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Normally, I can and do disagree with harry_chickpea - but in this case he is absolutely right, every single word. When dealing with employee/customer issues, the customers who insist that "the customer is always right" are usually the customers who are too incompetent to make their own decisions or take responsibility for their own choices, and need someone to blame for their simpering and/or arrogant ineffectiveness, irresponsibility, and callous disregard for others.
I called the "line" people out once in 20 YEARS - and that was because I was digging a 4 foot deep drainage ditch and wanted to ensure I didn't cut a line. My yard was carefully laid out long before, according to the map I received when I purchased the house, with plants, perennials, annuals, and shrubs and trees initially. Everywhere there were lines, were placed shallow-rooted daylily corms or annuals. It's fairly simple and fool proof once you have a plan and a process. If you're digging up anywhere and anywho, just because you saw something new in Better Homes and Gardens, or if you are planting things willy-nilly and on impulse, without any respect for or grasp of longevity, spread, or root invasion, then I can see why you would need someone out there every six weeks. I can also see why you might need a keeper, or why you might end up on one of those "Save my Disaster of a Yard!" DYI programs, or even on Oprah or Phil, wondering why no one respects you. Plan your garden, be practical and methodical, plant for the future, and don't expect the world to pity, babysit, cater to, and coddle your self-imposed ignorance and irresponsibility.
If you followed behind ME pulling up flags, I'd have dropped everything, went to my truck, filled out a full report - with pictures - so that everyone could see exactly what you are, then left. Some folks subtly or not so subtly place the emphasis on the word "Servant" when they talk about "public servants", and that is insulting. You should be grateful that he didn't take such a report and pictures back to his office and that they didn't send you a bill for all four visits. I would've.
"I took a survey map of the property, copied it onto graph paper, and paced off where everything was. I happen to have an almost perfect 2.5' pace, so it was simple for me, but they do make tape measures for those not so talented. That way, flags and paint weren't an issue. As an alternative, you can also use marker spots and notes. If you have a perimeter fence, put tiny marks on it that are normally not visible, but can be used as a guide. Say you have a line that crosses your property at an angle - you mark the entrance and exit points, and tack a string between the two when you want to locate the line. Or you can buy a bag of white pebbles or marbles, and lay them over the line. Or you can buy a metal detector of your own. Or you can pay to have the lines moved to a different location"
Quote:
Chickpea, others have had positive suggestions which I certainly will try to follow but your comments offered nothing constructive and follow your past posts which seem to show your enjoyment of putting people down.
Do you not see anything constructive in his post?
I do.
Thanks Harry for suggestion on how to locate diagonal lines etc.
So you don't think the multitude of alternatives that I supplied were "positive?" The ideas of making a map, of marking the outside of the property with markers, the use of stones or marbles as semi-permanent markers for you? Those were not positive suggestions? I didn't leave you "in the lurch" by pointing out how your attitude was rude and then stopping, but I laid out those alternatives so you had a graceful way of saying something like "gee, I never thought of that." Any of those suggestions would save you time and make life easier for everyone.
You misunderstood that, and you misinterpret when you say "your past posts which seem to show your enjoyment of putting people down."
I have no interest whatsoever in putting anyone "down." In fact the exact opposite is true, because when I point out how a person may be laboring under incorrect assumptions, or creating more work for themselves, it allows them to make changes and it increases their own pool of knowledge, thus building them up rather than putting them down.
I do take an interest in taking ideas and concepts which are extreme, and exposing them to the air where they wither and die. That is entirely different than putting someone down. We all make mistakes, we all have to learn. How gracefully we do that is up to each of us. It takes a strong person to stop, consider, and then admit "maybe this wasn't a particularly good idea" rather than beating the messenger.
I worked with the public for a number of years, often mediating between upset customers and employees doing their jobs according to the rules set by the company. I can say as an absolute fact, that over 80% of the time when a customer started out with the word "rude" that I eventually uncovered that they were the ones coming from the point of view of outrageous entitlement and had a supercilious attitude that would NOT be satisfied by anything less than an employee and/or manager cowering in front of them saying "Oh I'm SORRY, I'm so SORRY, It won't happen again, please don't get me fired." and then getting that employee fired, just to teach them a lesson. I've seen it. I've watched young employees in tears because of people with such attitudes.
