ALAN'S ASSOCIATE SHOWED UP AT 1 PM, AND EVALUATED MY DISHWASHER, TELLING ME I NEEDED A NEW ONE, WHICH WAS ACCURATE. IN MY PERSONAL OPINION, ALAN'S ASSOCIATE IS " COMMUNICATION CHALLENGED ", AND DOES NOT LIKE INTERACTING WITH PEOPLE - I HAD TO " PULL " EVERY BIT OF INFORMATION OUT OF HIM, LIKE I WAS PULLING TEETH, THOUGH HE IS HONEST, AND DOES DO VERY GOOD WORK. WHEN HE WAS DONE EVALUATING THE DISHWASHER, I ASKED HIM IF HE WAS GOING TO BLOW OUT THE DRYER VENT LINE, WHICH I HAD DISCUSSED WITH ALAN, ON EACH OF THE 3 PREVIOUS DAYS, INCLUDING THAT SAME MORNING, BUT THE ASSOCIATE KNEW ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ABOUT IT - IT HAD NOT BEEN COMMUNICATED TO HIM, AT ALL, BY ALAN, WHICH, IN MY PERSONAL OPINION, IS QUITE NORMAL, WHEN YOU ARE DEALING WITH THIS COMPANY - THE LACK OF INTERNAL COMMUNICATION, COMPLETE LACK OF ORGANIZATION, TOTAL LACK OF NORMAL ADMINISTRATIVE EFFICIENCY, AND LOGISTICAL FOLLOW THROUGH, IS BASICALLY NON-EXISTENT. WHEN ALAN'S ASSOCIATE WENT OUTSIDE TO BLOW OUT THE KITCHEN VENT, I WENT WITH HIM, NOT ONLY TO SEE HOW MUCH LINT AND DUST CAME OUT ( I.E., HOW DIRTY IT WAS ), BUT I TOOK A PAPER GROCERY BAG WITH ME, TO PUT IT UNDER THE VENT OPENING, TO TRY AND CATCH AS MUCH LINT AS POSSIBLE, TO LIMIT THE AMOUNT OF LINT, FROM BEING BLOWN, ALL OVER MY PATIO AND GARDEN, AND ALL THE TIME IT WOULD TAKE, AND THE DIFFICULTY, OF MY THEN TRYING TO HAVE TO TRY AND PICK IT ALL UP. ALAN'S YOUNG ASSOCIATE DID NOT LIKE THIS, EVEN AFTER I TRIED TO EXPLAIN IT TO HIM. HE ALSO DID NOT TELL ME THAT ALL THE LINT WOULD BE BLOWING ALL OVER ME, MY FACE, HAIR, ALL OVER MY CLOTHES, IN A " LINT STORM ", WHICH HE SEEMED TO GET SATISFACTION FROM, AND DID NOT APOLOGIZE FOR - AGAIN, IMPO, HE IS VERY COMMUNICATION CHALLENGED, AND WOULD MUCH RATHER INTERACT WITH HIS PHONE ( LIKE MOST PEOPLE UNDER THE AGE OF 45 TODAY ). IN ALL MY DEALINGS WITH ALAN, HE HAS NEVER, EVER ACKNOWLEDGED, OR APOLOGIZED, AT ALL, OR FELT THE NEED TO SAY HE WAS SORRY, FOR ANY OF ALL OF THE ISSUES ABOVE, OR FOR ANY LACK OF PROFESSIONALISM, ON HIS OR HIS COMPANY'S PART. HE ALSO HAS NO CONCEPT ABOUT THE " VALUE " OF YOUR TIME, THAT YOU ARE A PROFESSIONAL, WITH A " SCHEDULE " TO KEEP, AND THAT OTHER PEOPLE ARE RELYING AND DEPENDING UPON YOU, TO BE THERE, TO TAKE CARE OF THEM, ON A DAILY BASIS ( JUST LIKE ALAN DOES ), AND THAT ALAN'S TOTAL LACK OF OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY, AND ALL THE DELAYS AND INCONVENIENCE, THAT HE ENDS UP BRINGING INTO YOUR LIFE, ALSO END UP COSTING YOU MUCH MORE MONEY, THAN THE ACTUAL COST OF THE REPAIR BILL, NOT TO MENTION ALL OF YOUR ADDITIONAL TIME, EFFORT, STRESS, GRIEF, AGGRAVATION, ETC, CAUSED BY THE WAY ALAN OPERATES. I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT HE RESPECTS THE VALUE OF YOUR TIME, AT ALL, OR