Shopping for Heart Surgeons

Not all heart doctors are created equal...and I hate to say it...but I'll never really know what one is "better" except to say that the one who does a better job selling is the one who will get to crack open my husband's chest!

This all started about a month ago when "Little Bob" started to really complain about shortness of breathe and tiredness. I told him he's getting old but he wasn't buying that. After a very long 18 years together I got to experience going to a doctor with Warren. Once is enough, Thank you!

Our first stop was Dr. A (names will be withheld...we do live in a small town). Dr. A was "nice" but the wait to see him was much longer than one would expect. Am I wrong to think that of all doctors, heart ones should hold tight to a schedule? Do you really want a stressed out patient? Dr. A looked at my 70 year old husband, put him on every prescription out there and confirmed he had heart desease. He sent us to see Dr. B, the surgeon of his choice.

Dr. B again, a nice enough person but unfortunately he too had a few strikes against him. One, the hospital he works for is horrible. I happen to have my 14 year old boy with me when Warren was going in for a simple procedure and "Mr. Security" walks up and ask how old Ben is. We politely tell, this unpolite person, he is 14. To which, Mr. Security says "you have to leave". I asked where did he think a 14 year old would be going on a cold day with no parents? To which, Mr. Security said "I don't care, he either leaves now or I'm calling security" (I thought he was security??). MR. SECURITY comes over (the real one this time--I think) and rehashes the whole conversation and agrees that Mr. Security needs to take a chill pill and allows Ben to enter (or rather stay in) the hospital but he needs to where a germ mask. This did provide a good laugh:)

Back to Dr. B...should doctors be made to go thru some sort of selling class? How to promote your skills and build confidence in your patients? Dr. B is telling us all about his great facility and glazes over the rude security. He moves onto himself and was doing a great job telling us all about his stats (they were excellent...or so I thought...I was still a bit green on this heart stuff). When he gets all done he says "Not that I'm any better than other surgeon, I just get lucky" Said in a matter of fact, not a joking, tone. One would expect that statement to be followed with a light laugh in an attempt to relax the poor guy you are about to split in two...but it wasn't! Well, if this guy isn't better...I want the best...luck is not always in my favor! Time for a second opinion...we find Dr. C.

Dr. C...addresses me by "Mrs. Tyler" from the very first phone call. Nice! Points on that! We show up and again...hello Mr. and Mrs. Tyler, didn't even tell them who we were yet! More points. Waiting room is gorgeous, nice colors...teal and brown with a beautiful leaf pattern. We sit down, we are about 15 minutes early, and before we can get into a conversation they are calling him in. Nurse is great...and jokes around. Asks the normal stuff, more joking. We are five minutes ahead of schedule here. Nurse leaves and says Dr. will be in a few minutes. Believe it or not...at exactly 3pm the doctor comes in...can you believe a doctor that works on a schedule? To good to be true! He boast in a nice way that he is the best...thank God for that...I really need the best!

I'll never know how the first doctors would have done and honestly I don't want to test the waters. Doctor C might not be the best but he has confidence and to me that is the most important element of making your patients feel good. I can't say I'm eagerly looking forward to the next week but Doctor C has certainly helped me relax!

Sincerely, Mr. So and So

So, I had this customer...well a couple...and they really, really seemed to like me. I really liked them. They've been in the store a few times and I've tried to "educate" them as much as possible without falling into the "I'm so smart and know it all....blah, blah, blah...thing". I thought I did everything right.

1. Made friends with them
2. Listen to their concerns and what they really wanted
3. Changed them from hardwood (lots of money) to a better flooring (saved them all the way around)
4. Didn't sell them the most expensive floor as a deep discount to "get the sale"
5. Stayed in constant contact and responded immediately to all their questions (love me Blackberry)
6. Measured at their convenience, on a Sunday, after a major snowstorm (roads were horrible) and it was Super Bowl Sunday
7. Stayed there, gave a solid quote
8. Went over seam placement, stair installation, waste

They stopped in several times during the next few days to check what they liked. Everything they said led me to believe they were certainly ready to move forward. They even went so far as to let me know what day they'd be in to "sign the contract".

Then "the day" came and went. No customers. No call. No email. What happen? Should I call? Will that seem pushy? Waited a few more days...still nothing. Finally on Friday,a whole week later, I decided to call. No answer, left a message. Waited, Monday I called and left a message again, still nothing. Wow! What happen?

