Venting thread

[malloc]

Annoying if minor problem this week. There is a socialist meeting and film watching this Wednesday at 7:00PM. Unfortunately my shift doesn't end until 6:30PM so it' just out of reach. Attending it would require me to leave work early and I have idea how to convince them of that. Obviously I can't tell them that I plan on attending a socialist meeting but neither can I say I just don't feel like working the full shift that day.

[alice]

Surely you can arrive at the meeting a little late? Even the most diehard socialist should be able to show some sympathy for your situation.

[linguistcat]

Annoying if minor problem this week. There is a socialist meeting and film watching this Wednesday at 7:00PM. Unfortunately my shift doesn't end until 6:30PM so it' just out of reach. Attending it would require me to leave work early and I have idea how to convince them of that. Obviously I can't tell them that I plan on attending a socialist meeting but neither can I say I just don't feel like working the full shift that day.

Is it possible for you to just arrive late, after letting other members know? How far is the meeting and would you need to change or get ready between work?

Also you could ask if you could get off a little early from work for "a personal matter". While it's not necessary that they say yes, they shouldn't badger you for a reason, and if they do, state it is PERSONAL and therefor you don't wish to discuss it at work. Usually granting 15-30 minutes early leave, if asked ahead of time, isn't too much of an issue. Just don't get down if they say no.

[malloc]

Surely you can arrive at the meeting a little late? Even the most diehard socialist should be able to show some sympathy for your situation.

Well, they're meeting at a theater to watch some kind of independent film related to politics I guess. Presumably the theater will start the film at 7PM. That said, I am working on the logistics and how long it will take to rush from work to there.

[Man in Space]

Surely you can arrive at the meeting a little late? Even the most diehard socialist should be able to show some sympathy for your situation.

Well, they're meeting at a theater to watch some kind of independent film related to politics I guess. Presumably the theater will start the film at 7PM. That said, I am working on the logistics and how long it will take to rush from work to there.

Film screenings and concerts hardly ever begin at the stated time. There’s almost always some delay.

[Travis B.]

Surely you can arrive at the meeting a little late? Even the most diehard socialist should be able to show some sympathy for your situation.

Well, they're meeting at a theater to watch some kind of independent film related to politics I guess. Presumably the theater will start the film at 7PM. That said, I am working on the logistics and how long it will take to rush from work to there.

Film screenings and concerts hardly ever begin at the stated time. There’s almost always some delay.

This. If you get a bit after 7 pm I assure you it won't be the end of the world. You may not even miss any of the film.

[malloc]

Well much to my surprise, I managed to get off work early and made to the meeting on time. Unfortunately my car developed yet another problem on the way there. Nothing extreme but it now makes a whining sound when moving but not when idling. Not sure if this is serious or just annoying.

[zompist]

Well much to my surprise, I managed to get off work early and made to the meeting on time.

I know you don't get a lot of positive feedback here, but I'm glad you went to the meeting. I hope they're a good group.

[Lērisama]

Well much to my surprise, I managed to get off work early and made to the meeting on time.

To second Zompist, congratulations. I hope both the people and the film were good (and that your car's mysterious ailment just as mysteriously goes away)¹

¹ Okay, I might be projecting my own annoyance at such sound onto you. Hopefully you don't find it that annoying at all, although I assume it fixing itself would be welcome. And now I'm just rambling.

[WeepingElf]

And I third it! You know, malloc, most problems have solutions.

[Raphael]

Fourthed!

[linguistcat]

And fifthed, malloc. I do hope the car doesn't give you too much trouble going forward. But even if it's "just" an annoying noise with nothing else wrong that can still be extremely bothersome.

