I got it, I got it, I got it! I finally got my refund from my wedding photographer for pictures I had taken at my July 14, 2007 wedding! How you may ask! Facebook!!! I tried everything from repeatedly calling and using different area codes to filing a claim with Better Business Bureau to calling a lawyer. Nothing worked until I got on FB and began corresponding with the right people. I won’t say anymore because it would just be negative and shine a bad light on a now resolved situation.

My purpose for telling you this is to say, once again, I love Facebook!

Holla back!

For those who haven’t followed my wedding picture saga from the beginning, let me briefly recap. I got married July 14, 2007. I hired a photographer recommended by a family member. He was a Christian and grew up with family so I thought it was all good. I paid him $750.00, half of his cost, up front. The other half was due when I received the finished product. Because he considered me “family”, he promised to give me little extras. As of today, August 5, 2009 I have not received my wedding pictures or the little extras.

Did I share with you that I called the Peoria, IL Better Business Bureau and they sent me papers to fill out on my photographer’s business? Yep, they did. However, being the procrastinator I am, I haven’t filled them out and sent them back. But in the meantime, I kept trying! Periodically I have called him to no avail. I have hit *67 and made the call anonymously. I have called early in the morning and late at night. I have tried just about every method to catch him. The only thing that has worked in the past was using a phone number with an area code he is not familiar with. Last week I used one co-worker’s phone, with a different area code, and he still didn’t answer.

Yesterday I was talking to our IT guy about giving kleverkathy.com a facelift and new look and in the process he gave me his cell number. When he said an area code for Hawaii, a bell sounded in my head! Let’s try this! I called and my photographer answered! We did the small talk and formalities and quickly I said, hey, I’m calling about a $750.00 refund. Immediately he said “absolutely”! Hallelujah! He asked and once again, for about the tenth time, I gave him my address. He promised to send my refund by certified mail later in the day and I should get it Friday.

I’m hoping, trusting and believing for the best! If you would, in your prayer time, point your right hand toward Peoria, IL and your left southward believing with me, I’d appreciate it! And you don’t even have to ask, when I get that certified mail, with a (hopefully) money order, for the refund of my deposit on my wedding pictures from July 14, 2007, I will most definitely let you know!

Do you think he’ll come through? Holla back!

I need your advice on this What Would You Do question.

I got married July 14, 2007, almost two years ago, Praise the Lord. I hired a photography based on two things. Number one, he grew up with my brother-in-law and was his friend and my brother-in-law was going to use him for his own daughter’s wedding. (that wedding didn’t happen but still my brother-in-law had planned to use him) The second reason was because he is a Christian and I wanted to support him and sow into his ministry by hiring him. The cost was $1500.00. Let me spell that out, fifteen hundred dollars! That is fifteen one hundred dollar bills! Whew! So I had to pay half up front – $750.00 – and the other half was due when he was done.

I really wanted him to be at my wedding rehearsal taking pictures. For $1500.00 surely that wasn’t too much to ask right? In the hustle and bustle, I didn’t realize until after the rehearsal (we had so much fun at my rehearsal!) that he didn’t show. I started to panic because he told me he would be there. Ok, but since he wasn’t there I knew he would come through on everything else. On my wedding day he was to be with me from 8:00am until the end of the reception. Wedding morning I went back into panic mode when I didn’t hear from him. Finally he called and said he was there. But…I never laid eyes on him until he arrived at the church at 12 noon. I am the bride!!! WHAT IN THE WORLD!!! He missed all the things I did that morning. IE – Smiling. Getting my hair done. Smiling. Getting my nails and toes done. Smiling. Gathering up all my stuff in preparation to leave for the church. Smiling. Floating on air with butterflies in my belly. Oh well… it was 12 noon, he was there. Only lost 4 hours of pictures of the beginning of my big day…

He did take several pictures but he didn’t do the video recording. My brother-in-law ran the video camera although I had requested that from my photographer. He wanted to charge me some astronomical amount on top of the fifteen one hundred dollar bills I was already paying him! Uh…no! It was his suggestion for my brother-in-law to be the videographer. (I say this with utter glee) At one point during my receiving line I noticed my brother-in-law singing a duet with my cousin, which meant, there was no video camera rolling! I needed someone to bring me a program to see if there had been a misprint because I knew I hadn’t hired my brother-in-law to sing, as I really thought his job was VIDEOGRAPHER! But in efforts to stay graceful I smiled and continued my job, hugging folk that honored me with their presence at my wedding! )

Shortly after noticing my brother-in-law singing with no video camera in his hand, again, I nonchalantly looked around and to my chagrin, I see the most appalling thing; my PAID photographer was on the drums accompanying my brother-in-law singing his duet! WHAT IN THE WORLD!!! This meant no video camera and no regular camera! Let’s stop here and review the situation: I had already dropped $750.00, he didn’t show up at my wedding rehearsal, he missed the first four hours of my big day and now, instead of snapping me with all my well wishers hugging me and my groom, he was playing the drums for my non-video recording brother-in-law!!! Pray church! I feel a pew about to come out of place!

I am still not to the crux of my What Would You Do question.

Today it is May 18th, exactly 57 days before my two years anniversary and (drum roll please….) I have received not nary a one photo from my: brother-in-law friend, saved and loves the Lord, late arriving, drum playing photographer! Not one! Yes, you heard me right; I have not gotten my July 14, 2007 wedding pictures. Holla!

Here’s what I’ve done. I have tried to be nice phone call after phone call, voice message after voice message and email after email. 9 times out of 10, on those voice messages, just to reiterate, I leave my cell number, my husband’s cell number, my work number, my husband’s work number and our home number! The times he did answer, at the end of the conversation filled with promises, as if looking business-y he would ask for our phone numbers for the umpteenth time, I guess to impress me. Didn’t work! Bad business is bad business and so unimpressive!

Eventually, he stopped answering my phone calls. Then in early March I called from my co-worker’s cell in efforts to throw him off with the strange area code and phone number. He answered! He actually admitted to doing this to two other couples, but he finally got theirs done. Mine was the only one he hadn’t completed and I was the one that had been waiting the longest. In that conversation he promised to have my pictures to me by March 31st. He rattled off my address, as if to reconfirm, although he has had my new address for months!

March 31 came and went and about mid-April he called and said he had made real good progress. Ok, seriously, that is not what I want to hear! And what is real good progress? My 2 ½ year old grandson might have been able to figure this out and make real good progress 21 months after the fact!

So now I am thru!!!! Three weeks ago I called him from my phone, of course he didn’t answer. I left a message saying I just wanted my money back. Forget the pictures, I have enough non-professional, but good pictures that family and friends took. I just want my money immediately or I would have no choice but to prosecute! Yes I did! And I hung up feeling nearly vindicated! I knew things would start moving now! Lol. I have heard nothing. Absolutely nothing!

Call me lazy but I really don’t want to do the whole small claims court thing. I just want what is due me! Really what I want is all my pictures and all my money back. Here’s the thing, if I do have to end up taking him to small claims court, I WILL also ask for monies for my pains and sufferings! (I know a “s” doesn’t belong on the end of those words, but 21 months = PAINS and SUFFERINGS!)

To my question:  what should I do? Continue to wait? Call the Better Business Bureau? Make my brother-in-law put a fire under him? Call the courts and see what my options are? I don’t know. You tell me, what should I do? What would you do? Help me! Holla back!