Now to outline the utter hell I went through in California....
Should have been simple, drop the car off to the lady's family there, and they were supposed to get me to the bus station to catch my train back.... Riiiiight.
I was dropping the car off in Aptos. I was getting very sick, and still had to drive 700 miles in about 12 hours. I had a reservation with Amtrak to catch a connecting bus out of Santa Cruz, near there, at 5:25 am. That bus was to San Jose, about 25 miles away, where I was to catch a coach train to connect with the scenic California Zephyr train back east.
Speaking with these folks the night before, it was agreed that to avoid waking them, I would nap in the car until they woke up once I got there.
Due to apparently insufficient aptitude to look in the driveway, this guy is sitting in his living room, wondering if he should call me. I wake up at 5:45, and my bus has departed 20 minutes ago.
Then it took an act of God to get these idiots to understand that simply dropping me at the bus station was not going to work now, because I was going to have to pay an extra $200 that I didn't have to reschedule my train tickets.... Not to mention the fun of waiting in a bus station for two days!
And they didn't even seem to WANT to help me make my train. Pretty fucked up, I thought, considering I slept in the car to avoid waking them when I got there... Not to mention it was their fault in the first place!
By some miracle, I managed to make my train with 4 minutes to spare. Moral of the story? Want something done right, do it yourself! I am definitely not going to California if and when I relocate.... I was not impressed with anything about the state.
Showing posts with label vacations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vacations. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Saturday, January 16, 2010
The Best Customer Service I Have Received, By Far....
..... came from the two gentlemen you see pictured below.
They are Robert Trevinto (left), and Benny A. Phillips (right), who were stewards on Amtrak's "California Zephyr" train, on which I returned home after delivering a vehicle to California.
This story started in a roundabout way in Arizona. When I left the city of Mesa, I was not feeling quite right, and my condition worsened over the next 18 hours as I neared the drop-off point. I had stopped eating, because my stomach was so queasy, I didn't want to risk making things worse.
When I boarded the Zephyr from Emeryville, CA to Chicago, IL, I vaguely remember Robert taking my ticket, which is to say, I was extremely ill at this point, barely upright, and as such, I decided to remain in my sleeper and hope that rest would get rid of whatever it was. Nothing doing.
Robert and a couple of other crew members checked in on me several times during that day and evening for dining car accommodations, which I refused, as my stomach was steadily getting worse.
The next day, I did make one attempt and did not even make it to placing my order. That evening, Robert was beginning to notice something was wrong. By this time, despite having a fever and being wrapped in a blanket, I was getting bad chills and violently shivering in misery in my sleeper, feeling as though I were going to die.
He asked at first if I wanted to call paramedics or go to a hospital at the next stop, but it was out of the question. I knew I didn't have enough money to cover rescheduling the rest of my return trip, as it would likely cost more than originally. I already knew that I have frequently recurring acid reflux, which is likely what brought the problem on in the first place.
A severe enough attack, if left unchecked and untreated, can eventually eat through the stomach lining and into other organs. It was either possibly not make it home alive, or not make it home at all if I sought medical attention.
When Robert began talking to another steward, Bennie, we determined that I had made a mistake by drinking apple juice on a near-empty stomach, as apple juice has acids in it that are hard on the system even under normal circumstances, which I did not know. Bennie suggested cranberry juice, as it had a slightly different composition and was easier on the internals, and set about getting me some chicken broth as well.
After alternately nursing cranberry juice and chicken broth gingerly for an hour and a half, Bennie also graciously gave me a couple of Tylenol PM for the fever, and 30 minutes later, I was resting comfortably and made a feeble attempt at breakfast the next day, which is to say I was unable to risk much more than yogurt and juice.
At lunch, I asked Robert if he could simply bring some broth and yogurt to my sleeper, as I did not want to inconvenience anyone else in the dining car, and I was pretty sure these were all I would be able to handle for awhile. I WAS, however, feeling quite a bit better than the night before. I actually was able to get up and move around a bit, snapping some photos of what remained of the scenic part of the route, salvaging some part of the fun of the trip.
In summary, Robert and Bennie not only made my trip a lot more comfortable than it would have been, they likely may have saved my life. These fellows took extremely good care of me, and looked out for me more than they really had to, and being in the service industry myself, I know that it is extremely rare to find people THAT devoted to customer service. I would ride on ANY train if these fellows were serving me. If you ride Amtrak and are fortunate enough to have these guys serve you, take good care of them, because I can assure you, they will definitely take good care of you.
They are Robert Trevinto (left), and Benny A. Phillips (right), who were stewards on Amtrak's "California Zephyr" train, on which I returned home after delivering a vehicle to California.
This story started in a roundabout way in Arizona. When I left the city of Mesa, I was not feeling quite right, and my condition worsened over the next 18 hours as I neared the drop-off point. I had stopped eating, because my stomach was so queasy, I didn't want to risk making things worse.
