the Cheesecake Factory is a bunch of sadists

[veronica_rich]

My sister and I signed up last year onto the Cheesecake Factory's emailing list, to get free offers and what-not; periodically we'll get a reminder of some holiday (with no specials) to encourage us to spend money. Last week we got an email titled "What Are You Doing For Mother's Day?"

My sister threatened to email them back with: Well, MY mother's dead. What are YOU doing for Mother's Day? Rub it in, why don't you?

Today I got an email from them titled "Veronica, Mom Wants Cheesecake." My immediate thought was, wait, did they have a seance, and the woman placed an order from beyond the grave? Am I expected to pay for that if they actually find a way to deliver it to her, or can she maybe put it instead on her BooExpress Card? (Motto: "Don't Leave This Earth Without It.")

/pondery

Comments

[bayliss.livejournal.com]

At least you have a good attitude about it.

Gods I don't want to know what shipping would cost to the afterlife. O.O That would be insanely high.

[philosophercat.livejournal.com]

This reminds me of that family who got emails from one of their dead relatives.

[beckyblack]

I really can't stand that. It's one thing for there to be adverts that are aimed at the general populace about Mother's Day, but something coming into your email inbox feels like it's aimed at you, and it's making an assumption with the potential to upset someone. My mother died 20 years ago now, so I would only feel irritated by it. But what about someone whose mother died recently? Or who for whatever reason is sensitive to mention of their mother for good reason? Same applies to father's day of course.

I bloody well would email them back to say, this is insensitive and potentially upsetting to many of the people they're emailing and suggest they think it through in how they word it so they aren't making the assumption everyone still has a mother around that they are on good terms with.

[kronette.livejournal.com]

I'm really, really grateful that my company doesn't have anything as sensitive as this to email out. I don't get upset, just perturbed, when Father's Day rolls around and my inbox fills with 'buy crap for your dad'. He died 11 years ago, but they have no way of knowing that. However, within a year of him dying, the American Cancer Society called me for a donation and I chokingly explained to them that he'd died of cancer the previous year. At first, the lady sort of went with the script, but then I did get mad and she quickly ended the call.

Emails don't bother me as much as the phone calls soliciting for money. Emails are easily deleted, but I feel bad when I hang up on solicitors (most of the time).

The "holiday" that annoys the crap out of me is Valentine's day. I'm what the guys get to call "a confirmed bachelor(ette)", so I don't need reminding every freaking place I go, thank you very much. Gah. Marketers.

[keechakatt.livejournal.com]

We had an American Cancer Society call too. When my sister politely declined, the caller started yelling. "Do you know how deavistating cancer is?" My sister was angry. "No, I don't. Both my parents died from cancer."
Seriously, what a way to try for a donation.

[xenafox.livejournal.com]

Ugh I hate it so much when they use your name to be 'personal'. Back the fuck off businesses, that's creepy!

...Regardless, their cheesecake is delicious so I don't think I could be angry.

[finding-neo.livejournal.com]

I have begun getting American Baby magazine in the mail. I know it's because I did something online because of how my name is listed, if I don't want to ID myself I put initials. I want to email them and tell them I don't have kids and am almost at menopause, so getting their magazine is very uncomfortable for me. You know what I mean?

I also got a freakin' PDF yesterday from an insurance company with a detailed quote all because I filled something out online to compare insurances at least 10 months ago. It kind of freaked me out 'cause I expect them to send me a bill. Plus when I did that, although I put my actual address, I gave a fake phone number, so the poor person to whom that number belongs will no doubt wonder why they are getting insurance calls, 'cause I bet anything they call!

Anyone else get phone soliciting calls to their cells now??? That is so annoying!!!!

[johnnypenn.livejournal.com]

Wow.
I'd ponder along with you but that's...uncanny. and cool all at the same time.
Sorry about your Mom.

[kahva.livejournal.com]

I got that email too. I've learned to turn my brain off when I get emails that have "Mom" or "Dad" in the subject line - it helps me to read the email to see if anything they have on sale might be something *I* could use.

My biggest dread though is still when I go out to buy Father's Day or Mother's Day cards for say, my brother, niece or sister-in-law, that a too helpful salesperson will cheerfully say, "Getting a card for you Mom/Dad?" So I've stuck with getting cards from Walmart or Target or the grocery store to avoid awkward situations like that. Started doing that pretty quickly after Dad died, made it easier to deal with things.