The doubting starts. I crunched the numbers three different times in the last few days. Should I call and offer a discount? I simply can't! I offered them the best price we had...another discount would mean giving the carpet away. Besides...I'll look like a fool. Mr. and Mrs. So and So...Yes, after not hearing from you in over a week I found a way to get you the same flooring for cheaper! Yeah, totally...and if you wait me out another week I can actually give it to you for free! What to do? I can't afford to have anyone not happy. Did they find the same flooring elsewhere cheaper? Nope, checked that out...the blue and orange vested guys are over the top after you add in all their nickle and dime "stuff". Did I do something to upset them? They were in here one day and I was out on a different measure...could that have upset them? They didn't tell me they were coming in...could they hold this against me? I have a lot on my plate right now...did I complain about my personal life or make it sound like I was to busy to make them my priority? OMG! What did I do wrong??? I have to know!

I did the one thing I said I'd never do...I reached out to them a third time. This was suicide...but I had to know. An email had the chance to bring me my answer. Wish them well and ask "what went wrong?" Maybe they would tell me and I could apologize and ask to be considered for their next project. Maybe it was a price thing? Maybe it was a friend who found them a better deal? Maybe they were offended that I wasn't here when they needed me? Maybe I was pushy? I don't know...but I was hoping to find out.

Finally, twelve long hours later....

Dear Tara,

Life is crazy...broken car, birthday party, sick relative...really want the carpet but holding right now. Send us such and such, we know we missed the great sale....

Sincerely,
Mr. So and So....

The "Sincerely" sealed the deal! They did like me! Big Bob Herself did do everything right! And third time was a charm! They were out of town, didn't get my voice messages (duh, every time I've "talked" to them, it was email). Now, I've not "signed the contract" but I'm pretty confident that my customer is happy and will do business with me.

What I did learn was to be better at follow up! If you have a good feeling about someone and they don't get back to you when they say they will. Don't take it personally. Life happens! Keep them in the loop of all "new" things going on and if you've made friends with them...as I originally thought I did...treat them like friends!

Carpet Scams or Just Stupid??

Let's be honest, if you were sitting at a bar and some creep walked up and invited you to have a drink...would you? NO! What if he tried to convince you he was a nice guy...would you believe him? NO! What if he attempted to "sell" you on becoming a client of his 'business", would you? NO! Even if the guy said he had a million dollars to "invest" in your gorgeous face and would be able to put you on the front of every household magazine...you wouldn't "buy" it. However, a young naive person might "buy" it...and in the end others would say "Oh, honey, you were scammed!" No, honestly, you weren't "scammed" you were "stupid".

Same goes for carpet, you can't be scammed because you are NOT stupid! You are a very smart and intelligent person who has enough common sense to know a lot of basic "stuff" without ever having to invest in a PH.D of flooring!

Common sense "stuff" you know about carpet:

1. put your fingers in/on it....does it feel like garbage...IT IS!
2. is it white? It's gonna stain!
3. is it soft? It can't be strong!
4. if the padding is paper thin, what good is it?
5. does it already look like an un-groomed poodle? It's going to look worse on your floor!
6. sunlight washes out color, don't take the sample outside or to a window to get a better idea
7. nothing, no matter what, is going to let your kids spill koolaid on it and not stain...get rid of "red" food/drinks
8. replace your padding, unless you"re a landlord
9. if you don't LOVE the sample, you won't LOVE the floor...no matter what!
10. thicker, more expensive doesn't mean BETTER...

Common sense "stuff" you know about carpet salesman:

1. If they are wearing an orange or blue vest, selling hammers...they don't know carpet...run!
2. If they remind you of the guy at the bar that you completely blew off last night, run!
3. If all they talk about is warranties, guarantees, stainmaster, traffic master...run!
4. If they have to continually touch you, or invade your space...run!
5. If you wouldn't invite them back to your house for tea and crumpets...run!
6. If you need a measure but would feel "safer" waiting for your honey to get home...run!
7. If you find yourself thinking about last nights dinner, tomorrow football game and can't hear what your salesman is saying...run!
8. If they say more than once "trust me"...run!
9. If you get annoyed, antsy or frustrated...run!
10. If you feel like you are talking to a salesman and not your friend...run!

Are there scams in the carpet industry? Absolutely! Can you avoid these scams 90% of the time? Absolutely! How? By using your common sense! If you don't love the flooring and/or trust the seller, you can't say you were scammed...you were just stupid! If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck...it's a duck! No matter what, even if the salesman says..."ah, but this is not an ordinary duck...it won't leave droppings all over your house"...PEOPLE! It's still a duck! Common sense says...you can't promise me it won't leave droppings, so find someone who will say "ah, but this is not an ordinary duck, it WILL leave droppings BUT with the proper care and knowledge we can help you avoid the duck ruining all your property". NOW you are using your common sense! Yes, the duck will make dropping but you are aware of this and how to care for the mess!

