Sunday - 2008-0615-0730 - Rain - Piccadilly Circus ; WalMart Money Card - Part II; New Washer; Containers - Part 1; Lowe's Department Shifts; Containers - Part 2; Hobby Lobby; Pots; Containers - Part 3

Rain - Piccadilly Circus Larger Image Piccadilly Circus in the rain. The properties info is empty.

In May, see contours provocations journal - 2008-0526-0500-mon , I bought a WalMart Money Card in hopes of getting a 3 cents per gallon discount for petrol. Of course, the card cost $8.95. When I tried to use it, the petrol pump said the card was invalid. No doubt because, I'd not activated it. So that evening I went through the process on-line. The first card was a generic card; the info indicated you'd receive you personalized card in 7-10 days, which I did. Again, I tried to use it for petrol; again I was told the card was invalid. I then discovered that the new card must also be activated.

This I tried to do with my cell phone, but I could not read the info on the card. And I also re-discovered that my cell is indecipherable in sunlight. So essentially, I wasted my money.

In the beginning of May, I noticed that my washing maching was malfunctioning. It would start loading the water but not stop. I started it one day, wandered off to lunch and errands and when I returned water was still loading; the store room was covered in water as was the carport and water was running down the driveway.

I figured out the problem was in the cycle device which was failing to stop and move to the next cycle.

It was out of warranty, and I thought that calling a repair personage would be pointless. So I checked Lowe's for prices. A new one can cost from between $320 to $1100. I asked about shipping and was told it would cost $79. But if the machine was above $320, I could get a rebate. Of course, the lowest priced machines were all marked at $320.

Next, on a Saturday afternoon, I lowered myself to visit Home Depot, which have the most depressing stores. The lighting is lousy. The floors are dirty. The entrance is jumbled with weird sale items and tacky hand-written signs. Personnel are semi-non-existent. The entire lay-out is downright off-putting especially in comparison with Lowe's. I recently read that the company is closing a number of stores, and I can see why.

However, the appliance clerk did seem knowledgable. Again, a rebate for shipping was available for machines above a certain price. But this time, I found one that was within the range. The clerk checked and said they had three in stock. So I bought one, and it was to be delivered the Thursday of the next week. This was not exactly what I wanted, but beggars can't be too picky.

Monday morning, I got a call from the manufacturer, Maytag, who apparently make all machines in the western world. indicating, the machine in question was on backorder, and the earliest delivery would be June 28. FUCK! I immediately cancelled the order.

I had enough sense to remember that I'd bought the order with a debit card, so I went back to Home Depot. Whose records, of course, did not indicate that the order had been cancelled; in fact, the records said it had been delivered that morning. Oh what idiocy!

However, the clerk was an absolute jewel and thirty minutes later, I had my money back. When I was in the store Saturday, another customer and entered asking about a discount appliance store. After he talked for awhile, I realized the location but had never paid much attention.

Since it was not too far from HD, I stopped there. It was smaller and very cluttered for they also sell parts for all kinds of appliances. The walls were covered with heating coils for ovens. They had one refurbished washer, but it only had a 30-day guarantee. However, they did have a selection of "off-brand" washers at fairly reasonable prices. The delivery cost was $39, but only to your carport with no set-up. And they would remove the old washer if was outside and available. The key question was when could they deliver. And miracle of miracles, the clerk said "30 minutes!" Holy fuck! I forked over my cash, raced to my car and roared home swerving around accidents and dead bodies on the highway.

I disconnected the hoses and wrangled the machine to the end of the carport. After about 20 minutes, the delivery truck pulled up. The driver unloaded the new machine and uploaded the old one. In a moment of altruism, I slipped him an off-the-books gratuity.

I didn't try to set it up until the next day. The water hoses were only four-feet long which required considerable reconfiguration. And then I had a horrendous problem getting it level.

The next day, I was abet to purchase six-foot hoses which makes for a far more convenient arrangement in the very small store room. Leveling was still a problem. In fact today, I went through the process again, and finally had to add a wooden board at the back.

When I re-arranged the small store room some months ago, I bought two types of plastic containers with tops at Lowe's. One was roughly the size of a shoe box; the other, about six-inches deep and 12 x 16. They were the perfect size for the two sets of shelves. Two boxes would fit easily side-by-side, and the vertical space between the shelves was just right for stacking another two boxes; so each shelf could hold four boxes.

