How To Win a Customer Back - Ask Mimi's

I'd like to be sitting down with you in my favorite restaurant to really give you the flavor of this post. But, since there's only one of me and I can only be in one place, I'll settle for imagining I'm tasting a Mimi's Carrot Raisin Muffin as I type. You can too!

In case you didn't catch on, I'm promoting Mimi's Cafe today! But they almost lost my business after one bad night. Let me tell you what happened and why I'm still devoted to Mimi's!

My mother and sister and I have been patronizing Mimi's for years. Not only is the food excellent but the service is always great! This summer when they gave out the promotional codes to win a trip to Paris, we sent in a lot. Which means we had eaten there a lot. So when my friend visited from Michigan I went in to Mimi's to get some take-out muffins to go.

The hour was late. It must have been after dinnertime, but well before closing. The restaurant was not very full of patrons. I asked the girl behind the corner for a dozen muffins. She seemed flustered as she looked under the counter, and then popped up, saying they must be out of containers. 

She walked behind a walled area, and I mindlessly watched the baseball game on a flat screen in front of me. Serveral employees filed in and out of that area, about six in all. One asked me if I'd been helped. I said yes. After a few more minutes, a young man in an apron came out and without speaking to me began to watch the game as well, his back to me.

At this point, I wondered if the waitress who'd taken my order had forgotten me. I waited some more.

Finally, she came back with a dozen muffins in two separate clamshell containers. (I'd been expecting them in the lovely cardboard and plastic wrapped box that I'd gotten before)

I paid and left, feeling it was a very "un-Mimi's-like" experience. I had been spoiled by my previous excellent service. So after coming home, I filled out the survey on the receipt essentially telling them what I just wrote here. Someone wrote back immediately, and apologized  and within days I had a Mimi's gift certificate in my hands.

My faith in the chain was restored and I was so impressed that I wanted to share what I think is an excellent example of customer service in the 'teeth' of a bad experience.

I took a picture of our waitress, Debbie. She has served us many times and was not involved in the incident above. I told her I'd put her picture on my blog and she reluctantly agreed.

Have you had an experience with good or bad customer service? I'd love to hear about it!

What I Wish the Church Would Change Part I

This is part one of a three part gentle rant regarding the wish list I have for a more perfect church. I am not speaking of a particular church, but rather the church in general as I have observed it.

What if there weren't seats in rows, so that you didn't have to spend the service staring at the back of someone's head? What if the place you went to worship looked like one big living room, with casual seating and a coffee bar? What if the time was spent, rather than one person doing the talking lecture-style, in groups discussing relevant issues in the light of God's truth? What if when you went as a newb, you didn't feel like you just walked in as a delivery person on 'The Office' but rather the people in charge facilitated everyone getting acquainted in a non-threatening way? What if you didn't get the impression that everyone else has  money, power and spirituality? What if, instead, the first impression you had was one of humility and selflessness? What if, when you walked in, the overwhelming feeling was one of belonging, instead of trying to feel like you fit in somewhere?

I sometimes feel like the modern church is a club that not everyone is welcome to join.

Five Reasons Why You Shouldn't Vote

1) American women have had the vote for a scant ninety two years, and American men have been voting for two hundred thirty six years. Has the world become a better place since then? Why bother now?

2) If you vote, you may actually have to take responsibility for what happens next. Don't we hire professionals to so that?

3) The time it takes to get registered, to research the facts, to find out where your polling place is located can be better spent elsewhere.You are a very busy American.

4) The candidates aren't perfect. If you believe everything each one says about the other, neither one should be running.

5) The electoral college holds all the power anyway. Who says an individual vote means anything? After all, when did one person ever make a difference in history?

The deadline to register is October 22. Just in case.

I Live an Exciting Life

The mind of an author is an imaginative place.

