The benefits of getting to know your neighbours (the Canadian spelling)

Sir Fuzz-butt, The Sparkinator

At o'dark-hundred this morning when Sparky and I headed out for his first walk of the day, I noticed a young woman standing outside the main entrance of the south tower in our complex. She was holding a charming, and judging by the size of his or her feet, a soon-to-be much larger, black puppy in her arms.

“I forgot my keys,” she explained.

December in Canada is dark and chilly. Luckily today’s temperature was not the bone-freezing cold that we can get, but was too cold to be stuck outside.

“My fob will get you inside the lobby, but I don’t think it will work for the elevator,” I said, as Sparky and I crossed the driveway to her building.

My electronic fob unlatched the main door, and we continued across the lobby to the elevators hoping that maybe, just maybe, I could activate the elevator for her floor.

December morning

Nope! It wouldn’t open the stairway doors either, so she had to hang out in the lobby until another resident from her building arrived and activated the elevators. It’s the downside to living in a moderately secure complex. No electronic fob. No access. 

It’s happened to me, and a few others.

“Do you know any of your neighbours? Someone that you can call on the intercom, and ask for help?” I asked.

“Not really,” she said.

And that isn’t surprising in a city, even a small-ish city of 40,000 residents. It’s easy to just nod a greeting and keep walking.

Beatty St before condo conversion

But, I’m a small-town girl at heart. Many of the places that I have lived were less than 5000 residents and I knew enough people that I could get whatever help I needed. 

Even when Lawrie and I lived in a converted warehouse on Beatty Street in downtown Vancouver, we made a point of getting to know the other residents. It started with a building-wide roaming cocktail party that turned into close friendships that lasted for many years.

Close friends, Isla Mujeres

In 2007, when we moved to live full-time on Isla Mujeres, Mexico, we knew only four people and they were snowbirds, living on the island from November to April. The next winter we hosted a neighbourhood party, inviting everyone in our area who had just built, or who were currently building a house. Within a year our Bachilleres neighbourhood had become known for its roving house parties, group gatherings, and tight-knit friendships.

Trish, Tina, and me, wine-touring

Here in Penticton, I have made a point of befriending many of the residents in our condo complex, and their pets. We are each other’s safety net. If one of us is not feeling well, the others volunteer to walk pets, fetch groceries, or just check on the person. Some of us socialize regularly. Some meet up for food and drinks occasionally. And others just chat in the hallways.

Many people live on their own in this complex, people of a variety of ages, and a variety of backgrounds. It’s nice to know that some of those folks are watching out for me, and I am also watching out for them.

Wherever you live, you should get to know the other folks living near you. You could make a lasting friendship.

Merry Christmas! Seasons Greeting! Happy New Year to all!

Lynda

Sparky sends his woofs!

Sparky, one of the main characters in my novels

Day 41 of being a flea on the butt of Amazon. Success!

 

Day 38 of being a flea on the butt of Amazon and BNI Postmedia - success, I think

A refund? You're joking!

Late yesterday afternoon I received an email from Grace, with the Amazon Executive Relations team. 

According to her, my refund is in the works! 

And it should show as a credit to my Visa in 5 to 7 days.

So, fingers crossed this will be the end of 38 days of stress and worry.

But until I see the refund, I will remain skeptical.

Cheers Lynda

Sparky sends his woofs!

Day 37 of being a flea on the butt of Amazon and their delivery contractors BNI Postmedia. SIGH!

This morning I emailed three of the four top executives at Amazon asking for an update on my refund. 

Andy Jassy. 

Chief Executive
410 Terry Avenue North
Seattle, WA 98109

Doug Herrington.

Chief Executive Officer, Worldwide Amazon Stores
410 Terry Avenue North
Seattle, WA 98109

Candi Castleberry-Singleton

Vice President of Inclusive eXperiences Technology (IXT)
410 Terry Avenue North
Seattle, WA 98109

And I received yet another form letter from another customer service representative as a reply.

I'm stressed, cranky, and not going to give up!

Cheers Lynda

Nov 2nd 3:30 p.m.

Hello Lynda,

This is xxxxx, an Amazon Delivery and Returns Specialist. I hope this email finds you well.

I received a message from my colleague regarding your recent email about your concern. Unfortunately, we need some more information about your situation before we are able to assist you.

