Thursday, October 2nd, 2008

[JonPorobil]

I had a terrible day at work yesterday. Our turf was broken up, and some of it was in a closed community which we couldn't canvass, so we hit record-low numbers of homes, and I only came back with $20 at the end of the day. It's pretty demoralizing when even people who claim to support us politically slam their doors in my face.

Today can only be better, though.

QotD: Have you ever had canvassers come to your home? Either election-related or no?
Follow-up: Not to guilt-trip you, but were you nice to them?

[Billy's Little Trip]

QOTD: Yes, people come to my door. In my years on this planet, anyone that comes to my door unannounced is trying to convince me on something that usually is followed by me giving them money for something I don't need, nor want.

Follow up: I'm always polite.

[roymond]

I'm not very polite to religious house visitors or telesales folks. If I feel nice I'll engage them to entertain myself.

[Paco Del Stinko]

All any of them deserve is basic common courtesy, initially. Any pushing, and they can piss off. It's just the same as a TV commercial, where you'd just change the channel, not offering up an apology or anything.

[Reist]

qotd: Judging by the pamphlets in my kitchen, the Green Party visited today.

[fluffy]

qotd: An advantage of living in a multi-unit building with a buzzer door is not having to put up with that crap. I've never been canvassed but I used to get Jehova's Witnesses all the dang time.

drc: We made more headway on the crappy bug that's been consuming all my time. Team lead finally told me I should start working on the stuff I'd rather be working on since it seems the other engineer has it under control now. Then I discovered that the stuff I'd rather be working on has some pretty serious issues which block me from working on it until another engineer comes back from Tokyo next week so the three of us (well, ideally four of us including the team lead, but he's stuck in meetings all the time now) can all discuss how to solve the problems. Argh. I think I'm going crazy.

[Caravan Ray]

I make it a point in life to be rude to everybody. Then we all know where we stand.

I wouldn't be rude to this dude though. This story cracked me up

[king_arthur]

We pretty much have a rule: anybody who comes to our door uninvited to tell us we need something or someOne is wrong. With the possible exception of the Girl Scouts

We also have three dogs in the house right now (two of our own and one foster), all of whom are barkers, and any time somebody rings the doorbell it sets them off and most of the door to door people take off while I'm still trying to figure out who it is and whether they're worth opening the door for.

I've also stopped feeling guilty about just hanging up on people who phone to sell us something or someOne, or for surveys.

Charles (KA)

[roymond]

All any of them deserve is basic common courtesy, initially. Any pushing, and they can piss off. It's just the same as a TV commercial, where you'd just change the channel, not offering up an apology or anything.

But TV commercials help pay for the content I might be watching, and TIVO helps me not watch them. Telesales people leverage the phone service I pay for, and waste my time 100% of the time, typically at or around dinner time. People knocking on my door waste 100% of that time as well, and I'd prefer if they were selling something, but Jehovah Witness (and I live in the neighborhood of their world headquarters) and the like will not be well received. They are not there to do "good" (I recognize and have taken part in the many good-neighbor efforts of religious groups) but to sell their vacant and false views of reality.

I keep a smile on my face, though.

[JonPorobil]

Yep. Not trying to guilt-trip you guys, but it never ceases to amaze me how rude people can be to myself and my DNC colleagues, including and especially Democrats. One guy I talked to yesterday yelled at me. "I gave him a thousand dollars. What more do you want from me?" Oh well.

[Spud]

It's not you, or your cause, Jon. People have been conditioned to respond this way by their experience with in-your-face salesmen, aggressive telemarketers, etc. I usually try to engage them myself, but they usually end up insulting me for not buying their product. I had one guy actually say "Well, saving money's not for everyone!" and hang up on me.

SPUD

[Billy's Little Trip]

With the possible exception of the Girl Scouts

Oh yeah, I forgot about cookies. But it's really annoying when they take my order and then take weeks to bring me my Do-si-dos and Samoas. I'm too impatient. Everyday I come home and say, any news on my Tagalongs?

Now, when they come with goodies in tow, I'm like a crazed addict. I start pulling everything out of my pockets, keys, cell phone, etc and throwing it at them, flinging my credit cards at them like ninja stars, then just throw my whole wallet at them, grab a box, tear it open with my teeth and orally mainline its contents. Then as I'm wiping my mouth off with my sleeve and regain my composure, I look down at a little person with a cute little neckerchief looking at me like this.


....and scene.

[Paco Del Stinko]

Roymond - Yeah, I meant people in person. On the phone, I just hang up or pretend I speak a foreign language.

When the Girlscouts come knocking, you should answer the door like Louie DePalma!