customer service

woahhhh we haven’t posted on here in a while! it’s not that we don’t love you guys- we’ve just been busy with our internships/study abroad. anyways, i have a little story for you that i’ve needed to get off my chest for a long time.

this past march, i ordered a diane von furstenberg (dvf) dress to wear to one of my sorority events (maybe formal or a crush event we have-can’t remember). i have been a very loyal customer of dvf for years. not only do i own many of her shoes, dresses, sweaters, etc., but i also have bought many of the more expensive pieces (i.e. lace dresses, etc.). needless to say, i’m a great customer.

i got the dress and it just didn’t look good. it was way too big and voluminous and just wasn’t going to work. even if i got it in a smaller size, the design just wasn’t flattering on me. i made the mistake of not sending the dress back immediately. i was in the middle of midterms and was slammed and just didn’t take the time to go mail it. i took the dress home for spring break and mailed it as soon as i got back from the dominican. based on the shipping label, i know that i received the dress on 3/1. based on my day planner (which we all know never leaves my side- i obsessively record everything in there), i know that i mailed the dress back on 3/18. i am ONE HUNDRED PERCENT positive that i mailed the dress back on friday, 3/18. i know that for a FACT because i mailed the dress back from my hometown and i went back to school the next day.

the dress had been shipped to me from the bal harbour dvf store for some reason (even though i ordered it online). there was ZERO paperwork in the box, so i returned the dress to that store. i even included a handwritten note with all of my information on it. i shipped the box certified mail, so i was supposed to get back to the store by like the 22nd.

for a month or so, everything was fine. then one day the box was returned to me with a note inside that said something like, “we didn’t receive this package until april x (can’t remember, but it was something RIDICULOUSLY after the date it should have arrived), therefore it cannot be exchanged or returned.”

dvf has an interesting return policy. you can return something for up to 18 days for a full refund. items returned within 30 days are subject to a 20% restocking fee. annoying, but fine. i would have gladly taken the 80% refund no problem. i guess what happened is that the bal harbour store let my package sit around for WEEKS before they sent it to the main headquarters. um, is this my fault?! NO. i spoke with customer service on the phone and via email several times, and they flat out refused to do ANYTHING. they wouldn’t take the dress back, wouldn’t refund the money, wouldn’t exchange it, wouldn’t let me pick something else out. NOTHING. i was left with a dress that was horrifically large and unflattering that i could do NOTHING with. even worse, i was out the money for the dress and the cost of the super expensive shipping.

this is a warning to you all. first, be VERY WARY of dvf. i can tell you that i will no longer buy items from dvf. this is unfortunate for both of us, as i truly love their items and they will lose a very loyal customer (who they may not even be able to tell is very loyal because i buy all my clothes from saks instead of directly from dvf). second, never EVER make the customer feel like she’s at fault. this situation was a problem with the store. clearly it’s staff is incredibly incompetent. i acknowledge that i made mistakes here (namely waiting to return the dress and not keeping the certified mail tracking receipt). dvf’s mistakes, however, were muchmuchmuch worse. this is THEIR fault. i 100% should have been able to return this item. i have no problem spending a lot of money on things, but i CANNOT stand wasting money or replacing items that i already had. third, make sure your company has strong pr and customer service. bad customer service=bad reviews=friends spreading news of bad reviews=loss of customers for you. lose-lose situation.

xo charlotte

the casey anthony verdict…

makes me want to vom.

my toes literally CURL to the point of pain when i think about the fact that this murderer got off free. casey completely and utterly 100% killed her daughter, caylee. here are just a FEW of the suspicious facts:

-she didn’t report her daughter’s disappearance for over a month! who does that?! if you have a baby, s/he should not be out of your sight for more than like a minute! and if your baby does go missing, you call the police and all your friends and family ASAP! babies should NOT be missing. and if they are, their disappearance should be reported IMMEDIATELY.

