Dan Antion

In Person vs Incomprehensible

We have a plumbing project on the horizon. I have to replace the valve that supplies the washing machine. I don’t know exactly when I’m going to tear into the drywall but I wanted to make sure I had the parts I need.

I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and I knew that neither the local hardware store of the big boxes had one (actually two, one for hot and cold) of the items I wanted. Water Hammer arrestors for those of you who are wondering. I needed a total of six items.

I checked Home Depot. They had three of six items in stock at the local store in Enfield, Connecticut. The other three items were in stock and could be shipped to the store. On the other hand, if I ordered all six items online, I would spend the same amount of money, but qualify for free shipping to our house.

The screen said, “You are shopping the Enfield, CT store.” The order process asked me to enter my shipping address. I entered our address, my credit card number and I was informed that my package would be on our front porch by Monday.

I pressed “Submit Order”

Done.

My order confirmation appeared. I’ll paraphrase the details for you. Four of the items I ordered were being shipped to our house. The other two items were being shipped to the Home Depot in Providence Rhode Island – about 82 mi (132 km) from here.

I called customer service. The young lady who answered the phone said she could cancel the items being shipped to Providence and I could re-order them. Of course, I’d have to pay for shipping. I cancelled the entire order.

While moaning about this to my wife, she calmly replied:

“Why don’t you go buy everything at the plumbing supply house that you like so much?”

I hadn’t thought of that. They had everything. Somewhat better quality and a little more expensive. Of course, the water hammer arrestors I have to replace were purchased from Home Depot, so maybe a better quality item isn’t a bad thing.

Note: Providence, RI is where our ISP is located. The website snags the “location” from our IP address.

This post is part of Linda G. Hill’s fun weekly series One-Liner Wednesday. If you would like to join in on the fun, you can follow this link to participate and to see the one-liners from the other participants.

He blends in pretty well
A short storm over the weekend brought a lot of pine cones down.
I’m not sure I ever included a picture of the flag from the side of the memorial.
Bunny
“Can I come up?”
“Hey Ralph, there’s a big water bowl down there. I’m going to get a drink.”
We have three of these in the yard. Some days, it’s the only water around here.
They look to be growing nicely.
MiMi – I did not grab that paw.
Double Rose of Sharon
Happy pup.
“What? Are you going to be working in here again?”
Jinx likes the high spots.
I’m not sure who this guy is, but I have to add some water to the birdbath.
This is the first time I’ve seen two flickers
Yes, you are pretty.

80 comments

  1. Hooray for the Editor and her never failing common sense!

    We recently had to replace our kitchen sink faucet. Definitely needed replacing, but the plumbing problem was paying the plumber!
    Yikes!!

    Smokey and Maddie are too cute together. Hard to tell, but I think MiMi was peeking at you to make sure you didn’t touch her footie.

    Nice shot of Old Glory! Always a beautiful sight

    At 5:00 am it was 73 degrees and already felt much warmer! Having a rain shower right now, saving me from having to do an early morning watering with all the biting insects! Ewww!

    Have a great hump day. Hope no one in the forecasted heat wave areas loses their power….and that includes us!
    Ginger

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Thanks Ginger. The Editor does seem to have cornered the market on common sense around here. I was so proud of myself for figuring out how to get the stuff delivered for free.

      I did catch MiMi giving me the evil eye. Sometimes she seems more open to a foot rub than others.

      Smokey did come up for a peanut.

      I’m working on an outdoor project. I’m going to try to work early and get back inside before it gets too hot.

      I hope you have a good day – stay cool!

      Liked by 1 person

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  2. I’m glad someone has wildlife around their house. I put a suet/seed feeder out for the birds – never saw a one, not even a squirrel trying to steal the seeds!

    Liked by 2 people

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  4. Online ordering has become challenging these days, Dan. I am currently chasing a refund for a return the company received on Jul 9th. Hope your project goes well. Plumbing is the least favorite of hubby’s handy man skills.

    Liked by 2 people

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  5. Thanks for the learning opportunity because I didn’t know what that part did, but now I do. :-) I think a DIY project is a good thing, and at least this one is ‘inside’ where you can be cool. When I look online at a local small hardware store, they always want to ship my order to NYC. Hmm. I’m guessing you and Maddie will be walking early for the next couple of days. Good luck with the project, and let us know how it goes.

    Liked by 2 people

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    • We’ve been back from our walk for a while, Judy. It’s already warm, and we were getting rained on.

      I’m glad I was able to cancel the order (still waiting for a refund) – it sure beats driving to Providence/

      I hope you have a good rest of the week – stay cool.

      Liked by 1 person

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  6. loved the collection of photos, currently I’m drawn to the rabbits… I have one brave rabbit who comes into our yard .. I say brave I have two whippets who were show dogs and trained in “chase”…by the breeders (not racing) its a form of agility .. so I’m told… the plumbing, I can only wish you a happy experience. =^_^=

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  7. Smart idea to make sure you have all the parts before you rip out any drywall. It doesn’t seem to matter what we’re trying to do lately, inevitably we run into a supply issue of some key component.

