(3.28) Bit of a bang this morning. Sounded like a shotgun but apparently it was a burst water pipe down in the restaurant – can’t imagine what they were doing to cause that. Whatever happened it knocked the water off all over the farm, but I had already abluted. The llamas were in a very good mood, must have been something to do with the gloriously sunny morning. They were fed a little earlier than normal I was required in our local city to help the signmaker (SM) put together a 16’ x 4’ sign. We’d also had a number of orders to prepare for the motorcycle stickers, including one from Australia – fame spreads far and wide, don’cha know! SM is not very productive when the sun is shining and, with the bulk of the work completed before lunchtime, I could hardly refuse to join him on a ride up to Lancaster. New biker also joined us and we headed off for Glasson Dock (a place where you can have a tea and a pee), before riding through Lancaster on a big loop back to the farm (which was my ulterior motive). A mile south of High Bentham (just slightly in North Yorkshire) is an ‘Erratic’, a large round rock on a flat section of moorland, for no apparent reason. Supposedly this is one of four Erratics but it’s anyone’s guess where the other three have got to. The view to the North is stunning and barely a sound except for screeching birds and a very pleasant but slightly deaf gentleman who joined us at the Erratic. He was there to fly his kite (and leave her’indoors indoors – his words not mine) but not before he took some photos of us on SM’s phone. There was a warm wind blowing across the moor and Kite Man looked very much at peace with his kite (which he’s had up to 500’ before now). We thundered off to the south and left him to his wind. The road from Bentham is very narrow, very twisty, good fun, but peppered with sheep. I’ve travelled this road before in a previous life, in all weathers, by car, and t’is a lonely journey in the winter. Our next stop was the village of Slaidburn, as SM has a particular liking for the cold 99’s that are sold there, and New Biker had never been. Back in the 18th century, so I’m told, Slaidburn was the only village that was unsullied by rustlers. When you see that every road into Slaidburn is downhill, it’s easy to understand why it was overlooked by rustlers – they couldn’t find it! A tributary of the River Ribble runs through Slaidburn and I’ve often imagined floating downstream on a raft, or in a canoe, just letting the current take me. All the way to the Irish Sea? My llamas were originally from Slaidburn; the farmer had taken them in payment of a debt, and then promptly ignored them for the following four years. The only human contact they had was the farmer’s mother who used to take pity on them in the winter and feed them. It goes some way to explain why Mum eats every meal like it is the last meal she’s ever going to get. The swelling on her toe has gone down a little. I managed to get one squirt of antiseptic spray onto her foot before she spat at me and ran off. Now, she won’t let me get anywhere near her. Mum, and the rest of them, absolutely despise anything touching their feet or lower legs. The two hens are still arguing over goose-egg possession but no sign of goslings yet, although if anything is going to happen it should be during this week. I left SM and New Biker to return to the city and arrived back at the farm with an additional 80 miles on my speedo. Before you comment about my frivolous waste of natural resources, it is merely to encourage the discovery and development of alternative fuels. I’m doing my bit for the environment. The Business point? Quietly and covertly, this week has turned out to be our most successful week of eBay sticker sales since we started in August last year. Despite increasing our prices a little on the fiddley stickers orders continue to roll in. We’ve had a few knockbacks with adverse feedback from a few customers (some who really didn’t understand what the Feedback service should be used for, or how damaging a Negative or Neutral comment can be to our trading score). The half-dozen adverse ones we’ve had could have been easily resolved by communicating directly with us, instead of sniping through Feedback. We make every effort to ensure the customer is satisfied with the product and the service, and use a Marks & Spencer-style Returns Policy – money back if not satisfied (once product has been returned to supplier), and replacements immediately mailed out if the originals have gone ‘missing in the post’ – without question. What do you do to keep your customers coming back? The Daily Llama
Posted on: Thu, 06 Jun 2013 22:08:11 +0000
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