blog
entries are strictly the opinion of Carolyn Bodley and may not reflect the opinion of others
(to see archived blog
entries, click on the links to the right of the top blog)
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leaving only a description of the photo. The blog postings remain complete and unchanged.
Abuse Me Once - Shame on You ... Abuse Me Twice - Shame on Me
Last week I finally got paid for a signing that occurred more than 90 days ago.
I guess paying your bills only four times a year is a pretty good deal if you can get away with it -- however, it won't
fly with my creditors.
Today they called and wanted me to meet at a Kinkos in less than 30 minutes and about 20
miles away -- um, let's see ... we're in the dead of winter now, so I'd be getting the money just in time for
my summer vacation!
Not only NO, but !!@#@%#%##%^%##^ NO! [end of blog]
During my lifetime, I've had the opportunity to meet and or work with some
pretty influential people -- Mayors, Governors, a U.S. President, Judges, assorted politicians ... and for the record, in
all actuality, they are just people.
I have never -- and WOULD NEVER take any of these contacts for granted,
or attempt to get some sort of preferential treatment from knowing them.
Breaking many rules and laws won't
put someone behind bars, however, bending the rules to suit oneself, does make one an abuser and user. [end of blog]
Money can't bring back a life, but apparently John Ritter's wife, Amy Yasbeck
who says "none of the facilities that treated him, nor the doctors or other personnel involved has admitted any wrongdoing
or apologized, but she's planning to remedy that."
No doubt about it, John Ritter died entirely too young
-- however, we've all lost people in our life that were too young, and the majority of us don't replace their life
with money. How can someone actually place a value on a loved one's life after they've passed?
She
has already settled with the Medical Center where he died for $9.4 million dollars and has received more than $4 million from
other civil-suit targets -- but now she's going after the radiologist and cardiologist for more than $67 million in damages.
"My discomfort is nothing compared to people who are losing their family to aortic dissection. I can be uncomfortable
for however long the trial goes. I'm ready." W-H-A-T ??? I guess she'll be cleansed of all her discomfort at
the conclusion of the trial.
Amazing how a person is worth more dead than living. I for one, hope the jury sees
through her greed, and awards her compensation of ONE PENNY! ... It'd be interesting to know how much
of the more than $13 million is still in the bank.
hmmmmmmmm - one week shy of being married four years - $80
million dollars divided by 4 years = compensation of $20 million dollars per year of marriage. [end of blog]
I just returned home from a loan signing. The signing went smoothly, and nothing
happened out of the ordinary.
As I was gathering my goodies, notary seal, pens, executed documents, etc.,
I told the Borrowers what I tell all Borrowers - "I don't keep any of the loan packet, whether on my computer or
a hard paper copy, and I 'shift-delete' the whole 'kit'n'kaboodle' so nothing gets shifted to my
computer recycle folder."
Mr. Borrower scrunched up his face and asked "What if two or three years down
the road you get a new computer and sell or give away this one ... There is no guarantee or security that by simply deleting
documents off the hard drive, *someone* knowing what they were doing, couldn't reconstruct the paper trail on
the hard drive."
I quickly replied (and it wasn't just grabbing at something to appease the man) that,
yes, I do get new computers every two years; however, I don't sell or give my old ones away -- instead, we strip
them out for parts and take the hard drive and beat it with the hammer. NO JOKE - THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT WE DO -- it's
a great way to relieve stress !!
The man being an IT person was quite impressed and has never heard of
anyone doing something like that -- whereas, looking at it from my side, I don't understand why more people don't
do it -- but then again, I don't understand why so many people take privacy so nonchalantly. [end of blog]
Early last evening I met with a wonderful little old lady that needed some life insurance
documents notarized. On the drive back home, I decided to spend my notary profits and stopped at a family-owned chicken
restaurant for take-out.
I ordered eight pieces of chicken, a pint of slaw and an order of large fries (a meal
for two). We have frequented this restaurant for a number of years. The family used to do everything themselves - cook, run
the take-out counter, and wait/serve in the restaurant itself. However, over the past few years, outside help has been hired
to assist. Last night there were two teenage girls running the take-out counter. Like normal, I ordered, my name was taken
and then I took a seat while the chicken and fries cooked. Up to this point, there was nothing out of the ordinary - except
when I ordered a pint of slaw, she asked if I meant coleslaw -- well, uh, yeah.