[malloc]

Just got back from the mechanic and the prognosis is grim. They said it's probably the transmission which basically puts the car on its last legs. Based on everything I've heard over the years, transmissions are incredibly hard to fix and they generally recommend buying a new car if the transmission fails given the cost of fixing it usually approximates that of an entire vehicle. Given the nature of American civic infrastructure, I can hardly avoid owning a car so I will need to plan on replacing this one in the near future. Hopefully it lasts a couple more months so I save some money and shop around. This time I will try to go electric, although that will require some research into the logistics of recharging and looking for alternatives to Tesla.

[linguistcat]

Just got back from the mechanic and the prognosis is grim. They said it's probably the transmission which basically puts the car on its last legs. Based on everything I've heard over the years, transmissions are incredibly hard to fix and they generally recommend buying a new car if the transmission fails given the cost of fixing it usually approximates that of an entire vehicle. Given the nature of American civic infrastructure, I can hardly avoid owning a car so I will need to plan on replacing this one in the near future. Hopefully it lasts a couple more months so I save some money and shop around. This time I will try to go electric, although that will require some research into the logistics of recharging and looking for alternatives to Tesla.

If it's just the transmission, see if you can sell it for scrap: The pieces that are still good will get new uses, reduces the amount of waste, AND you get a little money. Sorry it was pretty much the worst case though.

[alice]

They said it's probably the transmission which basically puts the car on its last legs.

You have a car with legs?

In all seriousness, though, I hope you got something positive out of your meeting, and if you did, I hope you get more out of future ones.

[lëtzeshark]

Vent: I had an unpleasant experience at a local hypermarket today.

More: show

• I picked some red bell peppers, listed at €7.99/kilo.
• When I went to the scales to weigh the peppers, they rang up as €9.99/kilo. I reported this immediately to the staff, and their response was to replace the sticker with a sticker for an eggplant which was closer to the correct price.
• At the cash register, the cashier accused me of being dishonest and insisted on reweighing the produce after also scanning the original incorrect price tag (at the €9.99/kg).
• I went to the service desk to complain, and, while the issue got sorted, it took another 20 minutes to get the issue handled: fortunately, the service person was more than willing to help and actually listened to my complaint, unlike the cashier.

Yes, it was only over €2.50, but (a) it's the principle of the matter, where they should honor the prices, (b) it's about treatment of customers when they point out issues, and (c) this is the second blatant pricing error in two months, plus the third time I've been accused of dishonesty by the staff at this store. Each time I bring these problems up, I mostly get "we're sorry" responses from the customer service, but I'm seriously thinking now to not go back to the store (ever) and of pursuing a legal complaint for consumer rights violations.

[malloc]

Before throwing the car out, I will at least try to get it fixed. I made an appointment to get the transmission inspected but the soonest they could schedule me is Wednesday which means I will have to hope the car holds out until then.

[WeepingElf]

Dear malloc, I (and probably all of us) read with pleasure that you are capable of dealing with this issue in a reasonable way instead of catastrophizing over it. I understand that it is just a defective car, which is of lesser magnitude than the worries you used to catastrophize over, but doesn't it show you that problems can be dealt with? Stay hopeful, and you will find a way of addressing your worries. It worked with me.

[Darren]

Before throwing the car out, I will at least try to get it fixed. I made an appointment to get the transmission inspected but the soonest they could schedule me is Wednesday which means I will have to hope the car holds out until then.

Good luck. Transmissions rarely completely break all at once; usually they start working worse and worse before complete failure. So if you've only just noticed the whining sound it's probably got at least a few months left in it.

[malloc]

Dear malloc, I (and probably all of us) read with pleasure that you are capable of dealing with this issue in a reasonable way instead of catastrophizing over it. I understand that it is just a defective car, which is of lesser magnitude than the worries you used to catastrophize over, but doesn't it show you that problems can be dealt with? Stay hopeful, and you will find a way of addressing your worries. It worked with me.

Unfortunately that car is my only way to work so losing it will leave me unemployed and unemployable. Even getting to the dealership to buy a new car would be impossible. From what I understand, Europe has good public transit and one can theoretically live without a car in many areas. In the US though, we need cars for pretty much anything apart from checking our mail.