    I have, however, learned something new from this post. Silly me, I just assumed that my postal code is what drives location … not the location of my ISP. Sometimes I just shake my head at the ‘logic’.

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    • Every project here involves at least one trip to the hardware store, Joanne. I wanted to make sure I had the things they don’t carry and all the things they don’t always have in quantity. I want to replace four shut-off valves while I am doing this, and they wouldn’t normally have four.

      Gleaning your location from your ISP is a crap shoot under the best of circumstances. We used to try to judge where visitors to our website were coming from. I never wanted to pay much attention to that.

      Liked by 1 person

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  8. Bravo for the editor. I recently had a similar experience, but instead of a plumbing problem, I needed printer ink. There’s a local Staples and they deliver. Fantastic right? No, it turns out they ship from the Midwest, got lost somewhere, and weeks later, I had to cancel the order and simply go to the store. Your account helped me smile over this mess. Thank you, Dan. Have a great day! 😁

    Liked by 2 people

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    • I’m glad you could relate, Gwen. I’m also glad I’m not on my way to Providence, RI. I’ve learned the hard way to stay ahead of the printer. I keep an set of cartridges “in stock” and reorder when I install the last first one of the last set. It’s a carryover from when I worked at home and needed to be able to print out a long program.

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  9. Commuters are so smart, until their not. The Editor reminds me of that saying: cool heads prevail. Ralph and his buddy are new to your area? The outdoor cats barely leave my garage. Why would they? Shade, food, water, a zillion places to sleep/hide during rain storms. I change their water bowl a few times a day. Even in the garage, the water gets so warm. You’re a good man to change the bowls outside for all your little friends.

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    • I think the problem is that these people don’t live anywhere near the US so they have no idea how absurd it is to ship something to a store 80 miles away. My last medical insurer wanted me to get an MRI in Providence because the office five miles from my house wasn’t in plan. When I refused, the woman offered a center in Norwalk, CT – 80 miles in the other direction. She finally agreed to let me go out-of-plan.

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  14. I’ve never seen two flickers together. Amazing. Super photos, Dan. Yes, go to the plumbing supply. Much better option. I hope once they are ready, you will pick an apple and take a big bite. Photos of that of course.

    Liked by 1 person

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    • I try to shop local and real, Janis. Nothing is really all that convenient about shopping online, especially for things where it’s good to feel how much they weigh and how smooth they operate.

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  16. Good on you for figuring out the parts in advance. When I called the plumber and said the faucet blew up and flew across the room… Well, I would have thought he’d have a few parts with him. But I had to pay him $150 an your to go buy parts…
    Wishing you good smooth sailing with that project. It sounds like a lot of work. Hugs on the wing.

    Liked by 1 person

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  17. This entire saga reads much like the story problems of my youth. What head-scratchers! They were proper preparation for shopping online though: I scratch my head a lot about that too. Of your photos, I am all about those birds — what great shots! But then there’s Maddie’s look; that’s what I call a feel-good photo! Good luck with your plumbing project!

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Thanks. I thought understands the nature of the problem would make me feel better, but it doesn’t. It just reminds me that too many companies rush systems into place before they are ready for prime time.

      I loved seeing the flickers. I was so glad yo have a camera instead of just my phone.

      That’s Maddie’s happy face. It’s often followed by her jumping up and trying to kick my face.

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    • I am a big fan of local, John, but I forgot that there are other suppliers for plumbing and electrical. It was one of the local hardware store owners that first sent me to this supply house. He said he could order an item for me, but it would take a week, and the supply house is just across the river.

      Like

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  21. Your photo gallery gets three ‘bests’ – best flag photo, best bunny close-up photo, and best Maddie smile photo. I’d call that a hat trick! The bonus is going directly to the source, the plumbing supply house.

    Liked by 1 person

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  22. Valves and pipes and shipping, oh my…great photos. Your yard is a critter wonderland. 😊I love that double Rose of Sharon. Much luck on your project. What would you do without The Editor? 😉

    Liked by 1 person

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  24. Hi Dan, I hope you got your stuff from the local shop. I know that when I am busy with a new project I hate any delays. I want to get going straight away. I’ve had a few mishaps with on-line orders too. I’ve had the wrong items delivered, but never from Amazon. They always send me the right books for all that people complain about Amazon, it is very reliable.

    Liked by 1 person

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  27. Hi Dan – your wife had the best idea! I’m sure you can place the order with your local store and they’ll sort things out for you – less ‘frazzle’, less beating heart irritation and the plan will come together. Then you can get on and bash the house about!! The birds and four feets have the best run of life! Cheers Hilary

    Liked by 1 person

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  30. Computers are frustrating at times. My uncle lived in another town than I did. So after he died, I have been semi moved in here. Well the zip codes are different. My computer keeps saying Denver NC 28037, but the zip code to my uncle’s house is 28016. So when I am shopping online I have to make sure the zip code is correct. When I was scheduling my mother and me to get the Covid vaccine through Walmart, I changed the zip code for mine. And when I was scheduling for hers, I was fussing at her about how I couldn’t find the same date. She saw it was switched back to Denver, NC. I had to switch it again so I could schedule hers. It also shows Lincoln County instead of Gaston County too.

    Liked by 2 people

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