My name was called after about
10 minutes. The same teenage girl that took my order begins ringing it up and repeating - a whole chicken, 1/2 pint of slaw,
and small fries. I first thought I misheard my name and the order was for someone else, except I was looking down at
the handwritten order with my name. I explained that I ordered 8 pieces of chicken, which I don't believe sounds
like a "whole chicken" and I wanted one pint of slaw and not 1/2 pint, and large fries and not small fries.
By now the other teenage girl has shown up, taken the boxed/sacked supper back to the kitchen. I went ahead paid for
the food and waited for the other girl to appear with the corrected order. She reappeared after a few minutes, handed
me my sack--not offering an apology for the mix-up.
I take my food and once in my vehicle, I start it up,
and am in the process of hooking my seatbelt when one of the young teenage girls comes running out. She comes up to my window
and accuses me of not paying for my drink -- what drink?
Now had there been a drink, it would have been
a fountain drink in a paper cup and a plastic lid - a fountain drink behind the counter that the teenage girls would
have dispensed themselves. Would they have actually placed this drink inside the plastic sack without a drink carrier?
I don't think so, at least I would hope not! But to appease the girl, and also for my own peace of mind (because of the
snafu of this whole order), I flicked on the overhead light and looked inside the sack, and was quite happy to tell her
there was no drink. Her comment was "oohhh" and turned around and ran back inside. Now even had their been a drink,
the proper "customer service" thing to do, would not to have chased down the few cents this drink cost the
restaurant, but to say, "please accept the drink as our way of saying thank you for accepting and excusing our mistake."
I'm a sticker when it comes to customer service, and whereas the majority of people (including my husband) would
just go on with life and ignore all of this, I'm not one of those people. Today I will go to the restaurant and speak
with the owners we have dealt with for years and rehash everything that happened last night. Petty, Stupid and a Waste
of Time - probably, but it is their reputation and their right to know, if their business begins declining - the reason for
the decline.
It's the little things that make or ruin a reputation. Clients may pay a little more for my services
-- but they also get a little extra without expecting it or asking for it. Just a few of the "no-cost" extras
my clients receive: the work is not printed on the cheapest ream of copy paper -- but instead a quality-bond (usually
watermarked) paper. Instead of loose, rubber-banded paper, depending on what the client is going to do with the paper, I'll
sometimes spiral bind without being asked, and they will always hear a "thank you" in addition to a handwritten
note of appreciation. [end of blog]
BLOG - If I Handled my Finances Like *Some* Signing Services
I quit doing loan signings for signing services last fall. Poor cell reception
is no excuse--two weeks before Thanksgiving I "unknowingly" accepted a signing from a signing service with one of
the worst known reputations on numerous notary forums--I thought the call was from a regular title company.
After
receiving the documentation and seeing who it was from, I took the stance that I would just suck in my stomach, and for the
borrowers' sake, do the signing. I sent my own confirmation to signing service regarding my payment policies - payment
due upon receipt; rebilling charge added on the 31st day; second rebilling charge added on the 45th day and account turned
over to attorney for collection on the 90th day.
Signing occurred on November 19. No payment after 30 days and
no payment after 45 days. Already having one of the worst reputations in the signing industry, threats don't even phase
them. However, hopefully, after correspondence to the mortgage and title company, the account will be stripped from this low-life
scum of a signing service!
To add insult to injury, I received a call from the signing service on January 21 asking
if I had received payment, and was shocked that I hadn't, because payment had been mailed on January 14 - yeah, right,
and there is a Santa Clause and an Easter Bunny, and I was born at night, but not last night, so why lie? -- Today
I received the check with a postmark of January 18 -- I suppose that is the fault of the post office, huh? The check was for
the original signing fee (no rebilling charges included) and the check is dated NOVEMBER 29 - which only shows they were paid
from the mortgage/title company immediately upon closing.
So just what gives this 3-letter named signing service
(it's not SOX, but right down in the sewer with them) the right to hold my (or anyone else's) payment for two months,
when they were reimbursed within a week-and-one-half? [end of blog]
BLOG - And You Thought Office Politics Stunk at Your Job
We've all worked with terrible people, but personally my feet couldn't
move me fast enough to get me out of this job.
(excerpt from an on-line newsletter subscription I receive):
"I'm in a strange situation in my office and I don't know what to do. It all started with a "Secret
Santa" celebration during the past holiday. I picked a woman whom I know fairly well, having worked with her for 3-1/2
years. I bought her something which I thought would suit her, paying the designated amount of money ($25.00).