The MOMENT you said "Should I report him, ignore him?" after claiming rudeness, you hit my radar. Once you hit that radar, YEP, I can be confrontational. When you go through life, after a few hundred hissy-fits of "I'm going to have your job" or "I'm going to get you fired," or related threats, you start to realize that you HAVE to be confrontational in some situations. And yes, in those instance, such a reaction IS called for. I'm relaying to you what the man coming out to do the marking CAN'T say without risking getting fired. You can't fire me, no matter how upset you get.
Since you are upset, and I don't see any need to make this a personal issue between us, rather than continuing, I will be writing an email to the "call before you dig" people, to suggest that there be fines for people that abuse the service, and that the call-outs be limited to a certain number per year before the person calling is charged. I'm a bit surprised it hasn't been written into law up there, and it is something that I feel should be considered.
I would try to give you rep points for this post, but I already did for the first one. Any way once again ""
Would you call or pickup the flag if they charged you? I am sure not ;so mark the areas so you don't call every six weeks.Stake it out and call once is my opinion.
I called the "line" people out once in 20 YEARS - and that was because I was digging a 4 foot deep drainage ditch and wanted to ensure I didn't cut a line.
Thank you for writing this. I just worked in my flower bed planting new plants and didn't call the dig people.
I was starting to feel like some irresponsible idiot until I read posts on this thread.
I've experienced people like the OP...they have no clue what they're doing and no matter what you do you're going to get a complaint, especially if you point out their stupidity. I've been in that position where some idiot was screaming for my job. I can't believe someone walked around behind the guy pulling all the flags...I would have left if I were the guy. They must mark everything because of liability...
Have you all had enough fun yet? You all seem to miss the point I made that the man PAINTED and PUT DOWN FLAGS.? I didn't need both and thought I was doing a good thing by trying to give them back to him. I don't know about where you live but here I see Call Before You Dig notices in every publication, on TV and in my mailbox. This is a new house with no landscaping at all. I have asked the dispatcher if there is a limit on the number of times I can call and she assured me there is none and that they would rather make repeated visits than have to repair a line. It is with that understanding I have called when ever I decide to tackle a new area.
I simply cannot believe the assumptions some of you have made about a person you don't know or a situation you are not familiar with. In my previous house where I lived for 20 years I called the One Call people only once., That was all that was needed so I don't enjoy sending workers out on silly expeditions. I was sincerely trying to avoid damage and only doing what I and all my neighbors in new houses are told to do.
So go take your venom to somebody else. I've had enough. Since I've been on this forum I've contributed a great deal to people who have asked questions and I've tried to be considerate just as i have in all areas of my life. I asked for a different point of view with suggestions and I got some good ones but I never expected to be blasted for doing what the general public is TOLD to do to avoid damage. I've seen posters attacked by angry responders on City Data before and I've often wondered how they must feel. Now I know. I just don't understand why.
Have you all had enough fun yet? You all seem to miss the point I made that the man PAINTED and PUT DOWN FLAGS.?
Did you miss the point that he has rules and regulations that he MUST FOLLOW in his job, or he could be disciplined or fired? You yourself stated that you followed behind him pulling up flags. You were repeatedly an annoying jerk to this guy. If you can't see that, then I feel sorry for the poor guy when you call him out and trash his work right behind him again.
You were given some great suggestions, and you've totally blown them off as useless. For pete's sake, get a freaking camera, take pictures of the flags and paint, and make a graph of your lot and stop annoying the poor guy and using up taxpayer resources with your selfishness.
I've never ever called that number for general landscaping. And I have put in a TON of flower beds. I've actually never heard of anyone doing that unless they putting up a fence or digging a really deep hole for a tree or something.
Maybe she's burying ex-husbands ....
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(Sometimes I disagree with myself, and that gets me even MORE upset.)
Thanks Harry for suggestion on how to locate diagonal lines etc.
until I read posts on this thread. 
