The polite way to be cheap

[Rapscallion]

Extracts from an email exchange that began yesterday:

Hi,

My baby son has a very high allergy to Milk, Lactose, Soya and combined proteins.

I have to make all his foods from scratch avoiding all milk and anything associated with it.

I have found some of his foods to be very bland and believe adding something like a margerine based sauce and/or gravy would deliver a much more paletable feed for him.

I also would like to be able to bake some yummy puddings for him which again would include a milk/dairy free margerine.

I have been informed by my local Health Shop on *********** in ********* that you do this?

I wondered whether it would be possibly for you to send me a sample of such margerine and inform me of where I can get this from in smaller quantities than large tubs due to the fact that my son is only 10 months old and would only be having very small quantities for now?

Thanks

Cheap SC

So, the old "my baby is allergic to everything apart from oxygen, and even then it brings him out in a rash" routine. I may be overstating her case, here, but even though we do supply various speciality products, we are not a charity. My reply:

Good afternoon!

I'm sorry to hear of the problems your son experiences.

We do have a range of dairy-free spreads. Our soya spread is one we obviously cannot recommend, which leaves our sunflower spreads. The organic version contains soya lecithin, as does our olive spread, but the non-organic version of our sunflower spread would appear to be the one you need. This comes in either 500g or 2Kg sizes.

Unfortunately, we only deal in wholesale quantities, and we do not have facilities for sending a small quantity of refrigerated produce as a sample. However, I could happily supply you with a list of retailers we supply in your area if you provide me with your postal town and postcode.

Kindest regards

Reginald Scallion
**** Customer Services

Her reply received today...

My Postal town is ******, ******** and my post code is ******.
I would appreciate it if you could possibly send me any vouchers to help with the cost, as I am going to have to buy in such a large quantity?
Thanks
Cheap SC

If you can't get it one way, how about another?

I had to boggle at her claim about the local health food shop. Her region is filthy with our customers. Why not buy it from them? A half-kilo size is not a huge amount, and it comes with a decent life on it. She could even, and I think you may have considered this one as well, use it on her own bread! Am I a genius or what?

I would have left in her region, since I thought it was a typo for another region of the area, but it turns out to be a genuine district. The odd part is that when I googled for it just now, the first page of results came up with two massage parlours.

We'll see how this develops.

Rapscallion

[Spiffy McMoron]

Quoth Rapscallion

The odd part is that when I googled for it just now, the first page of results came up with two massage parlours.

What kind of massage parlour?

That lady amuses me-I mean, it's nice that you want to save money and all, but don't you think that there was a more subtle way of doing it than that? I'm curious to see if she's rather well-off and cheap, or is stuggling to get by and needs to save every penny she can.

[Rapscallion]

Quoth Spiffy McMoron

What kind of massage parlour?

The kind with images that made me think the site is hosted in the US. I blinked, and that takes some doing these days.

As to whether or not she can afford stuff or is genuinely needy, she was emailing us and therefore has ready access to a computer and Internet access. Granted, it was a Yahoo account, so there's a chance it's a library computer, but somehow the cynic in me says that a computer vs feeding your child is a pretty poor trade-off. I think I'll take my chances on that one.

Rapscallion

[Jester]

Devil's Advocate Moment.

It is possible that she is in fact needy, and has access to email, and not from a library. See, she may just have email access through her job, and still be having problems meeting ends. For instance, she could be a single mother, this may not be her only child, etc., etc.

Of course, there is the distinct possibility that she is just a cheap wench, but just thought I would point out some other possibilities here.

[LostMyMind]

Why don't you send her voucher for 10 cent off manufacturer suggested retail price (at least in the states, that pretty much more than what the store going to sell it for) Yes, I'm

[chainedbarista]

palatable? he's an infant; they eat, sleep, poop and cry. they don't give a rat's butt about taste at this point (ever try formula? hardly the infant equivalent of filet mignon...), just that the empty space in his tummy is filled.

she could use watered down apple juice and add instant cereal for body (and keep him satisfied longer) rather than margarine. that's asinine; it's chemicals, hydrogenated fats and other crap, hardly suitable for a baby's delicate system.

i think she needs some child rearing help, rather than the margarine.

(on top of being a cheap git)

[Rapscallion]

Well, our products contain no hydrogentaed fats - company policy there. The idea about apple juice is pretty good - must suggest that. Thanks!

I did look at the list of what he's allergic to and nearly reply that Darwin was trying to tell her something, but that would have been nasty.

Rapscallion

[gypsywitch84]

Quoth Rapscallion

Granted, it was a Yahoo account, so there's a chance it's a library computer, but somehow the cynic in me says that a computer vs feeding your child is a pretty poor trade-off. Rapscallion

Sorry a bit ot, but just because it is a Yahoo account doesn't mean she's using a library computer. I have a Yahoo account, because its free and I can access my email anywhere, on my laptop and my work computer. Just wanted to say that.

[Kiwi]

maybe the mothers of the board can answer this for me

why cant she add garlic or onion or some mild spices or herbs to the babys food? surely adding fat to make it taste better isnt good for the child... way to condition those taste buds!

I was always told that babies and children dont taste as well as adults and so they can prefer bland food over flavoured?

500 grammes being alot... pssh sure

[chainedbarista]

I did look at the list of what he's allergic to and nearly reply that Darwin was trying to tell her something, but that would have been nasty.

raps, you have no idea how much i'd like to say something of this nature to 'moms' that frequent our store with their kids.

any kind of fruit juice should work, but watering it down is best, since the acid can upset their stomachs.

yay for nasty hydrogenated free foods! boo because i can't kick the peanut butter...so tasty, so deadly.

putting anything of that nature (garlic, onions, etc) into a baby's food is silly; their systems are pretty sensitive, so most of the foods are bland, so odd items don't cause reactions, and that their immune systems aren't strong, so if they have an allergic reaction...

they don't really get much of anything non-bland until they start eating solids, but even that should be left with a low salt/sugar recipie, simply because they don't need it.

when they're toddlers, a bit of experimenting is ok, but you still have to keep the allergic reaction issue in mind. certain trigger foods (common ones like mushrooms, nuts, strawberries and dairy in some cases, along with corn, soy and wheat) are best avoided until the child is a bit older with an immune system that can combat the potential problems with some foods.