For at least 6 weeks I have been liaising with China about a new business venture.  The Chinese’s are nice people, the downside is they have a polite knack of saying yes to everything then can’t deliver the goods.   So after a month and a half of talking we are ready to do business.  I e mailed and asked what they needed from me to proceed, I sent an e mail back agreeing to the terms and we are set to go.  Just as money was about to be sent they sent an e mail saying that what I asked for they could not do, but a cheap crappy option would be made for me.

I had been talking to a friend about the project, and when I received this e mail my blood pressure must have gone through the roof!  I forwarded the e mail to my friend with a note slagging off the Chinese, stating what a lazy bunch of so and so’s (fill in the gaps)  and that they are a nation of liars. Hit send.  Next morning an e mail from China arrived, I had unfortunately sent the e mail to them, (oops) I had a very stern message saying they were going to report me to international trading officials and put on my notes that I am a racists!! I was mortified.  A couple of hours passed and I thought I have to respond, I cant leave it like this, so I sent an e mail saying that I apologised for my use of words, I am absolutely not a racists, but it was a rant of my frustration and their fault for lying to me, stringing me along for so long when they knew all the time they could not offer me what I wanted.   The next morning received an e mail, saying did I want to proceed but the price had gone up significantly, she had got the original quote wrong.   Anyway, I am in talks with a company in India now, let’s see how that goes!

Chariot indeed!