Don't mean to hijack, but that is one of the funniest snob stories I've heard.jimlongley wrote:ROFL! Never been there, but reminds me of buying a piano for my late wife.
We had seen the piano through the showroom window on a Sunday, not the best way to shop for pianos, but what the heck.
I was feeling real flush, with $10,000+ of overtime accumulated and burning a hole in my pocket, and she needed a new piano.
On Monday, on my way back to the garage after a long day of climbing poles, I walked into the showroom, still in my grungies.
A VERY condescending salesman came over and asked, in his best Brahmin accent, "Moy Ah Help You, Sahr?" and when I told him I was shopping for a piano for my wife and I wanted to know the price of that one, he asked "She plays does she?"
Of course this just riled up the redneck in me, so I dumbed my language down a few levels and told him that we was thinkin' of gettin' her lessons now that the passel of kids was gettin' up to an age where they didn't have to be coddled and suckled all the time and we kind a liked that purty one over thar.
He gave me to understand that if I had to ask the price I couldn't afford it and ushered me out of the showroom as quickly as he could.
That night my wife's piano coach was at our house, and we mentioned the store, and the piano, and she, the coach, trold us that she knew the salesman and he was just that stuck up, and BTW, her mother also worked at that store, and she would be glad to arrange a showing for us.
So the next Saturday we all trooped in, my wife, her coach, her mentor, and one of her professors from college, our son, and myself, and met the coaches mother at the door. Mr. Snotty watched us in amazement as we ALL sat down at the instrument in question and played (of course all I could ever manage was a barroom boogie, but there was a principle at stake) and then I whipped out $10,000.00 in cash and paid $9,800.00 after tax for the piano.
As we trooped back out the door I turned to Mr. Snotty and told him, back in my redneck accent, that he'all should make better sure how he handled folks in the future or he would miss a lot more commissions like that. Up until tha moment he hadn't recognized me, but you could see dawn break just then, as he sputtered.
Instant karma can be a good thing.
Some people don't realize that some people's wealth is not necessarily shown in the cars they drive or the clothes they wear, and I'm sure there are a lot of people out there that try their best to appear to be wealthy and have their whole life on a credit card.
Jim