I am so glad that I don’t post daily because I sooooooo would have hit publish on a post I wrote a few days ago when I was feeling taken advantage of and pissed off. Now that I am out of the moment, I still feel wronged, but also a little petty. That post did have an awesome first paragraph, though, which I will share now:
I am so angry I could spit. Well, I could spit, but then I’d have to clean it up, and that would be gross and defeat the whole purpose!
All of this came about because I felt I was being taken advantage of by an auto mechanic. Upon reflection he was really was only trying to sell me one over-priced service, and even that was only $60, but it still broke my trust in that garage.
What all of this taught me is that I get really worked up when I have to rely on someone else’s opinion on what needs to be done when I don’t have enough expertise to be able to diagnose the problem myself. How do I know if they’re taking advantage or even doing what they say they are doing? How can I tell if someone is telling me truth?
In looking back, I’m glad I didn’t post my original VERY long rant about the situation in its entirety. Because I revisted the post, I was able to give the situation more than a knee-jerk reaction and actually explore what was bothering me. Ultimately, I realized that I am a person that wants to be able to take people at the their word, to trust that they will do what they say. I don’t want to be jaded in my expectations and then pleasantly surprised if someone does their job correctly the first time. Unfortunately this leads to a great deal of frustration on my part.
Why is expecting people to do their job, treat people fairly, and have it done on time unreasonable?
I will now get off my soap box and back to my happy place. Thank you for your support.
Grown Up, Now What? 
I totally get it – and I don’t think there’s any place I feel more vulnerable than at a mechanic’s shop. Ignorance certainly is NOT bliss in that situation. And don’t you feel like they see you coming? A female, that is. Glad you’re over it. I love the t-shirt, by the way. Is that something we should check to see if a mechanic is wearing when we’re in their place?
LikeLike
Thanks for stopping by, Barbara!
Know what I wish there was? A weekend workshop: Don’t get screwed by a mechanic. It would teach the basics of all the different systems, teach how to do really basic stuff (changing air filters and windshield wiper blades and flat tires), and discuss commonly sold unnecessary services. I would gladly sacrifice to Saturday and some money to have the little bit of knowledge I would need so I could speak the proper terminology when I brought my car in. I’m sure there would be a market for that class!!!!
LikeLike
I am 100% in the same boat as you. One time I even wrote a long, scathing review on yelp a few years after a bad experience at a garage. A women makes them see easy dollar signs. All of my guy friends love the place and swear by it, but they are treated COMPLETELY different and were surprised I was treated so badly. But they can talk car-talk. Before I moved here I had an amazing mechanic who would explain everything and even show me the broken part from my car, but I have yet to find that here. Sigh.
LikeLike
OMG! When I got home spitting bullets about this mechanic, my boyfriend (DH2U) suggested that same mechanic I know you had problems with!!!! I then told him your story!
LikeLike
Haha, yea I’m finding that they treat men so much better there. How funny that he suggested them! Hopefully you didn’t go there; and if you did, you took your boyfriend b/c then you might have received great service.
LikeLike
Cut yourself some slack Tammy. I feel like this every time I go to a repair shop. Palms sweaty, forehead wrinkled and at the whim of what they tell you.
I needed about a $1200 repair to my truck and did it myself to avoid the anxiety and maybe learn a thing or two. I wrote about it on my blog a couple weeks ago in several posts.
BTW, what type of problem were you having? I’m not a mechanic by any means, just curious.
LikeLike
It does make me feel better to know that I’m not alone … and you even understand some of what they are saying to you!
The crazy thing is, this was just for the 30,000 mile service. It should have been very simple to know what was to be done, but they were telling me that the checklist in my manual wasn’t the full checklist that had to be done and not doing everything on THEIR list would mean my warranty was voided, etc., etc., etc. Very stressful, especially since I thought I was prepared going in and handing him the list from the manufacturer’s website! Arrgghhhh!!!!
Maybe in this one situation it would be okay to be jaded going in. It definitely would make the stress less.
LikeLike