-while your baby is missing, you do NOT party and get tattoos saying “la bella vita.”  you search for her and you cry and you help the investigators in any way you can.

-she didn’t testify. smoke signals, smoke signals! if you are innocent, you say where you were and what you were doing!!! you do not sit in silence trying to get other people to cover for you. you are basically admitting your guilt!

-wtf was up with her mother trying to lie and say that she was the one who searched for all the murderous (?!) search terms on casey’s computer?! um, seriously? that claim was disproven in .5 seconds. how stupid are you? this is another admission of casey’s guilt, right thurr.

-her own parents claim her defense was “baseless.”

this case makes america look like a joke. everyone and their cats know that casey killed caylee. who else could have even done it?! there are like zero other possibilities. i am seriously questioning the legal system right now. and the education of the jurors slash americans in general(side note on the jury: i was shocking that 7/12 of the jury members were women. you would think that women would be extra harsh on a mother who killed her daughter). cool, america, cool.

xo charlotte (doesn’t that “xo” seem strange at the end of this post?)

things i hate

it’s actually funny that we have a category on the blog called “things we hate.” clearly we have opinions…

i’m sure you guys allllll know kingsley. kingsley is the man. i actually like to think of myself as kind of a female version of kingsley- if we’re really going all out though, i would like to consider myself a cross between chelsea handler and bethenny. nbd. there’s a kid at our school who sounds EXACTLY like kingsley (and looks like him too)!!  i actually am convinced he IS kingsley, and i call him that to his face.

here’s a little intro to kingsley for those of you who don’t know him. appropriately enough, it’s called things i hate. let me just take note that i also HATE birds- SO much (ironic considering i’m a vegetarian- i told you i’m a walking contradiction).

just a fewww things other things that bother me (trust me, there are many):
-wake up calls
-when people who are really cheerful wake you up
-people turning on the lights when they wake you up
-getting in a shower when it’s still wet

(side note: i’ve been working on the website at my internship and i FINALLLYYYY figured out how to do normal spaces on wordpress! yayyy)

one thing i don’t hate: YOU ALL! you’ve stuck around even though we have been baaaaad bloggers lately. we’ll get better as we get the hang of workin’ round the clock.

xo charlotte

i hate goodbyes.

i feel like if you really know someone, really are friends with someone, you never have to say goodbye because the next time you see each other will be like you never were apart, and you can just pick up exactly where you last saw them.

Mary

studying for finaLs?!?

-Mary

ps: but seriously i went to mcdonalds, dunkin donuts TWICE, pchops, ate lunch for 3 hours today, watched an hour of 16 and pregnant (also WTF IS WRONG WITH THOSE PEOPLE?!) and have yet to open my book. i have three to read by tomorrow. good luck to me on my finals. (i’m gunna need it…)

unfair

this is the weather where i am:

this is the weather where my family is. they did not invite me:

love my life.

xo charlotte

SPRING PARTY WEEKEND/I HATE THE WEATHER.

first off i’d like to apologize for being absent from the blog for so long.  i didn’t expect to be as busy as i have been, and the reason for my lack of time is primarily because of spring party weekend.  if the caps in the title don’t properly display the fact that i have strong feelings on these subjects right now, i’m telling you all that i do right now.

i am on the exec committee for spw and since october (?) i have been planning the B.o.B. concert on saturday. spw is what students look forward to LITERALLY from the second they step foot on campus in august so as much as this is fun it’s also a big responsibility.  once the artist worked out for us i (wrongly) thought that it was smooth sailing.  now, because the weather here SUCKS (i wish i could highlight this word more) and is insanely unpredictable, we’re looking at an indoor concert (the official decision was made this afternoon).

i realize that isn’t the end of the world but the best part of spw is that everything is outside and everyone is just wandering around having a great time.  now everyone can still wander around and have a great time but they’ll be doing it inside of a building which undeniably changes the vibe. whoops this turned into a total rant…

