Unbelievable Complaints

[fortinweb]

In the Air Force I've always seen it expressed the other way around: "A thousand attaboys are wiped out by one 'aw-chit!'"

 

And I've seen it on posts, here, too: Dozens of posters rave about this, that or the other thing in response to the original question in a thread, but what does the OP latch onto? The one post that expresses a negative opinion.

 

Why? Because each person is bombarded with, on average, twenty thousand negative thoughts/words/actions each day, effectively programming us to respond to negatives more readily than positives. I learned this in 2006, on my Carnival cruise as part of the "Authors At Sea" group, wherein one of the featured speakers was a top editor for the "Chicken Soup" books. Fascinating lecture -- and physical demonstration -- about how we respond to negative as well as positive messages.

 

We have many choices regarding how to respond to the negativity we encounter in our lives, and on our cruise vacations. Humor works for me, as does simply walking away if I'm not in a mood to banter. I've even been known to send subtle "positive vibes" in the direction of the negative person, which can work wonders.

 

May all your cruises be complaint-free! :)

 

We might also gravitate towards negative comments because in everyday life we are constantly being bombarded by an over abundance of 'positive' comments in advertisements that sing the overly hyped praises of their products, services, or leaders. With every ad claiming to be the best, the brightest, the longest lasting, the fastest acting, etc., we become overly saturated with these grandiose claims. We become distanced from all these 'positive' statements coming at us from magazines, newspapers, television, billboards. We're becoming a society where positive comments are often looked upon with suspect, considering them just gimmicks to sell a product, or to convince us to think their way.

[Goofyisme]

We might also gravitate towards negative comments because in everyday life we are constantly being bombarded by an over abundance of 'positive' comments in advertisements that sing the overly hyped praises of their products, services, or leaders. With every ad claiming to be the best, the brightest, the longest lasting, the fastest acting, etc., we become overly saturated with these grandiose claims. We become distanced from all these 'positive' statements coming at us from magazines, newspapers, television, billboards. We're becoming a society where positive comments are often looked upon with suspect, considering them just gimmicks to sell a product, or to convince us to think their way.

 

An interesting perspective. One to think about.

[Bridge Maven]

We might also gravitate towards negative comments because in everyday life we are constantly being bombarded by an over abundance of 'positive' comments in advertisements that sing the overly hyped praises of their products, services, or leaders. With every ad claiming to be the best, the brightest, the longest lasting, the fastest acting, etc., we become overly saturated with these grandiose claims. We become distanced from all these 'positive' statements coming at us from magazines, newspapers, television, billboards. We're becoming a society where positive comments are often looked upon with suspect, considering them just gimmicks to sell a product, or to convince us to think their way.

 

Fortinweb, do you feel the same way about the posters who have never posted a negative comment about Celebrity?

[Taxguy77]

Speaking of elevators, wife and I were on the elevator with a young couple and she was complaining that she wished the elevators to be made to either go up or down....Her husband wanted to crawl into a hole but couldn't find one...

 

"You can't fix stupid!"

Ron White

[fortinweb]

Fortinweb, do you feel the same way about the posters who have never posted a negative comment about Celebrity?

 

There are many postings on this board that are overly positive, just as there are many postings that are overly negative. Nothing is totally perfect, or totally imperfect. Some posters post reviews that seem too good to be true, just as some posters post reviews that are too negative to be believable. Something in the middle is more realistic.

 

That said, to have never posted anything negative is not the same as to have posted only positive comments. A person can easily avoid being negative by staying neutral.

[FrankinPA]

We might also gravitate towards negative comments because in everyday life we are constantly being bombarded by an over abundance of 'positive' comments in advertisements that sing the overly hyped praises of their products, services, or leaders. With every ad claiming to be the best, the brightest, the longest lasting, the fastest acting, etc., we become overly saturated with these grandiose claims. We become distanced from all these 'positive' statements coming at us from magazines, newspapers, television, billboards. We're becoming a society where positive comments are often looked upon with suspect, considering them just gimmicks to sell a product, or to convince us to think their way.

 

So, if your theory is correct, we would all turn into cherry, optimistic, courteous, helpful and just all around great people who never complain if only everything else we see everyday was negative, complaining, rude and obnoxious. Did I get that right?