When you have a free moment, please respond to this email with the following information:

Order ID

Name of the item:

Date the order was placed:

Issue with the order:

I’m sorry for this inconvenience. We look forward to resolving this situation as soon as we hear back from you.

We’d appreciate your feedback. Please use the buttons below to vote about your experience today.

Día de los Muertos and Day 36 of being a flea on the butt of Amazon, BNI Postmedia, and Intelcom courier

Mexico and other Spanish-speaking countries are celebrating la Día de los Muertos honoring their departed family members. It's a lovely tradition full of color, light, food, music, and family gatherings.

For me, November 1st is my 36th day of pounding my computer keyboard, trying to obtain a refund of $613.47 from the multinational megacorp, worth 1.9 trillion dollars. Amazon.  

Amazon contracts out deliveries to businesses like BNI PostMedia and IntelCom. Those companies are supposed to deliver all parcels safely to the designated addresses. 

September 12th: I ordered 655 copies of my 10 murder mystery novels in preparation for several upcoming Christmas markets.

September 25th: the boxes started to arrive.

September 26th: a box of 39 copies of CORKED was posted on my account as ‘Undeliverable.’  Then a box of 43 copies of SMASHED met the same fate, ‘Undeliverable.’ 

I have phoned the Amazon Customer Service Representatives 10 times.

I have emailed the Amason Customer Service Representatives, dozens of times. Each time being asked for the same information over and over again.

I have emailed, three top executives several times; Mr. Andy Jassy, Mr. Doug Herrington, and Ms. Candi Castleberry-Singleton. They have forwarded my pesky emails to their Amazon Executive Relations Team.

39 copies missing

I recently posted this notice on many Okanagan FaceBook groups asking if anyone in the South Okanagan had received my two parcels by mistake.

HELLO OKANAGAN FOLKS!

Just on the off chance .... BNI (Postmedia couriers) claims that they delivered my missing package to my address in Penticton on September 24th. I did not receive it. Has anyone, anywhere in the Okanagan Valley seen a heavy Amazon box, containing 43 copies of my mystery novel SMASHED? And there is another box that's missing, 39 copies of CORKED?

I am desperate to resolve this problem, which has been occupying too much of my time for over a month. Please message me if you know anything! It will be a huge financial hit for me if Amazon or BNI won't refund my money.

Cheers Lynda Lock, Penticton.

43 copies missing 

Yesterday I emailed the City of Penticton asking if by chance any of their employees at the Campbell Mountain Landfill (city dump) had noticed one or two large Amazon boxes of books. They are in the process of checking with their staff. 

I seriously doubt that I will ever find the boxes but I am trying to prove what happened to the two missing deliveries.

36 days later and I am still being stonewalled with vague responses such as these:

"Firstly, I apologies for all the inconvenience caused in regards to your shopping experience with us. During your free time please write back via email to us with the following information:" 

-Order number

-Name of the item or ASIN, quantity is applicable

-Description of the issue

-Assistance you may require Or please contact us via chats or calls for a faster resolution on it."

Email from the top boss! 

Jeff Bezos. Oct 30, 2024, 1:46 PM - Thank you for contacting us.

So, today I started sending out Letters to the Editor, for local newspapers.

My next task will be to send letters to any American newspapers that will post my letters. 

I am stressed. Very stressed. But I am not giving up.

Lynda

PS: there is a lot more information on my previous posts on this blog starting October 24th. 

Day 35 of being a flea on the butt of Amazon, BNI Postmedia, and Intelcom. Still waiting on a refund!

I had hoped that this problem would have been resolved a long, long, long time ago, but here I am still waiting for Amazon and their contract delivery services to do the right thing and refund me the $613.47 for two lost packages.

In the meantime, Happy Halloween everyone. 

Cheers Lynda. Sparky sends his woofs!

Day 34 of being a flea on the butt of Amazon, and their delivery services Postmedia, and Intelcom

 

Another parcel has been incorrectly delivered. It's not my parcel, and it wasn't shipped by Amazon. 

However:

It belongs to a person who lives in Okanagan Falls, 17 kms (about 11 miles) south of where it was delivered. We are going to meet up later this afternoon so that I can give her the parcel.

Why do I mention this? 

Today is the 34th day since I asked Amazon to refund my money for two lost packages, packages that their contractors insist have been safely delivered to my address. 

