Online Shopping

I'm trying my best to make peace with online shopping. Truly, I am. There are some things I'm just not comfortable ordering online - like shoes. Even when I try them on in a store, most of them end up blistering my feet and causing problems. How bad would that be if I didn't try them on at all? I can order some clothes - if they come in general sizes like S M L. Numbered sizes don't work well because there's just too much variation with different manufacturers. I'll order something with a numbered size if it's a maker I'm familiar with and I've been to a store to try on the size. Pants are the worst.

Returning something to a store is bad enough - returning something you bought online is far worse. I still have a credit with an outfit called Fishpond.com because the item they sent was broken and I didn't want to pay full price for something that was damaged when it arrived. Instead of paying for the return, they issued me a credit. It's been three years and I haven't found one thing on their website that I wanted to spend that $30 on. Probably won't - especially since I don't even bother to look any more. And up until now I have resisted ordering groceries online because I don't really trust Mark to pick out vegetables and I would be insane to think that a teenager working in Publix who doesn't even know the names of most vegetables is going to do a better job. But because we're isolating, I've been forced to come to terms with it. So far, so good. I've had a cucumber, avocados, roma tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, and red and white onions selected by someone else and delivered to my door. Only one of the avocados gave me pause (it certainly wasn't the avocado I would have chosen) but when I cut into it, it was fine. The beef roast looks fine, as well.

I'm not sure we'll continue the delivery after the whole COVID 19 thing is over. The jury is still out on that one. I suspect we're paying more than you'd pay if you were in the store. Publix has a deal where you pay $10 per month and you get unlimited free delivery as long as your order totals at least $35, which is pretty easy to do. On the other hand, you probably spend a little less time choosing things online than you would spend in the store and without the hassle of traffic, which is horrific around here, not to mention the costs associated with driving a car. (Although I understand gas is really cheap right now.)

We've also encountered some availability issues. Mark wanted white distilled vinegar but we can't get any. Really? I don't really understand why the world is out of toilet paper, but vinegar? We also ordered two packages of chicken but were informed we would only get one when in fact we didn't get any. Mark believes it may be coming from a different store and that's why it isn't here yet. We'll see.

Bottom line, I'm happy not to go into the store right now. Even happier not to have Mark going in since I believe his immune system is more compromised than mine. This may be the new normal.