[Denny01]

Example of review comments ive seen and is one is positive and one negative:

 

- enjoyed the dining in the MDR...

- there wasn't one meal I could stomach. All were terrible.

 

Both are probably correct for the posters, but the real point, at least for me, is which one has any use for us to use to think about a cruise line choice. Having cruised on a number of Lines, I can't believe Any Line has terrible meals - all off them. So I end up pretty much ignoring that type of review...the whole review.

 

I appreciate legit negative comments and have made them, but hopefully in a better and more useful perspective.

 

Den

[Bridge Maven]

There are many postings on this board that are overly positive, just as there are many postings that are overly negative. Nothing is totally perfect, or totally imperfect. Some posters post reviews that seem too good to be true, just as some posters post reviews that are too negative to be believable. Something in the middle is more realistic.

 

That said, to have never posted anything negative is not the same as to have posted only positive comments. A person can easily avoid being negative by staying neutral.

 

Fortinweb, when I referred to posters who never say anything negative about Celebrity I meant the ones who have only posted positive comments about Celebrity. With that said, it appears that we are in agreement about this issue.

 

While I think it is best to make the most of whatever goes wrong during a cruise and not complain to other passengers, I think posts about their experiences aboard a Celebrity ship should reflect their actual experience. However, I don't think all posts that are overly optimistic are that way for the same reasons. Some posters who are overly optimistic probably have an agenda, but I think others actually believe what they have posted and just have a completely different frame of reference for evaluating a cruise, based on their other experiences in life.

[Taxguy77]

Years ago I worked with a big, macho-man Vietnam war vet who had handicap tags on his jacked up 4-wheel drive pickup truck. Every morning he would park in the closest handicapped space he could find. Almost every afternoon he and my boss would go to the local gym and play a round of racquetball during lunch. I never found out what his disability actually was.

 

Mental?:confused:

Or just da-- everybody else, I'm ME! :eek:

[WaterholeWally]

Boogs,

 

Your macho-man, Vietnam vet's disability was mental. I can recall more extreme system-gamer stories, but I try not to.

[boogs]

.....when I referred to posters who never say anything negative about Celebrity I meant the ones who have only posted positive comments about Celebrity.....Some posters who are overly optimistic probably have an agenda.....

 

There will always be 'cheerleaders' and 'trolls' on any board. The challenge is to figure out which posts are by either of them and read those posts with a healthy sense of skepticism. I personally use the "Yeah, Right!" reading technique when I think I have found one. This technique has served me well over the years. :)

[Dr. Cocktail]

There will always be 'cheerleaders' and 'trolls' on any board. The challenge is to figure out which posts are by either of them and read those posts with a healthy sense of skepticism. I personally use the "Yeah, Right!" reading technique when I think I have found one. This technique has served me well over the years. :)

 

 

Great comment - I think that people occasionally need to be reminded that the name of the site is "Cruise Critic" and not "Cruise Sycophant" or

"Cruise Misanthrope". A critic "is anyone who expresses a value judgement". We have to assess what the person has said and where they are coming from in terms of previous experience and their current comments. The "truth" usually does lie between two extremes. I have been on Celebrity about 30 times and generally never post my complaints or my kudos as the two usually balance each other out. I vote with my wallet and keep returning to what is basically the best bang for buck in the industry today (oops .... that was a strong endosement ....)

[Karynanne]

Fortinweb, when I referred to posters who never say anything negative about Celebrity I meant the ones who have only posted positive comments about Celebrity. With that said, it appears that we are in agreement about this issue.

 

While I think it is best to make the most of whatever goes wrong during a cruise and not complain to other passengers, I think posts about their experiences aboard a Celebrity ship should reflect their actual experience. However, I don't think all posts that are overly optimistic are that way for the same reasons. Some posters who are overly optimistic probably have an agenda, but I think others actually believe what they have posted and just have a completely different frame of reference for evaluating a cruise, based on their other experiences in life.

 

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by "having an agenda". I have found through my own life experience that there are just some people that see certain situations with either a "cup half-full" viewpoint, or a "cup half-empty" viewpoint. They will moan over soggy breakfast cereal, instead of realizing that the milk tastes delicious.

 

Personally, I'm a "cup half-full" person. I just can't see the point in finding fault, or looking for fault in my daily life. And especially while on vacation.

