Thursday 16 December 2010

Next

Oh dear, my week just keeps rolling on, I had to post to let you all know of my latest misdemeanour. Some of you may remember many moons ago I kick my credit cards into touch, it was about May 2009 and I had letters telling me I would now have to pay 40% interest, at that point I said enough is enough and had a bit of a tussle with them but ended up with 0% interest and a shot credit record!! Fast forward to a month ago and I had a voucher from Next for £10 off if I spent £20 with free delivery code, great one hat and scarf set and a cupcake mug, done deal. If ever you have had the occasion to use the Next website its a bit of an internet minefield,  I just couldn't work out where to put the wretched delivery code and ended up with free delivery if you bought their catalogue (didn't want a catalogue), during proceedings I ended up on the confirm order page but as I was still trying to edit my delivery address (they don't deliver to a works address), my delivery code etc I didn't complete or pay, so I thought. An email then pinged into my in box saying thank you for your order !!!????? How, why and who was paying??? Going back to the Next account I discovered they had opened me an account with £150 credit limit..............what a surprise that was, I can tell you. All is hunky dory at this point, all I had to do was wait for Next to add the items to my account.............you wait and wait, you can't pay till you get a statement, you see. Oh well in the intervening time I then ordered a game, statement came through and yesterday I paid for the mug etc and planned to pay for the game next week. All is fine at this point, are you still following, it gets good!!!! While we were in Nottingham daughter saw a lovely cardi she liked so I thought I would be a lovely mummy and get her it as a surprise, order complete, email received. Then................................I just happened to notice credit limit ZERO............doh!!! whats going on 'ere then, a very confused middle aged woman looked at the screen in total confusion, never mind order went through, so it must be  glitch............................yeah right NOT!!!!
At lunch time I thought better ring them just to see what was happening and here is the conversation that ensued
I said........I hope you can help me I am a little confused, my available credit seems to have disappeared...
Next said.....I'll just check for you Madam.... (nice tone)......Yes your available balance has been withdrawn....
I said.......Why??? (very confused tone)
Next said......We regularly check our customers and have decided that on this occasion we would withdraw your facilities............(snotty tone)
I said..........Why??? (now feeling like an idiot)
Next said......We credit score our customers every month and OBVIOUSLY you have failed.......(very accusing tone)
I said.......So let get this right, last month I was ok and now I am not........(flabbergasted tone)
Next said.............Well something must have happened to your score, we check it every month, we are responsible lenders..........(clever tone) 
I said..............I can assure you that it hasn't ............(slightly peeved tone)........ So last month I had £150 to spend with you and now I have nothing.......(annoyed tone)
Next said...........Yes Madam......(you are being difficult tone)
I said............You call that being responsible, I could have spent upto my limit a week ago and you could have done nothing about it. I think it is me that is being responsible by NOT spending up to my limit, don't you (really angry tone now)
Next said..........Well there must be a reason why you have a low score MADAM...........Do you have an order pending........(there's that clever tone again)...................Ah yes you have we tried to ring you as soon as you placed the order and you did not answer................(really snotty)
I said..........I don't think so.........(indignant tone)
Next said..............Yes we rang you at 10am
I said.............So you didn't ring me at 7am when I placed the order then, didn't think you did .....(my turn for the clever tone)
Next said..........Well Madam can always wait till next month and she if her score improves, if you are not happy you can pay your balance and close the account.............(we don't want you tone)
At that point I finished my call and told them I would think about it. So I now feel like a bank robber and am contemplating packing my suitcase and heading for the Costa Del Sol!!!!
If its gonna happen, it will happen to me......................didn't want the flippin account in the first place!!!!




 