In the past week (in my mind) I have:

Narrowly escaped an actual accident  in which a car overturned, while taking my daughter to school.
Finished my laundry.
Saved the presidential candidacy of Mitt Romney by reminding him to be on Twitter more.
Become a youtube sensation after singing at my friend's request while she recorded it on her Ipad.
Embarrassed myself by singing at my friend's request on her Ipad.
Crashed our rental car.
Re-landscaped my yard.
Scarred my daughter for life by not coming to hear her sing at her debut coffee shop gig.
Completely redecorated  the house of my dreams.
Gone on a cruise with my husband.
Been the author of a historical fiction romance set in old Columbia, California under the pen name of Louise Lamour.
Had a child at 54. It was a boy.
Got another 200 followers for my blog overnight by posting this.

It's a tough world out there. Hang on to your dreams - at least the good ones!

Twitter tidbit

"A mere friend will agree with you, but a real friend will argue." - Russian Proverb -- Denny Coates (@DennyCoates)

Unexpected Card Expiration

I got behind in my regular trips to the library the other day, (I know -  shocking in and of itself) and when I went online to renew my now overdue books (not so shocking at all) the website told me my card had expired. Due to the fact that formerly I had my card for 13 years without having to renew, I was shocked.

Thankfully, the helpful resource person who picked up when I called told me that your card comes up for renewal every three years now. She renewed my card over the phone.

I am now breathing freely, and as a courtesy, she took off the fines that had accrued, making the Stanislaus Library once again, on my top list of places to go!

I've Gone t' Preachin'!

Those of you who read here regularly know that I am a believer. While I do post about my faith every now and then I  choose a broad range of topics to suit what I hope is a diverse audience. One of my goals is to put out ideas that will help us all to think a little deeper about this thing we call life. I am aware that not all of my readers share my political views either, and I welcome friendly discussion on any topic on which you politely disagree.

But today I absolutely must share the spiritual insight that came to me this past weekend, a couple of days that I devoted (along with my mother and sister and several hundred other women) to hear what God might want to say to us. Thanks to our speakers, and in particular, Linda Sommerville from William Jessup University,  for sharing such valuable insight!

Allow me to relate it to you exactly as it dawned on my consciousness for the first time, hidden away in two stories I had heard before. The first was from my all-time favorite author CS Lewis in his book for children (wink, wink) The Horse and His Boy. The second was an ancient story of Jesus walking on water during a great storm. I invoke a bloggers license to paraphrase both for effect.

The boy walked along the dark road, unable to ride the horse beside him, further beset by the thoughts of every dark thing that had ever happened in his life. Already a bit spooked by the darkness of night, he felt the hair raise on his skin as he heard a low breathing sound. It continued and grew louder and found that it had a voice as well. "Who are you?" he finally found the courage to ask. "Are you a giant?" The breathing  continued and grew louder and he found that it had a voice as well. "Not the kind you're thinking of." The was the reply. Then the voice, the voice of the mighty Aslan himself, said a strange thing. "During all the turmoil and trouble in the your life I was the one responsible." Indeed, Aslan was a giant of sorts, and although good, he was not in any sense tame or safe.

While the disciples found themselves on the Sea of Galilee enduring the mother of all storms, Jesus himself had stayed behind on the shore, and now came to them, walking on the water. For a few terrifying moments, they thought he was a ghost, summoning them to certain death. "Don't be afraid." He said to them as he got closer. "I AM." Not only His presence, but His identity was needed to calm their wildest fears. The Eternally Existent One who was responsible for the weather, and everything else, was coming to their rescue.

God, the Almighty Maker of all things is truly the Master the Universe, not to mention the Master of every storm. He is bigger than, beyond, and yet responsible in some unfathomable way for all the evil in the world. Even Satan had to have His permission to rebel. Now, this raises all sorts of sticky and icky questions, at least for me. But it also is the key thought behind the deep peace that I have, now that I understand in a new way that the deliverer in the middle of the Storm is also the Master of the storm.  We can trust Him - not to do everything that we want - but to do us ultimate good. We cannot know what He knows, as neither the boy nor the disciples could understand in the middle of their fears what in the world was going on and why. I don't either. But I can trust the Master. And so can you.