Not all carpet is created equal. If you put your "duck" in the bathroom or over your vinyl flooring, he won't run your flooring. You can still have a duck...you just have to know where to keep him. Same for carpet! You CAN have soft carpet, it CAN be stain resistant but it might not be good for the whole house. I have a gorgeous lilac plush in my bedroom, I love getting up in the morning and sinking my toes into the lush, soft carpet....but I can't wear shoes in my room, my children don't eat in my room and we have no outside doors leading into my room. My bedroom carpet is perfect for my bedroom, not for a living room.

Now, don't get confused...Big Bob Herself knows NOTHING about ducks...but if you want help with carpet...drop me a line!

Yes! I know about flooring...

Where's Big Bob? Right here...sitting behind the desk...looking like an underpaid secretary and not like the owner. I know, laugh now...I'm a women! And yes, I'm ready for the next question...do I actually know anything about flooring??

Yes! I know about flooring...here's what I know:

1. it's something we walk on
2. it requires work to keep it clean
3. if it's hard, I need a broom and mop
4. if it's soft, I need a vacuum cleaner
5. never steam clean soft surface
6. never clean any flooring with anything you wouldn't put on your face
7. hard is more expensive (most of the time)
8. if it's hard, Americans make it better
9. it comes in way to many colors and is often overwhelming to pick
10. soft feels good in bedrooms
11. laminate and/or wood in kitchens/baths is dumb (under most circumstances)
12. berber "wears" longer but isn't yum, yum on the bare feet
13. plush is more fun for kids to sit on
14. hardwood is gorgeous in big grand rooms
15. fiberglass is a quick fix for ugly situations, on a tight budget
16. renters usually don't love the house, like you...buy cheap, prepare to replace often
17. kids, even mine, are careless and crazy...why not down grade their space and upgrade yours
18. once a dog or cat "marks" (you can call it an accident) they will always "mark", when changing your floors, kilz the sub floor...don't think "puppy pad" will do the trick
19. dark colors hide the stains but show every piece of lint
20. light colors (white is not a color) hide the lint and daily grim
21. large tiles in small areas make small areas look even smaller (as do dark colors)
22. diagonals draw your eyes out and make any small area look bigger
23. most women, no matter what they say...hate their flooring 5 years out and want new
24. most men could live on bare floors and be happy
25. most men would take from the "free" pile to just get something, women...NOT!

Wow! I make it sound so simple...like nylon, polyester, twist, fiber count, density, make, model, thickness, "mils", "gauge", warranties, guarantees, scotchgard, stainmaster, rebond, urethane and all the other big words attached to flooring doesn't matter. Well, to be honest...it really doesn't!

Do the colors match? Do your toes feel good when walking on it? Will the kids/animals be able to destroy it? Will looking at that pattern --day in/day out -- drive you crazy two months down the road? What does the BFF think about it? What does the love of your life think? Can you see yourself loving this flooring for years down the road? Do you like to change your flooring every five years or are you looking for a long term commitment? What does your neighbor have and what do they like/dislike about it? What have you been living on...what do you hate about it? Why are you changing your flooring?

It sounds like a lot of questions and most have nothing to do with the make/model of the flooring. Let's get together, talk about what you love and what you see on your floor's future. You worry about what you want and I'll worry about whether it will work!

Mountains of Snow and Fiberglass Flooring

When we moved from the far northeast kingdom of Vermont I figured my days of snow and cold were long gone. I really hate snow...what good does it serve? Alright, my kids love to go sledding and might enjoy skiing if we lived in a snowy place but since we don't, they have no idea what they are missing. Now, this past weekend when we had several inches dumped on our beautiful property, the parents (and the ones who stop stupid ideas before they take effect) were out of town at a convention....in sunny and warm Las Vegas. My children, whom will remain nameless but were of the male gender, decided to build a mountain for their baby sisters to enjoy a bit of sledding. FYI...I doubt very much they built the mountain for the babies but we'll let them believe we believe them. This "mountain" was build on my back porch, centered within inches of the back door, which might not be a major issue if the porch had been built by a real man...but instead was built by an uneducated, much unloved, never will hire him again neighbor--who, upon us first moving here, convinced us he was a great contractor and my mother-in-law (RIP) loved to pieces! The "mountain" was constructed with snow from all over the yard and took...so they say...ten hours to build. As the "mountain" reached within inches of the roof, one of those lovely contractors noticed a "weird looking board by the bricks, that he had never seen before". It was the smarter of the two, lucky us, because he quickly realized it was a board that shouldn't be showing, but was, because our porch was sinking...QUICKLY! To which they quickly got out cameras...must have pictures of the mountain, quickly got out videos recorders...must have video of us "skiing" down the mountain and slowly got the necessary equipment to take apart the much loved "mountain". Once the mountain was gone, they discovered that they had in fact sunk our porch four to six inches and the dilemma of how to tell the parents began.

