Customer Feedback 101

When I moved to Austin with my new job, I began reading customer feedback weekly. I now am a big advocate for customer feedback. Here are some of the items/places I've given feedback to recently:

(1) I asked the cafeteria at work to have Fat Free Ranch dressing. (I've given them a lot of feedback, but I do this anonymously because I don't ever want to be banned from eating there! I take a lot of forks from them even when I bring my lunch, so we're even.) They took it away when they started making their own Ranch to make more $$. The outcome: they now stock Fat Free Ranch packets along with their homemade regular Ranch dressing.

(2) I told Dannon that I loved their Mango yogurt & they should have it for more than "A limited time." The outcome: I got a few coupons in the mail. (This backfired - about 6 months later, I got an email survey. Because I love Dannon Lite yogurt, I didn't mind answering it.)

(3) I had a gross strawberry in my Yoplait yogurt. The outcome: They gave me a $10 check and said in their letter that they hoped I'd still be a General Mills customer. I don't buy Yoplait anymore.

(4) I bought some produce at HEB (TX grocery store) and it was moldy on the inside when it was eaten that day. Outcome: An email of apology. If I can avoid it, I don't go there - and if I do, I only buy non-perishable items.

(5) The nearby Subway ran out of Scrabble game pieces a week before the contest was supposed to end. I suggested they estimate better next time. Outcome: an email in broken-English apologizing, and a coupon for a free 6 inch sub in the mail a few weeks later.

(6) I had a weird, hard black thing in my Special K cereal bar. I'm thinking it was overcooked molasses or something. Outcome: Apologetic email & coupons in the mail

(7) I told my local Sam's Club that they should have Dannon yogurt & not just Yoplait (see 3 & 4 above). I mentioned that I go to other grocery stores to buy yogurt. Outcome: TBD

The next runner/quilt

I was corrected. There were apparently 2 things missing from my ice cream cake recipe that need to be added. One is to bake the oreo crust for 5 minutes. This will harden it & let it stick together better. (More than 5 mins will be too hard.) The other is to add milk to the melted chocolate. That will make the "icing" softer. It's still just as tasty.

I'm making another table runner from the table runner book I have. I don't think I have a picture of the finished product, but here's my effort thus far:

This weekend there was a random parade down 6th street. It clashed with our returning from the soccer game and made me late for dinner. I ended up meeting the person in my soccer gear (I at least had deodorant and a different shirt with me). I thought a picture of a giant parrot would brighten everyone's day.

Yum - ice cream cake!

Ice cream cake is a staple at Kasiske birthday parties. A friend's baby just happened to get baptized on my little sister's 22nd birthday, and they just happened to have a dinner party the night before. What better way to extend the Kasiske sweet tooth than to offer to bring dessert in the form of an ice cream cake? Let me assure you, making an ice cream cake is SO MUCH BETTER than buying one. I told a coworker I'd blog the recipe for her enjoyment.

First, get out your aggressions by beating up a bag of oreos, or faux-oreos. I opted for "2wisters" which may also be "Qwisters" or "Zwisters" depending on the fact that the 2 might not be a number. Add some melted butter and this becomes your crust. (I'd like to experiment by adding a little caramel - it would still help stick the finely crushed crumbs together.)

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You'll need 2 different kinds of ice cream. This is the best part because you can tailor it to your favorites. I don't like chocolate ice cream, so I picked cookie dough and some sort of turtle something or other. Ice cream in square boxes works the best since you'll have to cut it up and piece it into the cake. Lay one type of ice cream down - it's easier if the ice cream is on the soft side.

Add a layer of caramel. This was my mistake. I didn't want caramel sitting around my apartment because I was sure to eat it. Since the calorie count was high, I added the whole jar. This was far too much. I'd suggest 1/3 - 1/2 of a jar. Save the rest for another time.

Then slap on your second type of ice cream. You're almost done!

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Melt some chocolate chips with a little bit of butter. It might be liquid-y when you stir it, but once it hits the cold ice cream, it'll harden. Spread it thin (it's hard to cut into if it's too thick), across the cake. This is the yummiest part (aside from the cookie dough if you get cookie dough ice cream), but like the caramel, you don't need too much. Let me warn you - DO NOT PUT CANDLES DIRECTLY INTO THE CHOCOLATE LAYER. I made this mistake once, along with having the chocolate being too thick, and we were eating wax. The candles couldn't (easily) come out of the cake. I had to cut around it and it was a big fat mess. Enjoy!

My sewing block is over!