…on a HAPPIER note: tomorrow and friday are supposed to be gorgy which will be so nice for the concerts those days. and B.o.B. on saturday will still be amazing because he’s an awesome performer and everyone will be in the spw “mindset” so it won’t even make a difference :)

TOMORROW AT 2:45 I CAN OFFICIALLY START SPW! I HOPE EVERYONE HAS AN AMAZING WEEKEND!

xx m

hit by a bus

we had formal last night. needless to say, this is what i’m feeling like today:

and i really don’t feel like doing anything.  i just wanna lay in my beddd…

unfortunately, i have two papers due tomorrow. #sundaystruggles.

xo charlotte

ovo lacto pescatarian

i don’t eat meat, and that causes people to ask a loooooooot of questions about my dietary habits. they’re a bit quirky slash particular, at best. i would say that i’m a pretty adventurous eater, but there are plenty of things that i absolutely refuse to eat, mostly because i’m a texture freak.

-condiments (absolutely no mayo, mustard, relish, cream cheese, jelly, sour cream, tartar sauce, barbecue sauce, hot sauce, etc.; i pretty much never eat any sauces/dips that accompany meals)

-jello and pudding

-bananas (i love almost all kinds of fruit, but i HATE bananas- it’s a texture thing; the only other fruits i don’t like are kiwi, papaya, and mango)

-flavored chips (only exception: salt + vinegar)

-frosting (omg i HATE icing; my dislike of frosting makes me not like cake very much- i do, however, like cupcakes because i feel like they have less frosting than cake does)

i may not eat meat, but i love meat substitutes (creepy, i know). my favorites include meatless meatballs, soysauges, and chickenless nuggets. don’t knock ’em ’til you try ’em. it helps that i don’t remember the original versions that they’re trying to taste like, as i haven’t eaten meat in about five years. i like veggie burgers, too. i also eat seafood. shrimp is my favorite type. i almost always order it when i see it on a menu. looove. i miss seafood so much when i’m at school.

my favorite food hands down is sushi. i will eat almost any type. obsessed. another one of my favorite foods is greek yogurt. my favorite type is siggi’s. it’s an icelandic-style skyr. tart and delicious. the only problem is that it’s a teeny bit hard to find. therefore, my more mainstream favorite is fage. i like to top my greek yogurt with berries. i like all types of berries, but blackberries are my ultimate fave. peaches are my number one favorite fruit, but unfortunately they’re not available year-round. i do NOT like greek yogurt topped with cereal or granola. i’m not a big cereal fan at all, actually. i don’t like how it gets all soggy. it creeps me out.

 

 

 

 

 

i also really don’t like buffets. i find them incredibly unappealing. i try to avoid them at all costs.

i won’t bore you with my other particularities. i’ll save them for another time :)

xo charlotte

 

 

if you can’t drive get the F off the road

so there’s this stereotype that asian women drivers suck at driving, which is maybe why my white dad was extra strict about me driving a car even after i got my license for about a month til he made sure i could drive (great…even my own dad doesn’t have faith in me) but in actuality i am a GREAT driver (maybe because he was so strict) and i’m not bragging, it’s just a fact. i know i’m a good driver (and everyone says so ;) ) i haven’t gotten a ticket or into an accident in the last two years since i’ve gotten my license in which i’ve driven over 30,000 miles (and yes i am bragging about that). my parents think i’m reckless and my friends think i drive fast but i know where i can drive fast and where i can’t (which distinguishes a bad driver from a good one) but in case you’re wondering if you are a good driver or not let me enlighten you:

