My wife recently had some service done on her car. As is part of this modern ritual, she received a survey asking about her experience. The ratings were from 1 to 10 with 10 being "Extremely Good".
Naturally, she was very pleased with her service so she listed the results as "8".
Today, she got a call from the service manager asking why she didn't give a 10. i'd think that was pretty obvious.
From a pure linguistic stand, the service provided was not extreme. It was very good, and she's quite happy with it, but to say it was far beyond ordinary or of the greatest degree would be incorrect. The dealer did not appear when summoned to take the car, deliver a perfect replacement driven by a handsome driver. Her path was not perfumed with rose petals, and her car was not detailed to showroom cleanliness. At no time was she offered Ambrosia or serenaded by choirs of Viennese children. There seems to be a bit of a misunderstanding about what "extreme" means.
For me, if you want to get an exceptional score, that means doing something exceptional. If you want to continue to get an exceptional score, it means constantly improving. This is what "exceptional" means. (Granted, "exceptional" can also mean massively screwing up, but if it's not normal, it qualifies.)
It's not really my fault that you picked a rather steep grade to be judged against. What's more, don't expect me to have quite the same scale you have. (Granted, it does make me wonder how excited he gets when he buys a candy bar from the vending machine.)
