Are you going to wait here?

That's what they asked me when I dropped off the '99 Saturn at 12:15 today. I dropped it off for the needed 4-wheel alignment and to have the leaking water pump fixed. They asked me if I was going to wait for it.

Did I mention that was at 12:15 this afternoon?

My wife and I thought we were being clever. We both drove down separately, then I took her back to work and I came back to work. No sense sitting and waiting when we could both be doing something more productive.

The service consultant told me (since I wouldn't be waiting) that they would call me when the repairs were completed.

I figured that since they thought I might be waiting that it wouldn't take very long. At 2:45, we figured that I would need to go pick the boys up from school, since my wife is stuck at work without transportation and they still hadn't called. At 3:15 I left work to pick them up.

Still no call.

So I called to find out if my vehicle was ready. Nobody knew anything. So they had to write down my phone number and call me back.

When they called back, they asked if I really needed that car tonight, because they had finished the alignment, but that the tech was still working on the water pump and if he worked at it nonstop, he could have the vehicle ready by around 6:30.

WHAT??

Six hours? They'd BETTER not try to charge me for 6 hours of labor. SIX HOURS?? Good thing I didn't stick around and wait for it. Then again, if I would have waited for it, maybe they would have actually gotten it done, knowing that there was someone sitting in their waiting room that would be getting more upset by the HOUR.

I hate cars.