 

After reading numerous cruise reviews in past years, I quickly can decipher who is basically a sour grapes sort of person, and who delights in the joy of daily living.

[DizzyDallasDi]

I can totally relate to all of these stories about complainers because I used to have a friend who was "one of them." :eek: There was never a meal served to her exact (*odd*) specifications and I shuddered each time she sent them back fearing what would be done when her "improved" dish was delivered. She spoke to any and all service personnel in a very nasty tone of voice as if they were sub-human who should be at her heels ready to serve her every wish and desire.

 

Each vacation we took together was a nightmare because she filled out every comment card she could find to complain about the most inane things; such as, the spoon she recieved with her room service breakfast order was too big. For that, she demanded compensation of a free meal in their uupscale restaurant.

 

The spa did not live up to something on her agenda, so she wrote a scathing complaint on the comment card and encourged me to do the same so we could both get a free spa treatment. I declined as mine was great but she insisted and when I said I wouldn't do it, she got mad at me for not joining in her "scam."

 

She went to an Easter brunch at a Four Seasons and was appalled at the number of families with young children there. To top off that experience, the Easter Bunny that was walking through the restaurant entertaining the youngsters really set her off and she complained throughout the meal to any staff that happened by the table. Then, she filled out yet another comment card to complain about how her enjoyment had been destroyed. For the love of Pete, she should have expected this at an Easter Brunch. She demanded compensation and got it.

 

Often, she would call to gloat about her newest and greatest comp due to another complaint she made.

 

These type of people are scrutinizing every little thing so they can complain to get something for free. I watched her do this many times and finally ended the friendship because it simply was not fun being with her. Nonstop complaining and expecting compensation for very silly things (like the wrong size spoon) was more than I was able to put up with.

[kampinguru]

We made and canned 39 quarts of Salsa as well as canned tomatoes. Also did peaches and pears. Love the fruit in winter. Using concord grapes, we made a bunch of grape juice as well.

 

Totally fun to find another canning & cruising fan! :)

[Bridge Maven]

There will always be 'cheerleaders' and 'trolls' on any board. The challenge is to figure out which posts are by either of them and read those posts with a healthy sense of skepticism. I personally use the "Yeah, Right!" reading technique when I think I have found one. This technique has served me well over the years. :)

 

Boogs, I agree with you completely :)

[PartyAllDaTyme]

I can totally relate to all of these stories about complainers because I used to have a friend who was "one of them." :eek: There was never a meal served to her exact (*odd*) specifications and I shuddered each time she sent them back fearing what would be done when her "improved" dish was delivered. She spoke to any and all service personnel in a very nasty tone of voice as if they were sub-human who should be at her heels ready to serve her every wish and desire.

 

Each vacation we took together was a nightmare because she filled out every comment card she could find to complain about the most inane things; such as, the spoon she recieved with her room service breakfast order was too big. For that, she demanded compensation of a free meal in their uupscale restaurant.

 

The spa did not live up to something on her agenda, so she wrote a scathing complaint on the comment card and encourged me to do the same so we could both get a free spa treatment. I declined as mine was great but she insisted and when I said I wouldn't do it, she got mad at me for not joining in her "scam."

 

She went to an Easter brunch at a Four Seasons and was appalled at the number of families with young children there. To top off that experience, the Easter Bunny that was walking through the restaurant entertaining the youngsters really set her off and she complained throughout the meal to any staff that happened by the table. Then, she filled out yet another comment card to complain about how her enjoyment had been destroyed. For the love of Pete, she should have expected this at an Easter Brunch. She demanded compensation and got it.

 

Often, she would call to gloat about her newest and greatest comp due to another complaint she made.

 

These type of people are scrutinizing every little thing so they can complain to get something for free. I watched her do this many times and finally ended the friendship because it simply was not fun being with her. Nonstop complaining and expecting compensation for very silly things (like the wrong size spoon) was more than I was able to put up with.

 

Sadly, there are many people out there who have the same attitude. I work in customer service and often encounter someone making a mountain out of a molehill. They'll seize on an issue like a "too big spoon" and become overly dramatic. They'll carry on as if their life, as they know it, is over. Part of the problem is that I'm instructed to offer a certain amount of compensation to difficult customers to "make them go away," and they know it. It's not worth the company's time to have me dealing with them for an hour when I can issue a $10 gift card and move on to someone who has a genuine problem. While no one's getting the equivalent of a free cruise out of me, they might get the equivalent of that free meal.