Should we call? NO! Should we send a text? NO! Should we send them the cute video of us skiing? NO! Should we pretend it didn't happen?.....maybe.....more like a don't ask, don't tell type deal was struck. This tactic might have worked...if they were smarter! When asked "did you use the car yesterday?" correct answer "yes, but only to take the neighbor down the driveway" wrong answer "no...why" wrong answer "no, not yesterday" (they took the neighbor home day before yesterday). When asked "did you have friends over?" wrong answer "no...why?" wrong answer "yes but it was only neighbor boy" (it was neighbor boy and neighbors friend) All the wrong answers led to "I'm going to give you the next five minutes to lay everything out on the table and if you talk now, you will not be punished for anything....if after five minutes your baby sisters rat you out...you will die" I like the speak now or forever hold your peace...as you will be dead later tactic...it's always a winner!

Now, one boy is the smarter one because he noticed things, thinks them out and act quickly---he discovered the wayward board...the other boy is smarter when it comes to "speak now or die". He quickly came up with...now let me tell you a funny story about a mountain we created. He laid the whole story out and of course...I couldn't kill them because they spoke within five minute!

So, I wonder...I can't kill them for the sunken porch...but what about the soaking wet, stinky carpet from all the foot traffic at the doorway? How about being able to kill them for the mud and grim brought in from digging down to bare ground to build the snow "mountain"? Nope, can't kill them...but did make me realize I need to change the flooring at the back door! And being lucky enough to own a flooring store....I have the perfect idea!

In Vermont both the inside and outside is made for mountains and mountains of snow. No carpet at the doorways, mop near by, box outside the house to hold the wet stinky, sloppy socks and boots, porches were made of steel (or at least had mega re-inforced beams) to hold up all the snow...in Virginia not so lucky on any of these details. We are lucky enough to have fiberglass flooring. Water resistant, mildew resistant and will hold up in major traffic! It's not slippery and if the kiddies do loose their footing they won't get hurt (unlike ceramic which could mean a trip to the emergency room). It comes in all kinds of designs from wood grain to ceramic tile. It's really perfect for back doors that have 12' snow mountains built for sisters who want to sled:)

What you can expect...funny, crazy stories of being the only women Big Bob in the nation. Ideas on what to do and not to do with your flooring. How to make an ugly bathroom look fabulous without breaking the bank. The truth about laminate and kitchens! The ugly truth about kids/dogs and other flooring ruiners! How to decide between fiberglass and ceramic. When's the best time to change your flooring. How to take your husband shopping and get the flooring you truly want and make him feel like he's still the man. Basically, flooring from a women's point of view.

What I will avoid at all cost is boring big words that tell you nothing about how beautiful your home could be with new flooring. Actually, if I use big words...I probably don't even know what they mean...do beware! When we shop for a new car, we care about the color, cup holders, leather, radio, seating arrangements and maybe how fast it can go...we don't usually purchase a car because of the size of the engine or how far it can go on one tank of gas. The same goes for flooring...do we really care if it's poly or nylon? We only care if Fido or Sally can stain that bad boy with lipstick!

You'll also find cute stories about customers...although for the most part they will remain nameless...this is to help elevate the stress of shopping for flooring. Hopefully you'll be able to see that buying flooring is suppose to be fun and exciting and you really shouldn't have to monitor your blood pressure before coming to see me:)

Relax...enjoy...flooring is actually a lot of fun! Don't worry if you don't know the size of your room, we have ways to help you figure that out...you do know where your furniture is and how many kids can lay on the floor at one time and that's all we really need to give you a good ball park estimate! Don't stress about not knowing anything about how flooring is made...neither do I...but who cares! You don't know how your car is made but you still love it! Stop worrying about breaking the piggy bank...at Big Bob's you can't!

That being said...let the blogging begin...and if you have questions...let me know:)