tywy_99 Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 It's been a rather hot and humid week with this past Monday being the hottest day, 92 deg. F. That was the first day I turned the AC on and it didn't work! I called a repairman Tuesday and he said he will be here on Wednesday at 10 AM. I took off from work to be here and he never showed up! Although it was miserably hot in the house, I didn't call until 4:30. He apologized for not showing up and said he will come out today. He will even knock the price down, he said. We settled on $240 for repairs. I couldn't take off work anymore so I explained it to my wife that she would have to handle it but pay no more than the quote of $240. Well, I got home from work today and she gave me the "lo-down."... After the repairs were done, the man wanted $265. My wife said, "My husband told me you said $200." The repairman said, "No I didn't, I told your husband $240." My wife then said, " I pay you $230." The repairman begrudgingly accepted.My wife went on, "You fixed the AC; how long will it last?" The repairman said, "It should last several years." My wife said, "Then if it breaks next year, you will fix it freely?" The repairman was ready to leave the house and leave it quickly!......... Gotta hand it to her! Anyone who can out-wit a greedy repairman is A OK in my book! I'm very impressed! Whadda Day, Whadda Gal!...... Link to comment
tonado Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 Good job. You should let her do the negotiation with the car saleman. Link to comment
BuffaloPaul Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 This seems to be a skill many Chinese have. Hope to put it to good use when Jenny gets here Link to comment
Yuanyang Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 Was she holding a mop at the time? Link to comment
oregonknl Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 Great ! (where is the: "You Know Your SO is Chinese.... " Thread ?? (when you need it??) Very amusing! Link to comment
Dan R Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 There are some that think the Chinese may be the lost tribe of Israel. We call this thinking a Yiddishe Kup Link to comment
david_dawei Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 "Prevention over cure"... metaphorically enters the service industry ! Link to comment
LeeFisher3 Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 There are some that think the Chinese may be the lost tribe of Israel. We call this thinking a Yiddishe KupNow the Cylons are representative of GZ, right. Do I understand this theory correctly? Link to comment
frank1538 Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 Yep, a talent possessed by those that grow up in a country where haggling is learned early on. Link to comment
tywy_99 Posted June 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 Yep, a talent possessed by those that grow up in a country where haggling is learned early on.EXACTLY!!!........... I can only dream about having such talent. I'm certainly no haggler. I am just an American!......... Link to comment
Mick Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 Good job. You should let her do the negotiation with the car saleman.Shortly after we arrived in the States, Li did just that. Seeings how I was in China for so long, one of our first tasks upon returning was to purchase a car. Li haggled with the salesman and the dealership owner for three days. We finally got a great deal. Truly amazing. Link to comment
rogerluli Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 On my second trip to visit Luli we went to Hainan Island. There are pearl sellers everywhere and we bought piles of rings, necklaces and bracelets for gifts.We were pretty much spent out on pearls when one of the pearl ladies showed us a really beautiful necklace. She was asking 1200 RMB and Luli tried to dissuade me saying it was too expensive. Over the next 2 days I negotiated with this lady and I stuck to a price of 400 RMB. On the last day she refused to sell for less than 410 RMB and I refused to pay even this tiny difference. She eventually caved in and I paid 400 RMB for a perfect set of large pearls. Luli was really impressed. But then last fall in Yangshuo I forgot all my lessons and finally was told I could no longer negotiate on my own for anything because I was paying too much... Link to comment
tywy_99 Posted June 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 This story just gets more amazing! Not only did my wife very much impressed me by it but she apparently left a lasting impression on the repairman!Well, the AC still isn't working properly so I got hold of the repairman this morning. First thing he said to me was, "You didn't tell me your wife was Chinese!"... We ended up talking more about my wife and how we met than the problems with the AC! He was certainly impressed with her, asking me all kinds of questions which I didn't mind and was proud to answer them. I am waiting for him to come and fix this darn thing now and once and for all!............. Link to comment
Dan R Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 Thanks for sharing this especially the update. Link to comment
HanLi Posted July 11, 2005 Report Share Posted July 11, 2005 It's been a rather hot and humid week with this past Monday being the hottest day, 92 deg. F. That was the first day I turned the AC on and it didn't work! I called a repairman Tuesday and he said he will be here on Wednesday at 10 AM. I took off from work to be here and he never showed up! Although it was miserably hot in the house, I didn't call until 4:30. He apologized for not showing up and said he will come out today. He will even knock the price down, he said. We settled on $240 for repairs. I couldn't take off work anymore so I explained it to my wife that she would have to handle it but pay no more than the quote of $240. Well, I got home from work today and she gave me the "lo-down."... After the repairs were done, the man wanted $265. My wife said, "My husband told me you said $200." The repairman said, "No I didn't, I told your husband $240." My wife then said, " I pay you $230." The repairman begrudgingly accepted.My wife went on, "You fixed the AC; how long will it last?" The repairman said, "It should last several years." My wife said, "Then if it breaks next year, you will fix it freely?" The repairman was ready to leave the house and leave it quickly!......... Gotta hand it to her! Anyone who can out-wit a greedy repairman is A OK in my book! I'm very impressed! Whadda Day, Whadda Gal!...... 126198[/snapback]great story... thanks for sharing with us Link to comment
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