She
apparently disliked my gift, the way I packaged it and what she thought I paid for it, so she complained to other members
of the staff, who agreed with her. Without my knowledge, she and her colleagues brought the issue to my manager. They asked
her to talk to me and find out if I had indeed paid the right amount of money for the gift. They thought I had bought the
gift at a drug store and paid $3.99, and that I hadn't been "in the spirit of it."
My manager approached
me on their behalf. I was horrified and shocked that a) they would involve my manager in something like that and b) that my
manager agreed to talk to me instead of nipping it in the bud right away. She told me that she felt terrible for me and that
she would "set them straight." She also suggested that I photocopy the receipt for the item and put a copy
of it in everyone's mailbox (which I did). I got no reaction from them, no apology, nothing.
A few days later
I went to the supply room and overheard my manager and a few of these colleagues talking about me behind closed doors. They
(including my manager) were criticizing my finances, my child (he's having some problems in school) and me as a person.
What started as a discussion about this gift became a personal attack upon me.
What upset me more than anything
else was that I heard my manager gossiping about me as well. When I confronted her, she denied that she was attacking
me, merely explaining me to these people and asking them to try to get along with me. I told her specifically what I heard
and she admitted it, assuring me that her 2008 resolution was not to gossip.
I've always known these colleagues
were very unprofessional, but never expected my manager to lower herself to that level. Adding insult to injury, my manager
is supposedly a seasoned HR professional whose speciality is Employee Relations." --- Personally, had it been me -- I would have quit immediately--and with my departure out the door,
I would have done something with the receipt, BUT it wouldn't have been photocopying and placing copies in
the mailboxes !!! Why do people put up with this crap and then turn around and ask "what should I do?" --
the last time 'me and my boots went walkin' was being told by an office manager "you need to be at work while
your Dad is alive, because you'll need to take time off when he's dead."
I do have to admit that while
typing this I have a smile on my face -- because a "Secret Santa" memory has come back to me. It's
too bad that one of these nosey, busy-body, gossiping women weren't the recipient of the "pretty wrapped
package" in the office freezer from one of the law partners--who had gone to his backyard, scooped up dog 'doo-doo'
and so eloquently packaged it up in festive holiday gift wrap and ribbons and bows. [end of blog]
Every so often I review my site statistics -- to see the different Google
phrases used by individuals finding my site.
I'd say that 90% are right-on, but how in the heck
I'm found by the other 10% is beyond me: cheap notary services
cheap typing cheap this and cheap that
I purposely don't list my rates.
For serious inquiries, my rates are based on "value." If you are looking for cheap, I'm definitely not
for you.
Several years ago I read the following on a wall in a printing shop:
Quality
Speed
Cost
Choose Two!
Which two are the most important to you? [end of blog]
With a typing speed of 120 wpm, Carolyn Bodley began
offering independent contractor/secretarial and transcription services to the Denver metro legal community in 1992.
I am not a court reporter or medical transcriptionist and I don't
videotape depositions -- I'm strictly a legal transcriptionist which means putting spoken words on paper. All my
transcripts contain a certification stating that to the best of my knowledge, belief and ability, the audio/video I received
has not been altered in any way, and the transcript is true, accurate and complete. I have never been
advised that a court rejected one of my audio or video transcripts. If my transcript is rejected by the court,
you will be reimbursed in full for my services. Because I certify that the transcript is true and complete, the
entire audio/video must be transcribed--I am unable to transcribe "just a portion" that you need.
I guarantee that your transcripts will be typed confidentially, accurately and with attention
to detail at a fair price.
Discovery
is often turned over in a format other than hard copy. This discovery includes, but is not limited to, recorded telephone
conversations, police interviews, depositions, investigations, witness statements, and more. The
audio and video "words" need to be put to paper, and your already overworked legal staff often don't have
the skills, equipment, the inclination or the time.
Discovery
is often the deciding factor of whether a case goes to trial. Most of us hear, but do we listen? Recently I transcribed a
video that had been viewed and listened to several times and by several people before I transcribed it. There was
a one sentence statement that not one person caught -- this one sentence was not the only reason the case was dismissed
one day before trial--however, it carried quite a bit of weight -- and I'm the only one
that "heard" it. Had the video never been transcribed, how many other words would never have been
heard?
Unauthorized
reproduction or distribution of this website, or any portion of it, without first obtaining the express WRITTEN permission
of CAROLYN BODLEY, may result in severe civil and criminal penalties, and will be prosecuted to the maximum extent under the
law.