EVEN UNDERSTANDS THE CONCEPT, AT ALL - WHENEVER YOU TRY TO COMMUNICATE WITH ALAN, EVERYTHING IS ALWAYS ABOUT ALAN, AND SATISFYING HIS IMMEDIATE WANTS AND NEEDS, AND HE ALWAYS HAS AN EXCUSE FOR EVERYTHING - IMPO, VERY IMMATURE, UNREALISTIC, AND IRRESPONSIBLE. IMPO, IN ALAN'S MIND, EVERYTHING IS ALWAYS " THE CUSTOMERS FAULT " - THE VERY PEOPLE ON WHOM HE MAKES A VERY GOOD LIVING FROM. WHENEVER YOU CALL ALAN, AND TRY TO TALK WITH HIM, AND HAVE A CALM, NORMAL CONVERSATION ( THE SAME THING HAPPENS, WHEN HE IS ACTUALLY AT YOUR HOME, AND IN FRONT OF YOU ), HE IS ALWAYS IN A " FRENETIC ", " FRANTIC ", " FRENZIED ", EXTREMELY " HECTIC ", " HARRIED ", ALMOST HYSTERICAL, STATE OF OPERATION, MULTI-TASKING, AND ALWAYS ENGAGES IN " RAPID - FIRE TALKING ", AND GIVING YOU THE " BUM'S RUSH ". HE WILL ANSWER YOUR QUESTION'S, BUT GIVES YOU THE IMPRESSION, THAT HE DOES NOT LIKE BEING ASKED QUESTIONS, BY CUSTOMERS, LIKE YOU ARE WASTING HIS TIME, OR DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT TO ASK. ANOTHER ISSUE, THAT IS EXTREMELY BOTHERSOME, IS THAT WHENEVER YOU CALL ALAN, AND TALK TO HIM, EVEN IF YOU HAVE TALKED TO HIM IN EACH OF THE LAST 2 - 3 DAYS, ABOUT A SPECIFIC SUBJECT, HE ALWAYS ACTS LIKE HE DOESN'T KNOW WHO YOU ARE, AND DOES NOT REMEMBER ANYTHING, ABOUT EVERYTHING THAT YOU TALKED ABOUT, IN THESE PREVIOUS CONVERSATION'S, NO MATTER HOW DETAILED THOSE CONVERSATIONS WERE. AFTER ALANS ASSOCIATE WAS THROUGH BLOWING OUT MY DRYER VENT, HE GAVE ME THE BILL, AND ASKED ME IF I WANTED TO PAY BY CASH OR CHECK. I ASKED HIM IF THERE WAS A SENIOR DISCOUNT INCLUDED IN THE BILL ( I DO NOT BELIEVE THERE WAS, AS HE ACTED LIKE HE KNEW NOTHING ABOUT IT, BUT MUMBLED SOMETHING ABOUT " WE GIVE EVERYBODY A SENIOR DISCOUNT ", WHICH I DO NOT BELIEVE TO BE TRUE ), AND TOLD HIM THAT I WANTED TO PAY USING MY CREDIT CARD. HE SEEMED SUPRISED BY THAT. THE SAME EXACT THING HAPPENED, ON THEIR PREVIOUS SERVICE CALL, WHEN ALAN WAS ACTUALLY PRESENT. WHEN I WANTED TO PAY USING MY CREDIT CARD, ALAN REQUESTED TO BE PAID BY CASH OR CHECK, WHICH MANY CUSTOMERS DO NOT LIKE DOING, AS THEY WANT A PAYMENT RECORD, OF THE SERVICE, BY USING A CREDIT CARD. I TOLD ALAN, AT THE 1ST SERVICE CALL, THAT ON HIS ANGIE'S LIST COMPANY PROFILE, THAT IT CLEARLY LISTED BOTH A " SENIOR DISCOUNT ", AND THAT PAYMENT BY VISA, MASTERCARD, ETC, WAS ACCEPTED, BY HIS COMPANY. ALAN ACTED SUPRISED, AND SAID, " REALLY ? I'LL HAVE TO CHECK ON THAT ". HE THEN GAVE ME THE SENIOR DISCOUNT, AND ACCEPTED A CREDIT CARD PAYMENT ( THIS WAS FOR A $ 257 BILL, ON A COMPLETE DRYER OVERHAUL, FOR A DRYER THAT ORIGINALLY COST $ 500 ). BACK TO HIS ASSOCIATE, AND TRYING TO PAY MY BILL, FOR THE DISHWASHER EVALUATION, AND DRYER VENT CLEANING. HE WENT ON HIS PHONE, THEN TOLD ME THAT THE " INTUIT " PAYMENT SYSTEM, WASN'T WORKING, AND