Would You Like Snow With That?

Yes, I'd like a Big Mac, a large fries, and a Diet Coke... in Missouri, please.

Source: This, too, is from the book I'm reading, which I will reveal on Friday.

Explanation: In an effort to improve service, a McDonald's franchise owner in Colorado created a call center to handle his drive-through orders. Anyone who pulls up to one of his numerous franchises to place an order is actually talking to an order taker in his call center, who relays the order via computer back to the franchise where the order was placed. Having highly trained professionals handle orders trims the average order time by more than 30 seconds, and puts his franchise among the fastest in the country. Seeing his success, other McDonald's franchises have started paying to use his call center as well. So, if you pull up to McDonald's just off U.S. Interstate 55 near Cape Girardeau, Missouri, you will actually place your order through the Colorado Springs call center. Scary, huh?

Not So True, But Interesting Factoid: In honor of this innovation, all of my Sametime responses today will actually be processed through a computer lab in Bangalore.

Sadly, This Factoid Is True: A not-so-stable friend of my college roommate worked at McDonald's during high school. Somebody placed an order for a Big Mac, a large fries, and a Diet Coke, and he went off on them: "You're getting a Big Mac and enough fries to feed three people. That's like 1500 calories! You think a Diet Coke is going to help you???" After some more colorful ranting, the customer responded that she was diabetic and could not drink regular Coke, at which point the enraged employee gave up and cooled off in the walk-in freezer for a while.