Customer service and a fly mask story

America is famous for its great customer service. You're the customer, you're right.

Germany is the opposite and I'm done with trying to do returns/exchanges.

If you try to return an item to a grocery store, they will take it back if it is unopened, you have a receipt, you actually bought it at that exact location, the purchase was recent, and if you fill out a form giving them your personal information.

That's not all so bad, except for the attitude of the clerks. They look at you and roll their eyes and make you feel like you planned to ruin their day. They very grudgingly give you the form, after you pass their questions about why you want to return the item (somehow the reason is also important). And then there's everyone else in line, glaring at you because apparently you've ruined their day too.

When I first met my husband I wanted to return something to Safeway in Seattle. It was a bag of dried mangoes and they didn't taste good. I did not have a receipt. J refused to stand with me to return the mangoes. He slipped away, sure I was going to get in trouble. The lady looked at the open pack of mangoes and said, "So sorry the product did not meet your expectations" with a smile of apology, and gave me cash.  J couldn't believe it.

Today I had to return a couple of fly masks that I'd bought from Germany's biggest tack store (a chain, with a "megastore" a half hour from here - but really, they have no business using the word mega). Although the salespeople were helpful on the day I bought them, even helping me measure my old fly mask against the two new ones, everything changed the day I brought them back (too small).

They turned into Na** Bi***** from H***. The lady looked at one of the fly masks and glared at me like I was ruining her day. She said, "I cannot accept a return in this condition!" I looked at it, it looked fine. She turned it inside out and found some little white horse hairs. Oh dear, I'd not seen those.

Oh dear, what to do, she just stood there glaring at me, and the other ladies behind her silently joined in. I said, "Oh geez, I should have taken a lint remover to it."

More icy staring.

"Do you happen to have a lint remover?"

Get this. She did! She sighed and handed it to me, and said, "Try to get it clean."

I was appalled and so embarrassed, even though the store was empty, and I'm sure no one really cared.

But WTH? Why the animosity? She could have offered to give me the lint remover without my asking, but I really think she wanted me out of her store because I was killing her day.

I spent 10 full minutes making sure both fly masks were clean of hair. I needn't have spent so long, but I wanted them to know I was trying my best.

Finally she took it from me, turned it inside out again, and somehow found another couple hairs in the elastic. I couldn't believe it. She disgustedly started trying to pick them out. BTW, I had thoroughly groomed Mag's face before trying them on.

Then I went and got the replacement fly masks, did the exchange at the counter, and when the lady handed them to me she said, "Don't try to bring them back for exchange if they're not CLEAN."

I think my mouth dropped open, I just nodded, If it had been an English conversation I would have snapped at her, "You think I'd make that mistake again?"

*sigh*

One of them still does not fit right, so I have to go back yet again. That will make four trips to this store because I got the open hours mixed up the other day and they were closed.

I am curious what would have happened if I'd used their online store  --- as I normally do --- and returned the fly mask with some horse hair on it still. Would they have shipped it back to me, refusing to accept it, or would they have swiped a lint remover over it and called it good?

I'm mad at this store now, but realize that it's not them, it's EVERY store in Germany, so what can I do.

I told J I am not doing returns or exchanges again without him at my side.

I'm not the only one, this topic is common on the ex-pat forum, Americans walking out of shops traumatized by the rudeness of the employees. Even servers in restaurants act like you are a real pain in the butt if you do something like ask for another cup of coffee.

In the end I should give tribute to my husband, who saw my distress (more precisely: flipping out).

He stood up from his final exams pile and said, "Can I help you see if the new masks fit Mag?"

I was still in my shopping clothing (well, the only difference is the shoes). I said, "Can you get Mag?"

"Yes, but he's not here."

"Whistle."

My man, in his Kabarett clothing (tonight is theater night in Wuppertal), he walked through our damp path and whistled, and then called, "Mag! Bellis!" and they came running. In fact...he started hurrying back to me to avoid being trampled. I said, "Look, they are trotting after you!"

I put a lead rope around Mag's neck and we tried the masks out, and I was happy to see Mag is fine with his ears being shoved into little pockets, Shetland pony size.

J helped me try both masks out and we determined, even though they are both the same size by the same manufacturer, one of them punched Mag in the eye (oddly, the expsensive one (35E), that had double-eye guards!). So we settled on the one that I didn't think would work.

I took it into the house and in the blink of an eye (2 hours) sewed a fleece nose-shield into it, those fleece things you can buy to line your halter when your horse flies on a plane. I've got no experience with those things, even though my horse and I flew on a plane.

I have no idea of the effectiveness of the fleece; my horse's skin is the most fragile of any horse I've known. Would he need pure wool? I will find out. You will too (lol).


To begin I used a threading tool (no idea what the proper name is) to rip one side of the velcro from the fuzzy piece. The thing you rip stitches out with. The de-stitcher. In this photo I have it detached from the fleece above.


If I'm gonna sew, it's gonna be rainbow.

My husband had said, "Wait, did you say the words 'I' and 'sew' in the same sentence?!" Hrmph. I did this all without a thimble, though it was desperately missed. I could not find my thimble anywhere, though the last time I sewed was long enough ....das war selbstverstaendlich.   So I used the halter's sale tag to keep the needle from bleeding me dry.



Sharp, eh?

Got the purple on the right for you Aarene (looks blue here, as always when it comes to discussing purple online.)



Wow I hope this works on my horse's pasty skin.







Well, maybe. The thing rides high, somehow. His forelock doesn't line up with the forelock hole. Hrm.

What I like is, REVELATION - the black mesh allows for way better visibility than the white. I  had never given it any thought. But it makes sense.

In Germany you can buy fly mesh for your house windows ---- not screens. And most people do not have them. The insects and birds and bats have free entrance. I have no idea why. So the bug-screen industry is in infancy. They are only now beginning to have those framed ones we have. But I don't have them. *sigh*

I have fabric mesh sheets that you velcro onto your window frames with sticky tape (that your cat eventually pushes through). There is white, and black. I always choose black cuz then I can see out my window better.

Well, facepalm. The horse can see better too, through black mesh. I can even leave it on at night, which I often do, have always done, though people say it is dangerous, that horses have crashed into things to their deaths due to visibility restriction.

I appreciate that this mask has a darker mesh over the nose, so I might not have to use so much sunscreen. Mag and I both loathe the daily sunscreen ritual in eternally sunny Germany.



We'll see if it works, if all my effort was for naught. I'm glad Mag accepts the fly mask, he seems to understand its purpose. Today I came home and he was flecked with blood from horseflies, and had welts along his body. There is nothing I can do - the spray doesn't really work. To be honest, this mask doesn't seem to sit right, so I'd appreciate tips from anyone reading this.

When does horsefly season end? It changes every year, it coincides with the grain harvest, they say. I say get the grain out now, I am up at night itching in pain from the near-daily bites, and my horse cannot live in the house with me, sadly. I was in Wuppertal at J's family house and an enormous horsefly came into the room. I didn't know they came into town! I said, "Hey, give me a swatter, they are really easy to kill when they are indoors. (Outside, I'm outta luck). She didn't believe me that it was a horsefly, but I whacked it dead with her shoe that she offered me. The curse of Rheinland.



I just found this old photo from a visit to my home. My home! No ticks, no horseflies, no fire ants. 9 months of RAIN.