CASE 141: Joy Friedman!
Dr. and Dr. Simcha and Joy Friedman were set on bringing the Purim spirit to the entire Sutton Place neighborhood this year.
They
ordered dozens of mishloach manot packages from Manot Munchies for all
of their neighbors and friends, to be delivered on Purim morning.
Simcha and Joy wanted every Sutton Place resident to feel truly special
and appreciated. With thoughtfulness, intuition, and humor, they
ordered the packages to fit the needs, likes, and idiosyncrasies of
each neighbor.
Mrs.
Cohen, an elderly woman on the block, had suffered a great deal through
the vicissitudes of life, which left her quite irritable. To say the
least, her unfortunate demeanor provided a challenge to jovial
side-by-side existence, and relationships between the neighbors had
always been strained.
Simcha
and Joy wanted to use Purim as an opportunity to make amends and turn
over a new leaf. And so, they extended a special effort to order an
extra large package suited for Mrs. Cohen. Three glass bottles of
flavored seltzer water, 2 packages of wholegrain crackers, an array of
exotic teas, a jar of honey, a cinnamon babka, coffee beans, licorice,
and a row of apples, oranges, and star-fruit - all elegantly presented
in an ornate magazine rack and wrapped up neatly in cellophane. They
hoped to warm her heart with the feeling that she was loved.
On
the other side of town lived attorneys David and Linda Green, Esq. The
Greens' and Friedmans' good-humored relationship went back years, and
one never knew what to expect in each other's mishloach manot packages.
Under pressure from his wife, David had begun cutting down on his sugar
intake for quite some time. However, Linda made it clear that she
thought it reasonable for him to cheat a little on Purim.
Simcha and Joy decided to capitalize on David's new diet and ordered a mishloach manot package from Manot Munchies to suit.
The
Purim festivities began and the Friedmans were expecting to receive a
phone call from Mrs. Cohen expressing her appreciation for the generous
and thoughtful package.
Meanwhile,
Mrs. Cohen received a package at the door Pleasantly surprised, she
opened the wrapping and her mouth dropped wide open. What nerve! ... a
crystal pill case! She opened the case and her eyes beheld - one black
jellybean for Sunday a gourmet chocolate chip for Monday, dried apple
slices for Tuesday, a candied almond for Wednesday, Splenda for
Thursday, a caramel popcorn for Friday, and for Saturday a note which
read, Sweet Dreams from your doctors'.
Incensed, Mrs. Cohen threw down the crystal case, smashing it into smithereens.
At
twelve noon, the Greens called. We are touched with the graciousness of
your mishloach manot but fail to get this year's humor
Before
Joy had time to explain, the phone rang on the other line. Joy glanced
over to the second phone and saw Mrs. Cohen's number on the caller ID.
Excitedly, she picked up the receiver and heard a deep and disturbed
voice: Joy! I am not
Oh, Heavens!
No joys for Cohen, no grin for Friedman- because Cohen got Green's and the Greens have Cohen's! Someone made a grave mistake.
After
Purim, the Friedmans phoned Manot Munchies and told them they intended
to withhold payment due. They would happily pay for the bulk of the
mishloach manot, but not for the two switched packages. Manot Munchies
argued that the Friedmans should at least pay for the cost price of the
goods.
- May the Friedmans withhold payment for the switched packages?
- Does Mrs. Cohen have any financial responsibility for breaking the pill case?
- May the Green family eat Mrs. Cohen's package?