For the first two weeks, I was stonewalled by an ever-changing line of Customer Service agents until I started emailing the executives directly.

Now I get daily 'love letters' from a variety of agents who are part of the 'Amazon Executive Relations team.' 

Every agent reassures me with similar words. "We are working to resolve this concern as quickly as possible. You don't need to take any further action."

Call me skeptical but I don't see this as progress. 

Cheers, Lynda

Day 31 of being a flea on the butt of Amazon, and now BNI Postmedia

Happy Monday, everyone:

Today's love letter from Amazon was slightly less annoying. 

Thankfully, this time I was not asked to supply the same information - again.

It's from someone who works for the Amazon Executive Relations team. I had a similar letter a week ago from a different person on the same 'team.' I responded to that one, and never heard from that person again.

Amazon seems to use a revolving system of assignments. I have never had a response from the same person twice in the 31 days of dozens of phone calls, and dozens of emails. It's damn annoying.

Fingers crossed I'll get my refund of $613.47 soon - before the stress kills me.

Lynda

Your Account Amazon.ca Message From Customer Service Hello Lynda L, This is Sirisha, with the Amazon's Executive Relations team. We received your email and are following up to ensure your concerns are addressed. I'm sorry to hear about the problem you've had with your Order ID: 701-3222033-3269060 and 702-8656836-714263. We apologize for the delay in answering your question. We can assure you that your question is being investigated. We are working towards providing an update to you as soon as possible.

My one-month anniversary of being a flea on the butt of Amazon, and now BNI Postmedia

 

HAPPY ONE-MONTH ANNIVERSARY TO ME FROM AMAZON! 

A pleasant person named Aparna from Amazon has sent me another form letter asking me to supply the same information that I have supplied, daily, since September 27th, through phone calls to the Customer Service line, or through detailed emails to at least 27 different Amazon Customer Service agents.  

So, in celebration of our long-standing association, I posted this on several Facebook pages.

HELLO OKANAGAN FOLKS!

Just on the off chance .... BNI (Postmedia couriers) claims that they delivered my missing packages to my address in Penticton on September 24th. I did not receive them.

Has anyone, anywhere in the Okanagan Valley seen a heavy Amazon box, containing 43 copies of my mystery novel SMASHED? And there is another box that's missing, 39 copies of CORKED?

I am desperate to resolve this problem, which has been occupying too much of my time for over a month. Please message me if you know anything! It will be a huge financial hit for me if Amazon or BNI won't refund my money.

Cheers Lynda Lock, Penticton.

Your Account Amazon.ca Message From Customer Service Hello, A pleasant day to you! This is Aparna from Amazon, the one who is working on your issue right now and it certainly is a pleasure assisting you today. I'd like to make an assurance that all inquiries are reviewed and taken seriously, and we're working hard to ensure a positive shopping experience among our loyal customers like you. Firstly, I apologies for all the inconvenience caused in regards to your shopping experience with us. During your free time please write back via email to us with the following information: (OMG!!!) -Order number -Name of the item or ASIN, quantity is applicable -Description of the issue -Assistance you may require Or please contact us via chats or calls for a faster resolution on it. Thanks for your understanding. Do contact us if you have any further queries. We can be reached by phone, e-mail and chat 7 days a week using the link below. We can be reached by phone 06.00 to midnight (local US time), and by e-mail and chat 24 hours a day: https://www.amazon.com/contact-us We look forward to seeing you again soon. We'd appreciate your feedback. Please use the buttons below to vote about your experience today. Best regards, Aparna Amazon.ca Did I solve your problem? Yes No

A flea on the butt of a multinational megacorp, Amazon, and now BNI Postmedia

TODAY'S UPDATE DAY 30 LYNDA VS AMAZON. "Email from Amazon Customer Service: [ITEM MISSING: It appears that the Carrier has recorded your package as delivered on September 24 to the correct location with the correct weight."

Amazon now claims that the delivery company BNI says that the package was delivered to my address, even though their email to me said Undeliverable, and I physically counted the books and only received 157 out of 200.

BNI, also known as Brunswick News Inc., was owned by J.D. Irving Ltd. until Postmedia acquired it last year. The company delivers Amazon packages not just across New Brunswick, but in other provinces, including Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.

So, now I have to fight with the BNI call centre. Around and around I go!

Missing!  43 copies of Smashed.