Customer Service

If you want to see the best and worst of customer service, just move to a new town. We have been here in Asheville, NC, for almost a month now, and the degrees of customer service and/or the lack thereof have been amazing. The best surprise has been—believe it or not—the dump. Well, okay, dumps are not called dumps anymore, but rather landfills. Either way, they tend to be dirty, smelly, and not much fun. Asheville is different. You drive up to a window and tell this fellow what you want to dump. Landfill personnel are usually about as cheerful as a newly circumcised panther, but not this guy at Asheville. He greets you with a loud "How are you today," and I swear he sounds like he really cares. The lady who checks with you on the way out is just as friendly. Let’s hear it for the landfill in Asheville. The worst-case customer service has been provided by the Asheville Citizen-Times newspaper. It has been like a cruelty joke. I paid for a subscription on December 23. Today is January 3 and I haven’t gotten a single paper yet. During four telephone calls they have been as nice as Mother Teresa, but the next day cometh no paper. Today they promised to deliver a replacement paper. It didn’t get here. I’d cancel the subscription, but I want to see how it plays out. Second-best customer service has been from the people at the North Carolina Arboretum. Gail, I, and two large dogs have hiked on their trails every day this year (that’s just three days, but it sounds good) and the personnel are wonderful. Second worst case? The U.S. guvmint. Gail called a branch thereof and spent 45 minutes trying to change our address. Just listening was painful.  We'd love to post your comments. Please click the comment box at the top.