Rant, Rave, and Well Deserved Praise

I love to shop at Kohls for clothes for baby and toddler items as well as some other basic odds and ends.  When our Chinese rice cooker died, Kohls had the best price on the replacement (okay, I only compared with Amazon, Macys, and two or three other sites), especially since I could get it at 30% as a Kohls charge card holder AND get $10 back for every $50 I spent.  I am a regular Kohls customer for things like that. 

This week my two kitchen wooden spoons arrived in a box big enough for a bed pillow, but they had it dropped shipped from their supplier so can't blame them for that, and my other items did not arrive.  Box came with packing slip and some baby items that were not at all what I ordered.  Not even close.  Sigh.  So I want to return the things that aren't mine and get the things that I ordered and paid for.

Living overseas presents challenges, and returns are one of them.  With the time difference and the often crappy connection I have for phone calls, e-mail customer service would seem the way to go.  I explained the situation.  Questions were asked of me.  I responded, but of course the same person didn't get that e-mail.  Trying to go over things (guess they don't read the whole thread or the notes that they take) is like a game of telephone and the message doesn't get through. 

I gave up and called as I had done on a previous occassion.  Nicest customer service on the phone.  Very polite, very helpful, and the problem was dealt with.  Not only was it corrected, but it was corrected to my advantage as a courtesy for my inconvenience.  Nice.  They have kept me as a customer.  I hope that as they look over my order history they can see that I am a reasonable person.  I know that there are people that try to scam companies over things like toddler boy socks and bath tub ABC letters, but I am not one of those people.

Specific kudos go to the supervisor who just knew that 20189 is State Dept zip code and that they could not schedule a UPS pickup so I could return items.  The wonderful woman who spoke with me on the phone honored the prices of my original purchase OR the current sale price, whichever was to my advantage.  Now, how much money is Kohls out?  In my mind, they aren't out any. They have kept a customer.  For me, it wasn't about the money either, but about customer service.  Thank you, phone customer service.  Now to get your e-mail representatives with a more efficient, helpful way of doing things.

Mail in Namibia

I know I haven't written much for awhile. I have been putting pics on Facebook and posting video on YouTube without noting it in the blog. Since I am at my parents' house right now, there isn't a big need for me to keep my mom up to date. I should get better again once we leave Idaho.

We are leaving for Namibia on Thanksgiving Day. We will not have APO mail there. Several people are curious about our mail situation while we are there. We will be able to get mail through the diplomatic pouch. All the long, boring details can be found at http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/22183.pdf, but I have copied the most relevant information and pasted it below. The post office also has some information at http://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/703.htm#wp1113914. One thing it notes there that I think is worth mentioning (since I have two small boys) is that no weapons or things resembling weapons, INCLUDING TOY GUNS.

U.S. citizen direct hire members of the foreign affairs community and their family members may receive via the personal pouch letters and packages at a maximum size limit of 17x18x32 inches (no single dimension can exceed this limit) and maximum weight of 50 pounds.

In addition, aerosols, alcoholic beverages, ammunition, items for resale, bulk supplies, corrosives (acids), currency, explosives, firearms, flammables, glass containers, illegal substances, incendiary materials, narcotics, plants, poisons, and radioactive substances are prohibited. It is now permitted to send 16 ounces of liquid per box; liquids include anything that flows, such as syrup.

Using express mail services does not get mail to a post any quicker because the express mail service is only from the point of origin to Dulles. Packages may be mailed at any post office in the United States or sent by United Parcel Service, FedEx, DHL, or other non-postal means of transportation (although these also only speed the material to the Dulles starting point).

When using the Dulles, VA, zip code, for security reasons, nothing in the address field should reference in any way the mission, the office, your job title, or anything official about where you work.

All parcels should be securely packed and sealed. Insured and registered mail services are not available for items sent through the pouch and the Department accepts no liability for loss or damage.

FYI: Theoretically, you shouldn't have to pay Virginia sales tax to this zip code since it is only for diplomatic pouch. Don't count on all online vendors to have this in their system however.

Hope this answers questions for people. Let me know if you have others. I will do my best. Most things should be able to get to us fine according to these restrictions. We have many restrictions on what we can send out.