I have a number of old photos I needed to get reprints of. Of course, I don't have the negatives. So on Saturday, Leif was napping, Hans was hanging out, and so I ran to FedEx Kinkos to copy and print them on one of those kiosks.
After 30 minutes, I had 30 of the 40 pictures scanned in. Each one took about 30 seconds to scan and it took me about another 30 seconds to reset it for the next. I was in the rhythm though. It was going well, that is until a "failure notice, scanner not recognized, contact customer service" message came up. I finally attract the attention of Derek, dorky Derek, the only service person in the entire place on Sunday.
He comes over and after telling me 5 times, "this has never happened before", does a Microsoft reboot. I ask him to "pull my pictures up please". No dice. He doesn't know how to do this, they are gone according to him, which I still don't believe that the computer has no short term memory. At this point 40 minutes down the drain. But I need the pictures. So I start again. Dorky Derek tells me once again that "this has never happened before". I snapped back, "yeah, that's what you said five times before, count this as the first time it has happened because frankly I don't care that it hasn't happened before". (Ok, probably bad move to piss off Dorky Derek.)
I got smart this time and did the pictures in batches of 10. Scanned in 10, printed 10. At the printing of picture 36 (1 hour and 20 minutes into this endeavor) another error message. "Out of paper, replace paper PS###, contact customer service". Dorky Derek returns, annoyed with me I can tell. I am on the phone with my mom and I just point to the screen, while I continue jabbering.
He opens the front of the machine, pulls out the paper and this appears to be a quick thing that probably "has happened before". He can't find the right paper. The paper he brought over is too small, he leaves and returns with paper too large. He is looking, and looking. I am looking at the clock... 4:15pm, we have dinner at our friends at 5pm.
These two stupid 19 year olds walk in and start talking to Dorky Derek. He leaves to help them photocopy a flyer, I mean who can't run a frickin' photocopier. But I am livid that he was helping me and just quits and goes and helps someone else for seriously 10 minutes, all the while chatting and never making eye contact with me. 15 minutes has ticked by since the "print error". I am now on the phone with Hans, bitching up a storm. He says "just leave". (I have the temperament to go with my red hair, but it is rarely seen... it was starting to rear it's ugly head.)
Dorky Derek is nowhere to be found. The 19 year olds are gone. I wait a few minutes, then I pick up my stack of 36 reprinted photos, 40 originals, my purse and keys and I leave, without paying.
I have never stolen anything in my entire life. I felt guilty in high school when one of the kids I babysat stuck a yellow big crayon in my purse and I took it home on accident. I was so afraid the parents would think I stole it. (As a parent now, ha ha ha ha!!)
I got home with the pictures and Hans is dying when I said, "well here are my 'hot' pictures"! He says "I didn't mean to take the pictures with you!" Well no way in hell was I just leaving them (after my 1 hour 45 minute ordeal)! They would have just tossed them in the trash. But no way in hell was I paying for the ridiculousness I endured either.
I still have four pictures to copy. But I have to find a new kiosk, because I can never again show my face in FedEx Kinkos.
My sister will be so proud of my little streak of deviance.
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