I'd followed this up with three strips of pegboard which managed to accommodate a sizable assortment of various tools from hammers to spades to vice grips to yard clippers. (Alas, security for the store room is lacking. So rather than leave power tools outside, I'd brought them inside and stored them in the lower cabinets in the kitchen. Not the best of places, but one that does provide some protection.)

However, I still had some items either not in containers, in older open containers that could not be stacked. or odd-sized containers that were overly large. It seemed a good idea to add some more containers to the collection.

I suppose I need to note that this is one of those projects that seems so simple, but proves to be anything but. The first, and most obvious place, I visited was Lowe's. Up and down the aisles, I went. I'd not actually measured the boxes I had, so I was not sure what was what. Next day, I returned with the top from one of the boxes and measurements. After a fruitless 30 minutes, I had to admit defeat. I saw one of the clerks I was on good terms with, who used to be in doors, but was now in hardware. He responded that the boxes were a non-stock item that were a special sale. Hence, they didn't have any more.

Not to malign Lowe's, but I've been there enough, that several of the clerks will talk to me on a personal basis. A couple of months ago, I'd noticed that there had been a shift of personnel from one department to another. For example, the paint lady, who literally knew everything there was to know about paint was not handling lawn mowers. She told me she really knew very little about them, and she was desperately trying to learn as fast as possible.

The man in hardware, formerly of doors, said there were over 4,000 items in hardware, and his group were essentially stockers.

I'd also talked with someone else who had been moved, but I forget from where to what. But the new area was totally new to her. A couple of times, I said it sounded like the Army. The guy who is a superb mechanic is assigned to the kitchen. The chef winds up in ordinance.

Next on my list was Target: no success. Then WalMart, which actually has a larger selection that Lowe's but not what I needed.

I just could not bring myself to visit Home Depot. It is such a depressing experience. And I was not about to go to Sutherlands; it makes a trip to Home Depot seem like a visit to LasVegas. I remember one trip several years ago, in which there were about five clerks in the store. And the lighting was soooooo bad, I could not read the boxes on the shelves. I guess I should have carried a flaming torch.

A few days, while having lunch, it struck me that Hobby Lobby might be an idea.

About a week earlier, I'd been in HL looking for something to place in a gap between the front door and the window shutter. The asbestos shingle shattered, and those are absolutely irreplaceable. My thought was to adhere decorative tiles, but the tiles I bought months before were too wide. The space is exactly 28 inches. And six by six-inch tiles won't fit. And the tiles only came in that size. (A few days later, I found six by six-inch tiles at Lowe's that also came in a two-by-six size.)

I noticed that the staff were moving shelves and clearing room for new merchandise. And being the overly curious 12-year-old, I asked what was going in the emptied space. And the clerk said "Christmas items!" "Christmas items!!!!!" Holy fuck. He said that the folks interested in Christmas crafts liked to start in July. I was so flabbergasted that I couldn't even come up with a good retort.

So after lunch, I strayed to HB. And again, it was another trip back and forth. But by some quirk, they had the exact same size box. I loaded my cart with everyone they had.

Oh, and I bought an inexpensive ceramic pot from Vietnam. I have three large pots with plants by my front door, but the pots are plastic - yuck! So on another trip to Hobby Lobby, I noticed they were having a 50% off sale of CERAMIC pots. I looked at the little yellow stickers, and decided that 50% off the marked figure would be a great bargain. I should have read the print more carefully. The price on the little yellow sticker was already the 50% off price. But I loved the pots so much that I could not resist them; they all have a vague ancient Rome-look.

I'm greatly enamored of the configuration of plants and pots by the front door. I wanted to put something under the pots to let them drain. And I hit on the idea of using a set of 2-inch by two-inch tiles from Lowe's. And that also adds to the appeal. Now I really don't need to buy any more. I think the collection has reached a critical mass, and any more will diminish the appearance.

The containers turned out to be a huge success. I only have a couple of weird stuff left that I'm not sure what to do with. The biggest is a strange assortment of electronic cables, wires, etc. But I feel like if I throw out a lot of items, it result will make more sense.

Did I not earlier say, "I suppose I need to note that this is one of those projects that seems so simple, but proves to be anything but.".

(In Sunday - 2008-0615-0730 / Out - 2008-0617-0030) This entry was written in multiple settings.

Pax! Erin go braugh! Je accuse...