The Haggling Blackberry Lady

by Cher King

I run a small farm stand and I get people from all walks of life that stop by. Some are great and I miss them through out the winter and others that I hope I never see again.

Blackberry time for me is my favorite time of year, big fat juicy berries. As a child I couldnt get enough of them no matter how many trails I followed in the woods. So when looking for a home having a blackberry patch was very important. The first year we were here we picked over 60 quarts, I could eat as many as I wanted, made jam and froze the rest. When the next season came around I didn't want to prune them which now when I think of it was pretty stupid on my part. Now we had twice as many and still a bunch in the freezer. Okay, I save all my plastic butter dishes for some reason that sounded good at the time. They hold about 2 quarts of berries and I was charging $5.00 a bowl. When you think about it for half a pint of berries at the supermarket cost that much, so mine were a deal. Right?

I had an elderly lady stop by one hot afternoon in her brand new Mercedes with out of state plates. She wanted a bowl of blackberries,

"How much are they?" she asked.

Looking over my shoulder and the three signs I had posted everywhere, "$5.00 a bowl" I said.

'Well, I do not want to pay that much" she said .

"You're getting 2 quarts of berries for $5.00" I said.

I knew this was going to be a battle of wills but I didn't think the berries were over priced and I would rather see them sit in the freezer then undersell them.

I'm sorry but that is what I am charging, I calmly told her.

Well they are going to go to waste she said.

See here on farm very little goes to waste, either I will feed them to my chickens or I will put them in a freezer bag after you leave, it makes no difference to me I said

I guess she took this as a challenge because the next thing she said was;

Is there any place else I could pick berries? she asked.

No. I was blunt and to the point.

She just kept saying she didnt want to pay $5.00 over and over.

Fine I'll tell you what; I will let you pick your own. Her face brightened, "Really?" she said

Yup, here's your box I said as I reached for an empty quart box.

She then asked how much as she opens her wallet.

"$10.00", I said.

"What?! Thats twice as much as you were charging before" she said.

"I know, the reason is the bushes are on a downward slope which is slippery and there are hornet nests in there too. You see I know where they are and if you fall I will be liable so that's the reason for the change in price. So if you think about it the $5.00 bowl of two quarts of berries is really a bargain." I said.

Well let's just say she bought the bargain bowl of berries and went on her merry way.

Article submitted Tuesday, October 09, 2007 & read 102 times.

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