Impressed/Not Impressed

Obviously everybody has dealt with businesses they've been impressed with and not impressed with. My first and only dealing with Sandbox Automatic has sucked so much ass I'm getting ready to report those motherfuckers to BBB. Two weeks ago I ordered some records from them, mostly because they carried the Coup's "5 Million Ways to Kill a CEO" single. I noticed that they never sent a confirmation email like any online business would do. I also noticed that my card had been charged the day I placed the order. I've been waiting and waiting and still no records from them. Finally, yesterday, I called them to see what was up, and they seemed to have no clue and asked me to submit an online inquiry form and they would get back to me asap. (They also said that they don't send confirmation emails.) I still haven't heard from those bastards, and if they still have no clue tomorrow, I'm going to demand a refund and/or report them to BBB.

Conversely, I would recommend Eclipse Records to anyone...well, if you're into psychedelic and experimental music, that is. I ordered some records from them less than a week ago, and on the day I made the order, I got a call from the owner telling me that I could save a lot of money if I went with media mail, even though their website says they only send things 2-Day Priority Mail. And I still got my records today.

Interestingly, even though cell phone companies have shitty reputations, I've been somewhat impressed with Verizon Wireless. I got a bill today telling me that I owed almost a hundred bucks because I never paid last month's bill. I rarely, if ever, am late in paying my bills, and so I thought this had to have been a mistake. I checked all my records and my checkbook, and I noticed that the last time I wrote out a check to Verizon, it was two months ago...however, I also noticed that I never received a bill last month...whether it was Verizon's fault or the post office or one of my roommates misplacing it or throwing it away, I don't know. (And it's never my fault because I'm always right.) All I know is that I never received the bill; hence, I didn't pay. I have no qualms about paying both last month's and this month's bills; but I don't think I should have to pay the late fee. So I called them ready to argue my case, but they, to my surprise, agreed to waive the late fee without any argument.

So, Eclipse Records gets a gold star. Verizon Wireless gets one thumb up. And Sandbox Automatic gets a flaming bag of shit...and I'm getting ready to wage a personal jihad against them.