 

Occasionally, this can backfire on a customer. I've seen accounts that have been flagged "No additional compensation for problems," then had them call with a genuine problem. And I have, on rare occasion, told a customer that they might just be better off shopping somewhere else. I do so politely, but I can practically see the shocked expression on their face over the phone line when they realize that they've gone too far.

 

Fortunately (?), these people are in the minority. Most complainers are just truly clueless.

[gyanhumara]

We made and canned 39 quarts of Salsa as well as canned tomatoes. Also did peaches and pears. Love the fruit in winter. Using concord grapes, we made a bunch of grape juice as well.

 

We never get that many tomatoes to make salsa AND canned tomatoes -- and last year they came in so sporadically that I simply diced and tray-froze them, and bagged them afterward. Worked pretty well. This year the deer got my beans, so I just washed, broke & froze what I was able to salvage off the plants. Also this year our two new pear trees (planted year before last) bore like crazy for the first time, so I got a dozen or so quarts from those. Even though this wasn't an "apple year" for us (best yields are in the even-numbered years) I still was able to make 24 quarts of juice from around 400 apples (last year I had to work with over 2,000! :eek:). The three dozen or so quarts of potatoes I mentioned in the earlier post represented the first time I tried using the county cannery, and I'm very pleased with how well that worked out for me. At only 20 cents per jar, it's a great bargain.

[billie5]

Given the topic of this thread, I wish there were a really nice way to say this.

 

Thread hijacking is when a thread is used to communicate about a topic having nothing to do with the thread. It is against CC rules on the cruise line boards. (It is, I am sure, fine on Rollcall forums, where the point is to get to know your fellow travelers)

[jackdiamond]

We never get that many tomatoes to make salsa AND canned tomatoes -- and last year they came in so sporadically that I simply diced and tray-froze them, and bagged them afterward. Worked pretty well. This year the deer got my beans, so I just washed, broke & froze what I was able to salvage off the plants. Also this year our two new pear trees (planted year before last) bore like crazy for the first time, so I got a dozen or so quarts from those. Even though this wasn't an "apple year" for us (best yields are in the even-numbered years) I still was able to make 24 quarts of juice from around 400 apples (last year I had to work with over 2,000! :eek:). The three dozen or so quarts of potatoes I mentioned in the earlier post represented the first time I tried using the county cannery, and I'm very pleased with how well that worked out for me. At only 20 cents per jar, it's a great bargain.

Interesting; and, do you have any idea why the best apple years are the even years?

[gyanhumara]

Interesting; and, do you have any idea why the best apple years are the even years?

 

At the risk of being called a hijacker...:eek:

 

Apple trees tend to produce well every other year. Don't know the botany behind it, just years of observation. For us it happens to be the even years.

 

And I do solemnly swear to report all "unreasonable complaints" and demands that I overhear on board Constellation Dec. 17-31! I just REALLY hope I don't overhear any!!! :D

[Bridge Maven]

What annoys me is when someone complains about a situation that can be easily resolved but they refuse to do anything about it. It is almost as if they would rather complain throughout a cruise than talk to someone, who can resolve the problem, on the first day.

[Hlitner]

Just off Constellation. Felt sorry the Concierge when one woman requested a map of Barcelona and then complained that that was not the map she wanted since "all of the street names were in Spanish" and that she didn't understand Spanish. She demanded one with the street names in English. This is an absolutely true story. Remco is a wonderful Concierge and a fan of Cruise Critic.

 

Too funny. They should have given her a map with all the names in English. When she returned to the ship (assuming she did not miss the ship) she would have complained that the map was wrong since none of the street names matched the names on the street signs :)

 

Hank

[Ma Bell]

What annoys me is when someone complains about a situation that can be easily resolved but they refuse to do anything about it. It is almost as if they would rather complain throughout a cruise than talk to someone, who can resolve the problem, on the first day.

 

I often wonder the same thing. The staff onboard always do their best to resolve problems, especially if they are treated with respect.

[mferranti]

I often wonder the same thing. The staff onboard always do their best to resolve problems, especially if they are treated with respect.

But the staff is supposed to just know what the person is unhappy about, and fix it without being asked.