Yesterday, I lost it. Its the french way of doing things, or not doing things. It just got to me.
We have looked for the past two days for an 'exposition' or showroom for shower cabins. A shower cabin is basically a shower version of a jacuzzi or whirlpool. Since the bathrooms here tend to not have tubs, they are too small to have both a shower and tub, so people tend to opt for a shower, I thought I'd look at a shower cabin. The problem is, there are more than 20 dealers listed, but when you get to the place, it is a guy in a cramped storefront with an old catalog. You can get more info on the internet, but if you have never seen one before, how do you know what''s what.
So after walking from the 20's to the 120's in the eleventh, we flew to the 14th to see if we could go to a showroom. They had 2 examples of the showers and a gorgeous endless tub with music, stones and colors and all kinds of ridiculous nonsense for maybe, I don't know, Carla Bruni's pad. For most people in Paris, its a tub or a shower not a eight foot by sixteen foot bath with colors. That, my friend is a pool!
Anyway, then back to the 7th for the guy who actually sells the showers. The showroom sells nothing, the seller shows nothing.
Okay, I realize that some of you may not know what I mean by the 14th and the 7th. Paris is divided into neighborhoods with numbers. They are more or less prestigious and historical. It only means Brooklyn versus Manhattan.
Anyway, we are running around town trying to find out, just what it is, how much it costs and then comes the complications like water pressure and 'ballons' bah-lohns
otherwise known as water heaters. Here, they are very small, nothing like the mega-tanks you all have in your basements. Okay, so anyway, we had already been through several non-dealers with thick notebooks. We finally saw an example and thought, we'll go with this one.
We get to the shop after lunch, because after all everyone closes for a 2-2 and a half hour lunch. So, okay, now the shop is open, we've seen one of the products and we are ready to go. Bonjour! Parle vous anglais? " un peu" which means a little, but everyone speaks enough to know what you are saying to each other and not to them.
How much is it? "well, it depends". Will it work? "well, maybe". Can you install it? "No", Who will install it and how much will it be? "Well, can't tell you."
Why am I here? Who knows? It is as if they never heard if Willie Loman! But then, I have to remember that these are the people who coined the term blase.
I was so tired and so frustrated, I just lost it. I went into the other showroom area and sat in a chair. I could not talk anymore to anyone about anything.
In swoops the Fixer. He was on his way and we thought we'd get things started, fools that we were.
What's the deal? He offered nothing and knew nothing, like Sargent Scholtz, he could offer no information other than the cost, sort of. See there is this tax thing... .
By now, I am in another zone. Just stay in 'ohm'.
The thing is the french way can seem incredibly obstinate. They just seem like they don't care. You have to go in with " Bonjour, how are you, how are your wife and kids, do you like the weather, have you ever liked the weather? and by the way what's this product here, does it have a price? how is it taxed?"
Well, I was too busy being american. Big mistake! American is wayyyyyyy too forward. But, the fixer does what he does. Magically information was transmitted. The dealer would promise nothing and do nothing. Go away.
He found the perfect cabine at much less than the written price and the sun shone the next day.
Moral of the story? fugetaboutit
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