When I boarded the Zephyr from Emeryville, CA to Chicago, IL, I vaguely remember Robert taking my ticket, which is to say, I was extremely ill at this point, barely upright, and as such, I decided to remain in my sleeper and hope that rest would get rid of whatever it was. Nothing doing.
Robert and a couple of other crew members checked in on me several times during that day and evening for dining car accommodations, which I refused, as my stomach was steadily getting worse.
The next day, I did make one attempt and did not even make it to placing my order. That evening, Robert was beginning to notice something was wrong. By this time, despite having a fever and being wrapped in a blanket, I was getting bad chills and violently shivering in misery in my sleeper, feeling as though I were going to die.
He asked at first if I wanted to call paramedics or go to a hospital at the next stop, but it was out of the question. I knew I didn't have enough money to cover rescheduling the rest of my return trip, as it would likely cost more than originally. I already knew that I have frequently recurring acid reflux, which is likely what brought the problem on in the first place.
A severe enough attack, if left unchecked and untreated, can eventually eat through the stomach lining and into other organs. It was either possibly not make it home alive, or not make it home at all if I sought medical attention.
When Robert began talking to another steward, Bennie, we determined that I had made a mistake by drinking apple juice on a near-empty stomach, as apple juice has acids in it that are hard on the system even under normal circumstances, which I did not know. Bennie suggested cranberry juice, as it had a slightly different composition and was easier on the internals, and set about getting me some chicken broth as well.
After alternately nursing cranberry juice and chicken broth gingerly for an hour and a half, Bennie also graciously gave me a couple of Tylenol PM for the fever, and 30 minutes later, I was resting comfortably and made a feeble attempt at breakfast the next day, which is to say I was unable to risk much more than yogurt and juice.
At lunch, I asked Robert if he could simply bring some broth and yogurt to my sleeper, as I did not want to inconvenience anyone else in the dining car, and I was pretty sure these were all I would be able to handle for awhile. I WAS, however, feeling quite a bit better than the night before. I actually was able to get up and move around a bit, snapping some photos of what remained of the scenic part of the route, salvaging some part of the fun of the trip.
In summary, Robert and Bennie not only made my trip a lot more comfortable than it would have been, they likely may have saved my life. These fellows took extremely good care of me, and looked out for me more than they really had to, and being in the service industry myself, I know that it is extremely rare to find people THAT devoted to customer service. I would ride on ANY train if these fellows were serving me. If you ride Amtrak and are fortunate enough to have these guys serve you, take good care of them, because I can assure you, they will definitely take good care of you.
Friday, January 8, 2010
An Impromptu Vacation To Arizona By Way Of California.....
Some know it, some don't, but I have been quite interested in a woman in Arizona for quite some time. We get along quite well, and she is planning to move to Nevada as well.
She wanted to come see me first, but after her boss screwed her over (for the third time) on time off to make the trip, I decided to go see her. I lucked out and found someone who needed a car driven to California, crossing Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. They were willing to pay for the gas, but I split it with them in exchange for a few days detour into Mesa.
This is my first vacation since 1997, and the trip has been great so far. Currently in Mesa, AZ. We finally met, and things are going extremely well. Lots of good pictures to share from the trip as well... Until I crossed into New Mexico, I thought I-40 was the most boring and forsaken highway I'd ever driven. New Mexico is beautiful, as is Arizona. I really wish I could check out Nevada, but I just didn't have time this trip around.
I think I finally found someone worth keeping that actually wants me. I will be broke when I get home, but I finally got to meet her. What's interesting is that neither one of us was looking for anything. All I can say is this. What you THINK you want, isn't always what you really want, and what you really want and what you actually need are usually two different things. When you stop looking for what you THINK you want, what you actually need will find you.
She wanted to come see me first, but after her boss screwed her over (for the third time) on time off to make the trip, I decided to go see her. I lucked out and found someone who needed a car driven to California, crossing Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. They were willing to pay for the gas, but I split it with them in exchange for a few days detour into Mesa.
This is my first vacation since 1997, and the trip has been great so far. Currently in Mesa, AZ. We finally met, and things are going extremely well. Lots of good pictures to share from the trip as well... Until I crossed into New Mexico, I thought I-40 was the most boring and forsaken highway I'd ever driven. New Mexico is beautiful, as is Arizona. I really wish I could check out Nevada, but I just didn't have time this trip around.
I think I finally found someone worth keeping that actually wants me. I will be broke when I get home, but I finally got to meet her. What's interesting is that neither one of us was looking for anything. All I can say is this. What you THINK you want, isn't always what you really want, and what you really want and what you actually need are usually two different things. When you stop looking for what you THINK you want, what you actually need will find you.
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