.” Again, this needs to be mentioned throughout the site

• In this age of technology I am 100 percent sure that Greyhound Lines Inc. can make a better effort to help customers.

• Please train your supervisors to be nicer and more patient with paying and non paying customers, especially if they were on hold for 45 minutes and then being told nothing can be done to help them. It’s a shame that your employees are not able to change a name in the system; cancel a ticket and send a new e-mail with a new confirmation code. A 20% fee for refundable tickets purchased online is ridiculous, especially if the customer immediately caught the mistake right after the ticket was purchased.  

Thanks for your time and your services and I look forward to your upgrades on your website.

*Letter sent...still waiting on refund