prologue

Name: Sajeetha
life is for living, need i say more?

*loves:
the family, him, them; my friends
anything arty farty, the literary arts, theatre
dolphins
travelling, always unfolding something new
dining in places with ambience to kill for (it's a hobby.hah)
r etail therapy
all things indian
enlightening conversations
candles
angels, fairie,pixies, gnomes, smurfs(br>

*loathes:
the one who stabs u in ur back
death of dear ones
all that flies or has wings
the complications of all types of relationships
not knowing
those who try so hard to be me

red/purple crumpler bag
new urban male jersey
new birks
that oh-so-gorgeous watch from esprit
that beautiful converse bag
a white i-pod nano
that new dgital camera which screams buy-me!
the bikini from billabong
a new pair of funky spectacles
truckloads of best-selling novels
a whole new art materials collection
a new wallet that fits the enormous card collection of mine

nady,the sweetie pie
vicky, the blur sotong
charlotte,the doctor in the making
sivanes, the smart-ass cuzzin
LV, the gorgeous pearly
sarah, the clubbing chica
sujatha, the indian actress look alike
nadia ameera, the lost pri sch mate who was found
lynette, the sports fanatic
hemma, the evil twin
vanessa, popular for all the wrong reasons

express

 

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- Why I Fought With Staff Over 30 Cents -

the other day, i went to war over 30 cents. oh, and a principle.
i had ordered a meal at a popular fast-food place. the sign said i would get two pieces of fish, fried and a 22 ounce soft drink. the drink wasn't specified on the sign so i assumed it meant any soft drink. therefore, i didn't expect to be told that my choice of soft drink - iced lemon tea, would cost me an additional 30 cents.

the clerk pointed to a mat on the counter advertising a different meal promotion where an 'upsized' cola would cost 20 cents more and an iced lemon tea, 30 cents more.

the battle began.

i'll spare u all the to-ing and fro-ing but my points were these: what you advertise is a sort of contract. in exchange for $6.55, i get 2 pieces of fish, fries and a 22 ounce soft drink. if u want to be more specific about the drink, then say so upfront on the sign or in the ad. you cannot make the details of one offer apply to another. the man running the outlet agreed that the sign was misleading, but he said he couldn't waive the 30-cent charge. he was willing to lose a $6.55 sale for 30 cents.

i called his boss, who kept asking: "did they explain the charge to you?" i kept saying: "it doesn't matter what they verbally explain; they have to go with the offer on the sign." finally the boss agreed to give me the iced tea without the 30 cent charge. before leaving, i reminded her to fix the sign so that it clearly reflected the terms of her offer. she told me she would pass my 'feedback' to headquarters.

we read abt people who get trapped in contracts becos they didn't read the fine print. i don't have much sympathy for them. but when there is no fine print or big print for that matter, i really go ballastic. it's endemic in singapore. banks advertise, "open an account today and win a merc!" if you take this literally, it means exactly that - you WILL win a merc. instead, companies assume that YOU will ASSUME that it means ' a CHANCE to win a merc". oh, and there's the famous catch-all "terms and conditions apply". what terms? which conditions?
would you sign a contract to buy a house which simply states "terms and conditions apply"? i don't think so. but many retailers here seem to think that this is enough for consumers to know. i once tried to use a loyalty card to buy a gift.

the card - you know the kind where after you complete the chops, you get a $60 voucher - listed no restrictions other than "terms and conditions apply". okay, fine.
so i picked out the gift, a selection of guest soaps ina pretty tin but was told i couldn't use my loyalty voucher to pay for it. "why not?" i asked. "oh because that tin of soaps is a promotion item and you can't use the voucher to buy promotion items, " the sales clerk replied.
"ah, but there is nothing in the card that says that the tin of soaps is a promotion item," i replied, my blood pressure hovering around the 200 mark by now.

you want to hear what the clerk said? it's a classic - "in our minds, we know it is a promotion item."

so the next time you go shopping practice your mental telepathy.
and even if it is only 30 cents, refuse to get ripped off.
call managers, bosses, supervisors.
make a fuss.
eventually, retailers will get the message, telepathic or otherwise.

by: joanna hughes (TNP's freelance writer, columnist)

i borrowed this story only because i felt her plight, all too much. i remember the countless amounts of time i was put in such siutations and how i've always ended up with such shooting pressure, i had to calm myself down before my nerves burst. it's annoying isn't it? so guys, please. the next time you come across siutations like these, do not let them talk you down. you talk them out of it. dun get ripped off!

singapore's advertising can do way much better, i reckon! hmpf!

Monday, November 13, 2006
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