Saturday in a nutshell: My soccer team won, but we were yelled at quite a few times by the ref for being annoying. Apparently, he didn't like when we talked back or when we called handballs on the other team. The best part of the game was the random mud pit in the middle of the field. Surprisingly, only one of my teammates got muddy. This is a reenactment (the people who drove these guys to the game refused to drive them home if they actually got into the pit for the picture.)

My church started its 170th birthday excitement. A few young adults that moved out of town were back in town, so we all met at a park. Activities included picnicking, swinging, and frisbee. For a picture of ME swinging check out this blog: http://bellagreenblog.blogspot.com/2009/10/central-presbyterian-churchs.html

Lastly, my sewing block is over. I got home last night & ironed/sewed for 5 hours. The only thing I have to show for it are these 24 strips - oh, and the fact that I still have dirty dishes in my sink. Yes, I ignored my dirty apartment to sew.

My first flu shot

I got the flu shot the other day - they offered it free at work. Although in years past I've ignored this offer, this year I am so busy and around a lot of nose-picking children that I'd rather avoid getting sick, if possible. I overcame my fear of needles for the brief 10 seconds it took (I usually recite the alphabet forwards & backwards as fast as possible when needles stab my skin). It wasn't too bad.

The funniest part is when the nurse put the band aide on my shoulder. She mistakenly thought one of my freckles was where the needle went in - she was off by an inch, so I ended up with two band aides!

Happy Birthday, Alison!

My little sister turned 22 yesterday (she's the one on the right). Last year, the family went hot air ballooning on her 21st. Her b-day ended last year in downtown Rochester: marking the number of drinks she consumed on her arm (the arm was also signed by neighbor Alicia Smith), riding a mechanical bull, and being brought on stage to shoot toilet paper with some electrical contraption. I only hope your 22nd was as fun as your 21st, Ali-babe. And for you, I'll show you how everyone around the world celebrated your birthday:

Gotta stay warm...

This is what I want to be drinking right now (coffee with foamed milk), sitting under a blanket, watching a movie, listening to the rain. I ran out of winter clothes. Even my small fleece shirts are far too big. It's 61* outside right now, and the weather wants me to take a day off work and bum around. Tonight, my plan is to drink hot cocoa, sew, and go to bed early. Oh what fun.

On a side note, I started my Christmas list the other day. If my family (hint, hint) wants anything good from me, they have to give me their lists by Thanksgiving. Otherwise, expect a surprise gift that I purchase on December 23rd @ 8pm - I'll be in Rochester around 4 that day.

Sunday Coffee: Fair Bean

Sunday I went to Fair Bean Coffee (http://www.fairbeancoffee.com/). Despite the unmemorizable hours (opening & closing at different times during the week) and the fact that it's my second official coffee shop visit, it's my favorite so far.

As is suggested in the title, Fair Bean Coffee practices Fair Trade. Perhaps talking about the exploitation of workers and seeing the living conditions of the natives of Guatemala (no running water) and poor of El Salvador (they fear for their lives), this makes me feel better about getting coffee grown in a third world country.

As far as bean prices are concerned, they were average, running between $9-$12 per pound. Coffee was good, a free refill was included, and the windows were huge. The overall environment was relaxed and clean. I'm slightly saddened that I didn't visit during a weekday to enjoy the smell of beans roasting. Perhaps I'll have to visit again, and try an empanada.

My first time at a sewing machine

I was looking through the scrapbook of my life (which only goes up to the age of ~15 when digital cameras started to rule the world and prints were no longer ordered). I came across a picture of the first thing that I've ever sewn: pajama pants. For a few short years, my mom lead a 4-H group and the three memories I have of that are: "never tie a child to the bed" which was a real bullet point in the packet we got on babysitting, trespassing on a neighboring property to my parents' house to look at a beaver dam, and sewing PJ pants. These were a soft yellow, but I also insisted on making a fleece neon green. They were awesome. We did a little fashion show after everyone was finished, and I felt the need to do a little acting while I strutted my stuff. My hair looks a little crazy - I must have put in pig tails to go along with the little kid in PJ theme. I'm surprised we still have this picture; Mom, my tummy is showing - gross!

Hills Cafe

There's a restaurant in Austin that has a large outdoor venue, perhaps you've heard of Hills Cafe?(http://www.hillscafe.com/) For the summer, they have a free concert every Wednesday night with Texas country music. I've been to a few, but usually leave my purse and camera at home. This week was the last week, closing out the series was Cory Morrow. (I had to skip soccer AND choir to go - shh, don't tell!) To celebrate, I was decked out with my boots, hat, and plaid shirt. I was kickin' it.

On the sewing side, I've started a project, but I am sworn to complete secrecy. I'll blog about it eventually.