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Random Ramblings

 

Monday, May 28, 2007

Oh, Tis Is Heaven

This is for my dear cousin. Excuse the grainy image, I didn’t have my camera with me.

Who says there isn’t a tub of Dublin Mudslide!!

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Friday, May 18, 2007

Service Standards, Or The Lack Of

I have always been the sort of person, who would try everything once. It has paid off handsomely, mostly.

But at times like this, I wish I wasn’t so adventurous.

BZ and I decided to catch up over dinner mainly because she was dying to see my new spanking hair. I had to go down to Vivo to run some errands and I wanted to see water… Yes, water; I know am lacking at least a couple of screws. So off to Vivo I went. While walking around trying to find some place to tantalised our tastes buds, BZ saw The Mussel Guys; which is where our problems start. The menu looked inviting so we were trying to get the attention of a server. But while we were standing at the door, a couple was there and looking at the menu a staff had given to them and the said staff was just standing there looking at the couple. We obviously had decided and wanted a table, but he did not really seem to notice us. When we finally managed to get someone’s attention and asked if we could sit outside, he just looked at us and said “I’m not sure if there are seats outside” and made no attempt to do anything after his statement.

Yes, I know it was definitely a warning bell, but my friend was nicer than me and said so absolutely sweetly “Can you please help us check?” I wanted the seafood pasta that was on the menu, tho I didn’t want it in a tomato based sauce so I asked if it could be switched, with no malice whatsoever. I was willing to take something else if they couldn’t do it. But because of the server, I was almost insistent on getting it. I just couldn’t believe that the server said the following line – “I can put in the request, but I can’t guarantee that it will be cream when it comes out.” I was just dumbfounded. How do you say something like that to customers?!?

In the end, I waited forever for my pasta to come out – and my friend was almost done with hers. When she had a few bites left off her dish, mine came out but it was in a tomato sauce, so I had to send it back. Even while waiting, both of us had already guessed that my pasta would come out wrong. The best part, the cream sauce tasted like they just poured the cream over and added A LOT white wine. It was really horrid. I would have gotten better pasta at Pasta Mania at half the price.

My wonderful friend suddenly had a sweet tooth, so we had issues trying to get a server’s attention to bring us the dessert menu, to take our order, to bring us water. So finally, we were just sitting there awaiting for wonderful brownie with ice cream to arrive. We waited, and waited, and waited a while more. Then we got fed up and questioned a server on our long awaited dessert. He went in and about five minutes later, our brownie was brought out; WITHOUT the ice cream! We were so irritated! I was just so frustrated already, over all the issues before, and it was just getting worse. The server was in some world of his own I think, coz when we said that it was supposed to be a brownie with ice cream, he looked at us blankly! Did he not study his menu! He went in, and came out with a small bowl of ice cream and just handed it to us. What kind of service standard is this?

But all the preceding issues, would pale in comparison to the last problem. As we were eating our brownie with ice cream, suddenly BZ stopped eating and just stared at it. I followed her gaze and she scooped out a strand of hair from the ice cream! The two of us just stared at it in disbelieve and disgust. When we finally managed to get hold of a server, he was just staring at us not sure what he should do. We had to tell him to take it away and that we wanted the bill without the charge of the dessert. We wanted to see if the management would have the initiative to deal with the entire situation. Unfortunately, they didn’t. All they did was to remove the dessert from our bill.

This is probably the worst experience I ever had. At times like this, I worried for the state of our service standards. Coming from the service industry previously, I would have been completely embarrassed to have even provided a service where by I could not even answer my customer’s question, let alone the long, long list of wrong steps that The Mussel Guys made. To add injury to the insult, they chose to do nothing about it. That is seriously bad PR and customer service, compounding of the mistakes with more mistakes. At times like this, I cannot bring myself to defend the industry I feel so passionately about. Tho this is an exception to the rule, it really hits me deep since I had always strived to give my customers the best my restaurant could offer.

From the time I had left their restaurant, I had text nearly my entire list of phone contacts to ensure that they don’t have to go through the same horrendous experience I did.

I am sure that there were definitely more than 20 people that had received my text message, within ten minutes of my leaving the restaurant.

As they always say,
“Give great service, the customer will tell five people.
Give poor service, the customer will tell fifteen.”

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Monday, May 14, 2007

Unusual People

While waiting for my transport home, I let my mind wander – not always a good idea, but it seem like a good idea this time. For some reason, it chose to venture into the realm of my mentors.

They are as different as night and day, yet to me they fulfilled a similar role – albeit two extremes of that role.

The first I was extremely apprehensive when I had to first meet her. From the stories I had heard about her, I was utterly uneasy and was hoping to make a good impression that day. Over the years, we have had a strange relationship. People on the outside might think we are insane, but it’s a just our style of communicating and the way we are together. I’ve grown so much under her tutelage – not just on the work front, but personally as well. In her own special way she has always shown concern onto me and I never imagined someone would care so much about me. So much so, I am unable to just brush her words or actions aside. Even at times, when I don’t say anything, she just seems to understand and be concerned enough to take time out of her busy schedule just for me. In my life, she has become one of the most important people to me.

