Flaky freecyclers (again)
Posted: August 30, 2009 Filed under: Rants, Recycling 2 Comments »Will I ever learn?
A freecycler has just turned up an hour and a half late!
My friends and family would no doubt tell you that I am not always the most ‘punctual’ of people, but an hour and a half, with no phone call, is taking the piss, don’t you think?
Admittedly I don’t have any major plans for this afternoon… but quand même … I couldn’t relax properly waiting for her to get here.
She called when she arrived outside to ask what number I lived at … so it’s not as if she didn’t have my number with her.
I was tempted to say I was out, and that she had missed her slot … but, keen to get rid of the items in question, I in fact acquiesced.
No explanation or apology was proffered until I asked her (with an exaggerated grumpy face) why she was so late.
“I missed my train” .
And? There are trains all the time in London. And that still doesn’t explain why she didn’t call.
Grrr.
Even though I had two lovely, prompt people who came to collect items yesterday, flakes like Little Miss Late really do put me off the whole scheme.
Rude freecycler
Posted: October 5, 2008 Filed under: Recycling 5 Comments »L. would say that I am obsessed with recycling, and he probably has a point. I hate the idea that things that I have used will end up as landfill … so I was really pleased to discover freecycle a few years ago. It’s great for getting rid of items that you can’t donate to a charity shop (electrical goods, things that are broken but could quite easily be fixed etc.)
Over the last couple of years I have given away a crappy old computer, a torn rucksack and a kettle covered in limescale (amongst other things). Initially most of my freecycling experiences were good ones. However, recently, I seem to have had a run of bad luck: people contacting to say they’re interested in something and then not replying to my emails, and others not turning up after they said they would.
Earlier this week I had another negative experience: a rude woman and her equally rude partner. Although I’m wondering whether the partner is a figment of her imagination – her emails were confused and ungrammatical.
Here is a copy of our correspondence after I posted an advert for a (nearly new) paper shredder.
====================
Tuesday evening
Rude Freecycler (RF): hi im very interested in this please
Me : You can have it! Can you come tomorrow evening, e.g. 7.30 pm? My address is XXXX. Tel. XXXX. Let me know!
RF: yeah that would be great thanks can i have directions from your nearest station please?
Me: [Detailed directions provided]. Call me if you get lost! See you at 7.30 tomorrow.
RF: thanks. see you tomorrow.
Wednesday afternoon
Me: Hi, Any chance that you could come at 8pm – I may be late getting home – thanks.
RF: yes. ok. cu later
Me: Brill – thanks – see you later!
[By 8.30pm, no-one had arrived, so I checked my email]
RF: im sorry but my partner cant find you. they have tried and can’t. they have followed your directions and everything
Me: So, are they coming or not? Please can you call me if you still want the shredder and are able to come tonight. Thanks.
[No response from RF by 9pm]
Me: Hello. I presume you don’t want this then… I will offer it to the next person on the list.
RF: [replied almost immediately] i did say my partner couldnt find where u were….even with following the directions u gave. so that should have told you they werent coming to get it as i also stated in the email.
Me: Dear RF, Well actually it didn’t tell me and you didn’t state it in your email. I interpreted it to mean that you wanted further directions. Just so you know, I rushed home to be here for 8pm, so you really have inconvenienced me.
[The following email was received the next day ...]
RF’s partner: this is RF’s partner. i emailed u last night, [I thought it was the RF who emailed - see above] RF couldnt find you. i sent an eamil stating this so you should have really guessed that she wasnt coming. if you gave proper directions then none of this happened. and you was the one who said 8pm not us so we didnt inconvienience you at all. you left work when you wanbted to. you could have always emailed and said i need to stay at work can we do this later or on another day but you didnt. so please do not blame us for your bad directions and you telling us what time to meet you.
Me: I think you’re forgetting that I was actually doing you a favour by giving you the shredder!
I am now going to sell it on ebay, instead. L. wants me to report them to the world freecycling governing body or something, and has even offered to write the letter of complaint himself … ! A bit extreme and I’m not sure I can be bothered with all that … but I do think they were a bit rude, given that I was actually offering them something for free.
