I have endeavored to keep from whinging about customers. It gets old fast, I know. But this has been building up for a while - hopefully by posting this late I'll miss most of the friend's list.
Basically: Customers, you suck, and you are NOT always right.
Problem the first: You come to the lining section looking for "the cheapest fabric" I have. You tell me this flat out and I am happy to oblige by looking for and pulling out the bolts tagged $1.50. This being the case, YOU DON'T GET TO COMPLAIN ABOUT YOUR LACK OF CHOICE. No, I don't have every color of the rainbow. No, I don't have different weights. You're in lining. Lining is thin. Unless it's a sunback, which is generally used in warm coats and in which case you're going to be paying $12 a yard.
Problem the second: You complain about the lack of colors, textures, patterns, weights, yardage. Well, too bad. It's not my problem if I don't have a black to match your damned dress perfectly. It's not my fault you don't like it being sheer. When I tell you I don't have different weights or a secret, hidden second shelf of patterned lining four times you should stop asking. My answer will not change. You may have heard of this thing called 'stock'. Stock is what I have on the shelves at any given point, and stock is what I can't change without about a week's worth of time and confirmation from the warehouse that there is stock available to change to. Mood buys its fabric bolts as castoffs and end-ofs from a variety of different places. Especially in the case of lining, the inventory is random and not something we can reorder, or even get some in a different color, just because you want it.
Problem the third: You complain about prices and ask for discounts. Um, fuck you. Solid lining fabric ranges from $1.50 a yard to $8 a yard and the polyester is from $5 to $7. Prints, yes, can hit $14 a yard, but these are usually designer prints. These prices are marked. This is not JoAnn's. Mood policy is that when buying upwards of 20 yards we will take $2 off the price of a yard - and then only with owner approval. Do not bring me your $2 fabric and try to haggle the price down to $1 a yard. The reason that fabric is $2 a yard is because of that stain, not in spite of it. If you want a good quality fabric that doesn't tear funny, fray like the devil, get runs, or fall apart after one washing, you're going to see it reflected in the price. If you want a discount so badly, you can haggle with the owners. (Caveat: I do feel sorry that I can't offer students a student discount, but that is not my call to make.)
I am under no obligation to treat you like you are the prince or princess of America. I try to be polite. I will continue to try and be polite until you have your fabric and are out of my sight. For the most part I will succeed. But JESUS your sense of entitlement pisses me off.
And now that's done with. We move on to the Monthly Post.
Halloween... sort of came and went. With apocalypse-indicating snow, sure, but between two jobs I think I was too tired to enjoy my Saturday party and God knows working through Monday assured that all I did on the 31st was retire to my room with tea and my computer. I didn't have much of a costume for anything, either, which only made me feel even more that it wasn't really Halloween.
I did go to the Steampunk Haunted House and that was amazing. Alice in Wonderland themed, it featured every character except the Cheshire Cat (the only thing missing from the experience, really), very careful and detailed decorating, and an interactive adventure (in the sense that there were special rooms that your friend might go into that you were directed away from, and two main paths to be split up on) it was very theatrical. There were ups and downs and complete darkness and LOTS AND LOTS of creepy giggling and children with wide eyes staring at you intently. The sound effects and music were amazing. Everything added up to make sure that you went through the house with a constant sense of anticipation and suspense knotting your stomach - way more thrilling than having a monster pop out at you with a canned cackle. I wanted to keep going through it so I could see the rest of the paths and special rooms, but that would have gotten way too expensive way too quickly. orz