Trade me

I've just joined Trademe (an online auction website we have in NZ, a bit like Craigslist for those of you USAns). I need another compost bin, and after some ringing around had the brilliant idea that Trademe might have some on offer. I was horrified at the price of new compost bins. This is just a standard square bin made of recycled plastic, and turned out by the thousands in some factory somewhere. $80 to $110! For recycled plastic! Mass-produced! I could understand it if it was handmade by skilled artisans, but no. (The weird thing is it that it's cheaper to buy a raised bed made of seasoned macrocarpa, made by an actual person with skills than a hunk of black plastic.) Anyway, I've entered a bid, so now have to wait till Sunday 4th August to see if I'm the winner. It's quite exciting, I can see why people get addicted to it. Some people prop up their income by buying and selling on line; the only problem is that your house and garage get stuffed with stuff waiting to be on-sold or picked up. And there's the usual problem with people. They say they'll pick stuff up but don't, quibble when they get to your place, or send you rubbish when you're buying.

Went to an interesting workshop on Friday about dealing with challenging customers. The first part of the course was identifying what sort of person we are, and why this has an effect on our interactions with others.  I am a Thinker, so this means that I believe if I explain things in a rational way to a customer who's spitting tacks, they will calm down and all will be solved. No. People are not rational.  This also explains why I prefer Spock to Kirk; Kirk is a Socialiser, a people-person, a type that I find hard to understand and rather annoying.

And another participant at the workshop gave us a nice acronym. FIGJAM. It's applied to one of those people who think that THEY ARE VERY IMPORTANT. It means "Fuck, I'm good, just ask me". A colleague at work also contributed UBF. This is Unintentional Bitch Face, which is what older women wear when they are thinking about something, or doing something that they find disagreeable. It's a habitual look among librarians. UBF; face it.