• you’re not a good driver if you have to look behind you to switch lanes or merge, a good driver would know how to watch the mirror before and while merging/switching lanes to tell if a car is located in the blind spot
• you’re not a good driver if you can’t make a left turn (this is pretty basic)…sometimes if there’s a lot of traffic you just gotta go for it, good drivers are aggressive when necessary but not all the time (and those people who make 3 right turns instead of making a left…wtf are you doing with your life?)
• you’re not a good driver if you hug the rail on the highway or the curb on the street because you’re afraid of cars around you, you’re a good driver if you can hug the double yellow line without being in a different lane–other cars can move for you, a rail or a curb can’t. which brings me to my next point…
• you’re not a good driver if you can’t drive next to a truck or a bus–they’re not going to hit you so stop freaking out, they’re in their own lane, which i totally forgot about this point
• you’re not a good driver if you can’t drive on the highway!!! (this shocks me because the highway is a lot easier to drive on than in towns and cities–you have your own lane and you just gotta drive straight…duhh)
• you’re not a good driver if you can only drive a small car or only drive a big car, a good driver can be versatile and know how to judge and use the size of the vehicle. a good driver can drive any car, and be able to park it and take clean turns, confidently. (don’t let the car own you and hummers btw-ew plz do everyone, including the environment and my eyes, a favor and get a new car)
• you’re not a good driver if you can’t drive fast–i’m not advocating fast driving but you should be able to if it’s a highway with a speed limit of 65. that means you can go 75-80! afraid of driving fast, and being afraid of getting a ticket two completely different situations. if you’re not confident about driving a car fast, you’re probably not a confident driver.
• and lastly, if you don’t know how to parallel park, you suck at driving. you probably only got your license cus the cones are ridiculously far apart but if you can’t park between cars please learn.

so if you sound like you’re not a good driver, you’re probably not a good driver–but that’s alright, a lot of people who can’t drive, drive anyways! and people who can’t drive is just one category of drivers that annoy me on the road. there’s TONS of others. just to name a few:

• people who don’t put on their blinkers for ANYTHING (including switching lanes, getting off an exit, and turning onto the road that i’m on, off the road that i want to make a left on–thanks asshole i could’ve gone and now i have to wait another 5 minutes)
• people who don’t turn their blinkers on while their on the highway after they switched it on (do you not hear that annoying blinking sound it makes…TURN IT OFF)
• people who park diagonally in vertical parking spots (think of others please!)
• people who park in the middle of two parking spots so that no car can park next to them (you’re just a douche and your car is more likely to get keyed than get a scrape from another car door)
• people who drive in the left lane at the same speed as people in the middle lane (this is just rude..please switch to the middle lane and stop causing unneccessary traffic)
• old people that drive BELOW the speed limit are a lot more likely to cause an accident than people who drive above it (once someone gets too old that they forget which pedal is the brake and which is the gas…it’s time to retire from driving)
• people with STUPID bumper stickers (like my pre-schooler made the honor roll! OH WOW YOU’RE RAISING A GENIUS)
• people who are talking on their cell phones but aren’t paying attention to when the light turns green or what they’re doing (i don’t mind cell phones as long as you’re not making me late cus you didn’t see your chance to take a right on red)
• people who don’t take a right on red EVER or a left turn when there’s a small opening (…you’re a pussy…)
• people who drive with pets on their lap (i mean there’s nothing wrong with this, but it’s just creepy seeing a big man stroke his little toy shit tzu or teacup dog while driving)
• oh and i can’t forget…asian women drivers. yes i admit–they suck at driving. it’s amazing–anytime i drive anywhere with a majority asian-american population i’m afraid for my life. they are all the above and drive like they are the only ones on the road with no lanes, lights or signs. if you ever see one behind the wheel (except for me!), be afraid…be very afraid.

so as you see i have a lot of driving frustrations–probably because i drove over three hours today in bumper to bumper traffic to get to koreatown, new york and back home. after a couple heart attacks caused by some asian women i have made it home in one piece and i’m ready to go boarding tomorrow to enjoy the last of the snow..

sorry if you’ve just realized you’re a sucky driver and i offended you…but maybe you should practice your driving skills ;)

-Mary