REQUESTED ALL OF MY CREDIT CARD INFORMATION, WHICH I WAS NOT COMFORTABLE, AT ALL, IN GIVING OUT, AND NEVER DO GIVE OUT, BUT, KNOWING HOW UNBELIEVABLY DIFFICULT IT WOULD BE, TO TRY TO GET A HOLD OF ALAN, AND HAVE A CALM, RATIONAL, " PATIENT " DISCUSSION WITH HIM, RE: PAYING MY BILL, USING THE CREDIT CARD, OR WAITING FOR DAYS, TO GET A RETURN PHONE CALL, FROM AMY, TO PAY THE BILL, USING MY CREDIT CARD, I DID ALLOW ALANS ASSOCIATE, TO COPY DOWN ALL MY CC INFORMATION, TO TAKE BACK TO THE OFFICE, TO PAY THE BILL. TODAY, 6 DAYS LATER, I CALLED MY CC COMPANY, TO SEE IF THE CHARGE FOR FROM ALANS COMPANY HAD GONE THROUGH, AND, OF COURSE, IT HADN'T. I ALSO WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THEIR PROPERTY AND CASUALTY INSURANCE, LIABILITY, AND BONDING, COVERED ALL OF THEIR EMPLOYEES, AND THAT THEY HAD DESTROYED ALL OF MY CREDIT CARD INFORMATION, AFTER PUTTING THE CHARGE THROUGH. SINCE THE COMPANY DOES NOT HAVE AN E-MAIL ADDRESS, YOU ARE FORCED TO TRY AND CALL, FOR ALL SUBSEQUENT COMMUNICATION, AND WHEN YOU DO SO, YOU ALWAYS GET ALAN, MULTI-TASKING, AND RUSHING, " ON THE JOB ". THIS MORNING, I CALLED ALAN, TO DISCUSS THE CC CHARGE, AND WHY IT HAD NOT BEEN PUT THROUGH YET, AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THE SITUATION WAS, AS USUAL. ALAN WAS ON THE JOB, MULTI-TASKING, RUSHED, FRENETIC, RAPID-FIRE TALKING, AND DID NOT KNOW WHO I WAS - AGAIN. I TOLD ALAN THAT I WAS NOT WILLING TO GO THROUGH ANOTHER " SCHIZOPHRENIC " CONVERSATION. AT THAT POINT, ALAN SAID, " YOU'RE THE ONE'S WHO'S SCHIZOPHRENIC, DON'T CALL BACK ", AND HUNG UP. IMPO, WHAT MATURITY, REALISM, INTEGRITY, DECENCY, AND PROFESSIONALISM, DISPLAYED BY ALAN. I WILL NEVER USE THIS COMPANY AGAIN, AND WILL TELL ANYBODY WHO ASKS ME, ABOUT MY EXPERIENCE WITH ALAN, AND HIS COMPANY. TO BE FAIR, THE QUALITY OF THE WORK, SO FAR, SEEMS VERY GOOD, ALAN SEEMS HONEST, WHEN EVALUTING AND ADVISING YOU, RE; YOUR APPLIANCES, AND THEIR PRICING SEEMS VERY FAIR. HOWEVER, IN MY PERSONAL OPINION, THE EXTREME DIFFICULTY OF DEALING WITH ALAN, AND HIS " COMPANY ", IS SO UNBELIEVABLY DIS-ORGANIZED, POORLY RUN AND ADMINISTERED, AND " SCHIZOPHRENIC ", THAT IT IS JUST " NOT WORTH IT ", AT ALL, TO HAVE TO BE " PUT THROUGH THE WRINGER ", LIKE THIS, FOR SOMETHING AS SIMPLE, AS AN APPLIANCE REPAIR. I ALSO DO NOT WANT TO DO BUSINESS WITH, IN MY PERSONAL OPINION, ANYONE WHO REFUSES TO BE HELD EITHER PERSONALLY RESPONSIBLE, OR PROFESSIONALLY ACCOUNTABLE, OR WHO DOES NOT WANT TO BE TOLD, OR ACCEPT, THE TRUTH, ABOUT HIMSELF, HIS COMPANY, HOW THEY OPERATE, AND THE EFFECT THAT IT HAS ON CUSTOMER'S, AND THEIR LIVES, THEIR TIME, AND THEIR POCKETBOOKS, AND THEN USE THAT CUSTOMER INFORMATION, AND FEEDBACK, AS MOST WELL RUN COMPANYS DO, TO IMPROVE UPON THEIR DAILY OPERATING PROCESSES, AND PROCEDURE