Tuesday 14 December 2010

Going with the flow

Gosh what a week and a bit, I have had, I can't begin to tell you. I know it may appear that I have a very chaotic, sometimes traumatic life but these past few days have seen me go from the depths of despair to complete euphoria and back crashing to earth again.
To explain the despair and euphoria would be very difficult................well lets just say blogs have ears and it would really cause havoc to explain, some of you are facebook friends and hopefully you will understand why it would be bad for me to go into details here. In my life I have met some very beautiful people and also some very evil ones, the latter I seem to attract in abundance..................why I will never know but I am an easy going person who just likes to be liked, maybe that is why people think they can do anything to me and I will just roll over and take their rubbish. I am normally an out going person, yet when I get hurt I shrink into myself and the melancholy me comes to the fore........................................so it was with great anticipation and delight that I headed off to Brighton for the British Bear Artist Awards. We had a bit of a car full with hubby, daughter and Chloe of Je Suis Lugly. Boy was it a great day out, at the new venue of Brighton Racecourse, hubby was on best behaviour, bless him. Well until the awards had finished and he said "come on lets go" !!!!!!!! ER NOOOOOO! what ensued then was a hissed domestic, I could have strangled him, everyone must have thought I was upset about not winning an award, so if you hear anyone say I was looking po-faced or angry........................it was directed at hubby NOT the lack of prize LOLOLOLOL Men!!!!!!
The bears were superb, how they managed to judge the awards I will never know, I have to say a huge congrats to Richard who won the newcomers award, to Marilyn for the Teddy Bear Times award, Sue Quinn and to our passenger Chloe for coming 3rd in her category.
It was so nice to meet artists with whom I have an internet friendship but have yet to meet up with and those that I know already, Marilyn (Barling Bears) is a darling, she is the nicest person you would wish to meet and she is every bit as sweet as her bears.I also met Dawn (The Old Post Office Bears) I have admired her bears since I first saw them on ebay and they do not disappoint in the fur, well done to her too for her awards, she said the most kindest think to me about my bears, it really lifted my spirits after such a shocking week. I was able to catch up with  Sue Quinn...............what a truly fabulous lady and oh I am so going to buy one of her bears ...........................oh oh and I want a Bisson Bear too. (sucks thumb whilst pouting)
The busyness didn't stop there as we had to travel to QMC at Nottingham the following day, gee was I tired last night, did a bit of retail shopping..............well I didn't (I am broke, again, spend my life being broke LOL) but daughter got a very nice handbag from River Island.................another one, she tells me that one can never have enough handbags, um thats me a fashion pariah then.
Finally I have listed my BBAA Nominee's on ebay, they deserve to be loved instead of sitting on my stuffy shelves, I know they weren't stars on the day but they are stars to me 
If you have a chance take a peak and a punt...............................................
Tallulah dragonfly
and Caledonia Brae



Beary hugs for now
Sue xx

Friday 3 December 2010

Community spirit, Ruby and Amethyst

Well its been a week, of snow, snow and more snow.....................now in the scheme of things, to be honest, we have not had the likes of Yorkshire or Scotland BUT we have had enough to halt proceedings. I am sure as you get older you become more aware of the dangers and more scared of what will happen. Twice I have had to drive in extreme snow, not just a few inches but serious getting stuck stuff, I would not have done this except for getting to my daughter, to make sure she was safe, was my priority.
I was watching the news the other night and was struck by the fact there are still a good community spirit out there. Years ago we lived in a tiny hamlet and I have to say our neighbours were great, we all got snowed in badly one Christmas and the two local farmer took turns in their tractors fetching supplies, my husband worked for one of them and they would go and get a shopping list from every house, regardless of who they were or how grumpy they had been in the year over mud on the road etc....................anyway back to those news reports, midwives getting lifts on tractors, a lady taking shopping to an elderly lady, an gentleman clearing paths, two young kids digging an old man's car out...........the list goes on. I felt really sad when the reports finished, in fact quite tearful. Why.........................I had forgotten how lovely it was to be part of a community, all be it, a very small one. Where we live now, we are all in our own isolated little worlds, so near yet so far. You never realise how good something is until its gone.
Not being able to get out without risking life and limb has meant my cupboards are now bare, empty....................starvation is knocking on my door!!!!!!.  I no longer have those neighbours that check if you need anything. All was nearly lost tonight I had a last few sausages in the freezer and had planned pasta with sausages in pasta sauce. I opened the sauce and it was rank, still in date but air had got in...........................so panic set in till I found a tin of potatoes and some rice. We will have to attempt to get out tomorrow, we literally have nothing left to eat. Luckily hubby will be driving.
As for the week itself, apart from the usual guilt on not being at work, I have had a very very good beary week..................I have sewn 4 bears and finished 2 of them. They are Ruby and Amethyst.........
This is Amethst, she is now on my website
 and this is Ruby, on the same page
I have also found time to add Page to Ebay
I have added a new page to my blog.................Available Bears and worked out how to add a shopping cart. It will take me awhile to add my bears but don't forget to keep an eye out for additions. I have given my website a well needed update.......................I have also realised that it takes as much time to market ones bears as it does to make them!!!! I really need to win the lottery, pay the mortgage off and live this life all the time but with milk, potatoes, bread.......etc LOLOLOL
Beary Hugs for now
Sue xxxxx