Quote:
Originally Posted by arctictraveller
Having met you in person, I think those guys must be crazy
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Well yes-----she's quite the lady and if its not too disrespectful or forward quite appealing as well----nothing cuter than a gal with a truck bigger and better looking than my own!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Annie O
I have only met JWA in person. He was a perfect gentleman. Even tho his stories betrayed a -um -past
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Well yeah---I've not let too many better bad ideas escape me in this life. As you did share I have one or two stories to tell.......... Not so sure about the "perfect gentleman" thing though--I can act civilized when it's necessary.
Re: this whole bit about supposed sexism---in 1984 I acquired a body shop and early on it was very apparent women were greatly and egregiously under served in the automotive service industries. I took a page from a local Honda dealer/customer who hosted monthly "women's only" garage seminars for mostly new Honda owners, a bit of a social and educational event meant to demonstrate various aspects of vehicle ownership and maintenance----in person with real mechanics and time set aside for those eager enough to try things like changing their own tires etc. Simple things if you've grown up doing such things, kinda daunting if you never had exposure to such learning experiences.
When women came into my body shop I spent far, far more time acquainting them with the shop, the tools we used, in general sharing how their vehicle would be repaired. Part of that introduction was how their car would be painted, explained how I would guarantee paint matching in writing on their estimate---no other shop at the time in the entire county would make such an offer.
I'd go one step more and reveal the "secret" to it all, even show them a car where a paint blending technique had been used. Naturally they'd ask where I did it on that car, I'd answer if their eye couldn't pick it out didn't that show how good we were?
I lost very, very few of those potential jobs based upon quality alone.
Some men might shy away from a woman's curiosity about something but I've never sacrificed a thing simply answering their questions. Like most any other person how someone answers an honest question is considered as much as the answer itself---my shop did well because of this.
Oddly enough those shops who'd ask where a woman's husband was when they presented a vehicle for repair lost more and more work to shops like mine. Such shops failed to realize they were dealing with professional, educated & well paid women working in arenas that touched upon engineering skills most shop owners/technicians didn't possess. Talk down to such a person and you've lost them as a customer.
Thankfully today that sort of easily dismissing someone based upon anything other than their ability and willingness to pay for top notch work done has long ago disappeared. Even 36 years later I'm still dealing with women but in the big truck business-- they receive same service---sometimes a bit better---than their male colleagues because I know they're been slightly mistreated by others in their dealings in vehicle service.
So yeah AnnieO is cute as a dickens, all women deserve equal treatment but jackasses exist everywhere which is why we have shoes--we can walk in AND out equally well when its warranted.
And BTW may we all enjoy happy motoring in whatever we're driving!