A Love Letter

Dear Nordstrom,

I know we don't know each other very well. I guess you could say that we've been acquaintances over the years. I'm not sure what type of love letters you usually receive, but I would imagine that they are somewhere along the line of, "You complete me... I enter your doors and I feel at home... I always leave with shopping bags full of the latest trends..." Well, that isn't me. Not because you aren't fabulous- because you are completely fabulous- but, rather, because I am more of an Old Navy/Gap clearance kind of girl. I don't own designer purses or even designer jeans (gasp! I know!).

Okay, now that I have defined our relationship, I will tell you how you have made me so very happy today.

I bought some new shoes last month, and I love them, LOVE THEM. Look, aren't they so cute? They are a perfect combination of cute AND comfy. To me, they represent dreams AND reality (I know, that is a bit dramatic, but these shoes remind me of a ballerina's toe shoes, and I once dreamed of wearing toe shoes! My short-lived ballet career never graduated me to a toe shoe, but, oh, how I loved to watch the graceful ballerinas spin on that flat toe- that toe that was taped up and worn in and looked completely uncomfortable yet still desirable! My reality is that I am a mama, but not a very graceful one! Heels are too risky in my line of work, and it is too difficult to tie my shoes while balancing a baby, a diaper bag, an armful of coats, etc... therefore these slip-on flats are perfect for me!).

Anyway, back to my story. You can imagine my sadness last week when someone bumped a shopping cart into my left shoe while I was grocery shopping, leaving my beautiful shoe with a tear in the shiny black patent leather. Rather than cry and toss my shoes aside, I chose to focus on the fact that these shoes were purchased from Nordstrom, and as the legend goes, Nordstrom once refunded the cost of 4 tires to an elderly man who was certain that he'd purchased the unsatisfactory tires from Nordstrom, though you don't even sell tires. Now THAT is customer service!

So, today my son, my daughter, my torn shoes and I went to the mall and boldly headed toward your shoe department. Christopher (give that guy a promotion! He is so great!), saw me and asked, "Hey, how are you? Are you enjoying your Uggs? Oh, and you are wearing your new flats!"

See, I met Christopher just before Christmas when my husband bought me some new Uggs because our son ruined my old ones when he wore them on Halloween, insisting that my white Ugg boots would look more authentic with his Native American costume than his own sneakers, which is completely irrelevant but worth noting that the child RUINED MY WHITE UGG BOOTS!

I nearly passed on the new Uggs because I was so enamored with the ballet flats, but I am happy to report that I received a Nordstrom gift card the following week and wasted no time in getting back to you to make my purchase! I debated for a while between the flat black and the patent black, but Christopher assured me that the patent was smokin' hot and that a 30 year old mother of three sometimes needs shiny shoes.

Today, Christopher wasn't surprised to see that something like a bump from a grocery cart could ruin my shoes, and even added that the same thing once happened to his black patent leather shoes, except that his were $500 Ferragamos (seriously, Christopher? I took you for a Converse All-Star guy in your after-hours).

I didn't even have to ask the $69.95+tax question. Christopher looked to the left, and then looked to the right, and then in a hushed voice said, "We'll replace them this one time for you, but I'm out of the patent, you'll have to take the flat black."

Oh, Nordstrom, what a relief! Thank you, thank you! You replaced my shoes, no questions asked! You didn't ask when I bought them, or if I had a receipt, and you didn't even press to learn that I was the dummy in Safeway who kicked the wheel of my own shopping cart and ruined my own shoes!!!!

I don't ever want to take advantage of your customer service, Nordy, and I hope that you don't lose much money by giving me a new pair of shoes today, and if it means anything to you, let me tell you what you've gained: a customer for life!

I currently have dried spit-up on one shoulder, dried snot on the other, and peanut butter on my sleeves, which may seem gross to you, but it will all wash out, and tomorrow will see a new set of snot and spills, and I can only smile because my dirty shirt represents my day's work and reminds me of my sweet babies. However, I hope that I have adequately expressed the joy that I feel as I look at my feet and see my lovely, unharmed shoes!

Forever Yours,

Annie