Hi Everyone
This week freebies are in the news. This happens sometimes in your working life when you get something for nothing from a customer, which could sometimes be called a bribe, to encourage you to give that customer your preference when placing orders. Now the Main Contractor and I worked for the Senior Partner free of charge every Friday evening but we still had to pay full price for our fruit and vegetables Not only did the Senior Partner not do freebies but she would also change the contents of our order for slightly inferior goods. In my working life, I do remember getting gifts from two companies on two occasions. On the first occasion, I was given two seats courtesy of a local machine hire company for myself and my son at Manchester United where we watched one of the most boring games I have ever seen. The bonus however was that before the game we had a beef burger and a drink in a local pub! The second occasion was also at the home of Manchester United when I was invited by a Manchester timber company to watch a Cup Final reply, this time in a comfortable box with a three course meal provided. I mention all this Rubbish as Kier Starmer our new Prime Minister and his wife have received something like £14,000 worth of clothes from a Labour Party donor. After all the criticism it received Kier announced that he, his deputy and the Chancellor would no longer accept clothes as gifts. Very good, but surely he should not have accepted them in the first place and what about the hundreds of other gifts they could be offered?
It seems sad that Arthur, you know, the Avanti rail complaints man, has probably now gone out of my life. After spending the weekend recovering, he promptly came back to me on Monday with an offer of four half-price tickets for our next trip on his trains. It's not quite the £1million compensation I was expecting, but I conceded that the offer, when added to the repayment of the extra ticket we did not need to buy, was fair. Now I am hoping to be able to launch another complaint against Avanti so that I can renew my friendship with Arthur. Failing that perhaps an Ecard at Christmas would be nice. On a serious note, he dealt with my complaint promptly and with respect, something that many companies in this country somehow find difficult.
This week I went on an educational day out with 50 primary age children, something I have done many times before. This time we went to the local wildlife trust centre. This year was different to the others in that I learned, like the children, many new things. I learned two words about rivers that I did not know existed together with new species that live in our rivers and lakes. Most importantly, however, I learned that I used to be able to sit cross legged on the floor, that I used to be able to walk and run a lot faster than I do now and that the singing on the bus on the way home has moved on from Vera Lynn to Taylor Swift.
Just a Thought :
Contrary to popular belief, no one owes you anything.
If nothing was learned, nothing was taught.
I can't even count how many times I failed my maths exam at school.
Brian
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