Conversations in yarn and in print

I just finished up this triangular scarf thingie which is really fun to make, and which will be delivered to a lucky recipient tomorrow when I get respite time to get out of the house and do it. This is a conversation in that I'm thinking about the recipient almost all the time I'm working on it, psychic communication...little in- joke there for A!

My respite student had another request for her time yesterday, the end of an intership she's been doing, and consulted with me on what to do, what to do, and I said, well, do it! we'll live, and we will see her tomorrow anyway. After she finishes her exam. She's a crackerjack student -- does the exam, leaves as soon as she's done and rarely needs more than half the time to complete it. And gets good grades, too. We love her and we're already working on getting her to continue with our respite care next semester, too.

Meanwhile, other completed projects, aside from the scarf, which was all fun, are some indicators of the power of the written word. I swear even in this day and age, by writing a letter when you can't get anything done by phone. Very easy for people to brush off a phone call, and no record of who said what and when.

So, just as after five weeks of agonizing wait for a grand jury excuse, I finally wrote a dignified letter in bold type, 14 font, very readable, not big enough to be rude, but effective, I got the excuse by return mail one day before I would have had to report.

Likewise after waiting two solid months for someone, anyone, to process the paperwork to get the legal inspection done for the heating system that was installed back in early October, I finally wrote to the township department and cc'd the installer.

Once again, the next day, email from the Twp. saying they'd sent it last week, a likely story, more like they saw they'd better get on it and did! they have to send paperwork to the installer, who then sends something to me and after I have papers in hand, I can set up the inspection. Vital legal process.

And I ordered essential medical supplies for HP more than two weeks ago, no sign of them, despite the shipper claiming they'd been shipped. So I wrote a memo of complaint to Amazon, through which I'd ordered, and gosh what a surprise, the case arrived three days later. UPS from Ohio. Which means they had in fact not shipped it until they got the complaint, because that's the typical time from there to here via UPS.

So here's the formula: bold type, font size 14, no more than two terse paragraphs with the facts and dates cc to whoever else needs to know, including in more than one case, my lawyer. Firm but kind! No Bad Bureaucrats approach. It's worked quite a few times for me.

I guess it's the new version of just in time inventory: ship before the customer gets really nasty about it! but not till they write and tell you so.

Just coming in late to inform you, dear blogistas, that as of a couple of minutes ago, this blog has had 7,777 pageviews. Now, this has to be auspicious!