Garbage Day - it seems like this is a weekly ordeal.

So as usual, I'm leaving for work today and I had to stop to pull the trash can out of the ditch at the end of our driveway. As I'm pulling out, the garbage man comes driving back by and motions me to the car. Today, it would seem he broke the wheels off and they fell into the garbage truck. So he stops, and says "Hey man, if you'll call that free number, they'll get you a new can. Every time I call, they want me to have the customer call. Ain't that the city for you?" So, while maybe he's not maliciously throwing my garbage can in the ditch, he's at least tried to remedy the situation. So I call the provided "free number" only to be put on hold for a good 20 minutes of my day. Just to give you an idea of what this was like, picture yourself at a drive through in the worst part of town, listening to the not-so pleasant voice calling back your order. This is the voice they chose as the soothing voice to ask you to continue to hold. Maybe it was good government work for them, but personally I think my tax dollars should pay for someone that we can understand. After my eternal hold, I was greated by what sounded like the unpleasant voice again - which she could have been the only person there taking phone calls. So I tell her my problem, and she could honestly care less. No big deal, it's a garbage can. Her solution? "Otay, next week just leave yo gabbaj can down by da road. You know, like, uh, insted u takin it back up to yo hizouse, just be leavin it by du screet. Otay, n deen, just be keep on leavin it by da screet, until afta next weeks run, n deen sumbody stroll by, n day be puttin dem new wheelz on it. Scraight up?" Lucky for me, I speak fluent Jive - or whatever the hell it was she spoke - so I agreed. Not only did I agree, but I said "Well, I'll make a deal with you. Since your garbage man keeps throwing the can in the ditch, I will let your wheel guy come by and pull it out of the ditch to put the new wheels on it." Amazingly she didn't understand but responded with something that sounded like okay so I assumed our conversation was over. It's unbelievable to me that the solution is leave it by the street. I'd love to do that, but it would block the mail box, and the mailman would likely knock it over too. Ahh, the life of a government employee.

Not much else going on here today. Perhaps a reader poll if you will. Let's say you buy something from a company, and you send it back because it wasn't really what you wanted. Then you say "well, let me have this replacement instead." That way, you're still ordering from them, and you know you're paying the shipping. How would you feel if they hit you with a 10 percent restock fee on your return? Is that not the most ludicrous thing you've ever heard of? Nothing says "We don't want your business" more than a restock fee when you've placed another order with them. Me, I think it's uncalled for. Am I out of line? What do you think? I think John Kerry would not be for a restock fee, but he wouldn't be against it either. After all, he's a great War Hero - one that throws other peoples medals on the whitehouse lawn.