The second, I actually have known longer than the first, but the first being such a strong character, the rest of us seems to pale in comparison. With her constant listening ear and always there to help me whenever I am in trouble, she is normally the first person I run to for sound advice. Everlastingly patience, she will slowly explain everything, so that I am able to grasp the entire situation. She is always there when I need her and tends to help me keep my feet grounded through all my craziness.

For two people who have never been mothers, it is quite amazing that they have shown me that a mother should really be. For a long time, I was at a lost to what “mum” really meant. But with them in my life, I see it a lot better and I no longer search for the answer as I have found it in the two of them. So this Mother’s Day, this is my tribute to them. Tho they will never read this, nor will I ever call them “mum”, in their own special ways, they have found a place in my heart that can never be removed, for they have shown me what it really means to worry and be concerned about someone.

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Saturday, May 12, 2007

The Strength Of Spirit

I just recently watched a show, which tugged terribly hard at the strings of my heart. As I watched the plot unfold, my thoughts wandered to my own experiences. With those thoughts swimming in my head, it is no wonder I now am in a melancholic state of mind. When seeing on television situations very similar to an experience that you have personally experienced, it becomes a whole new ball game. You stop just seeing it as purely entertainment, but also see some of yourself in it.

One of the worst things to experience is that you love someone but yet the two of you are unable to be together, not due to your choice but because of the choices of the people around you or just the unfortunate circumstances that Life throws at us. Even unrequited love doesn’t hurt as much as inability to be together.

The parties end up pinning for each other; be it if they are so near each other but do not know that pertinent nugget of information, or even if they were miles apart. If you happen to be the outsider looking at one of them, you cannot help but feel the sorrow as they try and put on a happy face and smile. Just as you do not see them wipe away the tears and hide the grief so that no one really knows what they are going through.

The strength of the human spirit will probably never cease to amaze me; how it can one walk away from the things that matter so much, especially when the person knows how much pain it will cause or the amount of regret that will plague one. Things like this leaves the mind in turmoil and the spirit spent and tired.

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Thursday, May 10, 2007

Mane Issues

I have had my new hair for almost two week now. Besides a slight hitch, it is been fairly smooth sailing.

I am actually quite pleased with it, even tho I have always been more prone to long hair. I finally have a fringe! I even managed to describe it to my hairdresser and she got it almost identical to the photo I saw. The back of my hair is a bit shorter than I wanted it to be, but I can live with it.

So far the responses have been extremely positive (No laughing guys) – from modern, “finally, you changed your style”, makes me look younger, sexier, more playful. The comments are amazing guys! Maybe shorter hair is better or not. I got pseudo-ly hit on two hours after my new hair cut. Unbelievable!

This morning’s comment from my boss takes the cake: “I was wondering who that modelesque person who looked like she just stepped out of Vogue magazine was.” I think it would have been the highest compliant to any fashionista, so unfortunately, it was very lost on me.

So far I have managed to carry off the following looks:

  • Mysterious/alluring (do not laugh)
  • Sexy
  • Sporty
  • Girly
  • Shu Nu (You can stop laughing now!)
  • Korean babe (my new found fetish is Korean dramas, I have no idea why)

Whether I manage to maintain this is yet to be seen. My new fringe irritates me every so often. I know it would normally take some getting used too, but it tickles my eyes and forehead; which is why I did not have a fringe for years.

It would definitely be an interesting experience and a huge test of my patience and temper. Life lesson from a hair cut, not a bad deal I must say.

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Sunday, May 06, 2007

Progress?

The week has been a trying one, wrought with issues. I was not sure if I am sitting or standing.

The mental and emotion turmoil has taken its toll. So much so that I looked to a friend to find some comfort in and I said many things that I would not have mentioned on other occasions. I guess it happens when my defenses are down. There is no regret this time, as compared to another time. In some ways I felt relived; in some sense it was part of the process of life one has to go through, like some weight was lifted off me. Tho I didn’t figure out a solution the problem that had been bugging me all week, it was an amazing night nonetheless. Thanks babe.

I slept the day away, probably because I was just too tired from the week. That negated the whole issue that was in some sense plaguing me I guess. I’m not exactly sure now if I am comfortable with the outcome. Maybe everyone was right – it is too soon to make a move. I am never a subscriber to the adage “Time heals all wounds”, this was no exception. The only exception this time was the person doing the asking. That made all the difference for the consideration process; which there was actually one this time.

From a different point of view, that might also be considered progress. Just because it doesn’t pan out the way one expects, it cannot just be written off as a failure. Every experience there is a lesson to be learnt and one day, there will be success.

And with that thought, I am a little comforted.

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