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.

Cancelled or Closed

So here we are in sunny Florida really getting into the groove of the "active adult" lifestyle. We're going to shows. We're joining clubs. We're hanging out with our new friends - eating, drinking, playing dominoes. .

Then we got news of the corona virus. It was in far away Seattle and on cruise ships. Nothing to worry about here! But as suggested, we'll limit our gatherings to ten people and we'll bump elbows - no more handshakes and certainly no hugging.

We felt safe. The virus was far away. Even when cases were reported in Florida they were down around Miami and Fort Lauderdale - the busiest cruise ports. Plus this is a gated community - no security guard is going to let that virus in.

Then they closed Disney, which is relatively close to us. Not because there were any confirmed cases but as a preventive measure. It made sense. They do attract international travelers, like from China and Italy. But then they cancelled the car show. Which also made sense because the car show is open to the public and there's no need to invite the general public through our gates to endanger us. But then they cancelled Monday Night Trivia. Then they closed the restaurants except for carry out. Then they cancelled the Vocal Trash music show and then the Mermaid party and the big three-day ladies golf tournament. All dances and club meetings have been cancelled. The Farmers Market and Seafood truck that came every Monday have been cancelled. All fitness classes have been cancelled. Even the pools are closed. As near as I can tell, only the golf courses and racquet courts are open.

We've been in self-imposed isolation for nearly a week now. When they started closing schools and colleges, those kids and grandkids started showing up here to spend their extended spring breaks with their parents and/or grandparents. We decided to isolate ourselves because while we're pretty sure we haven't come into contact with anyone who might have the virus, I can't be sure about others. We go out walking and I overhear snippets of conversations about visits with grandkids. I'm sorry but toddlers are germ bags and will make you sick even when there isn't a pandemic. And unfortunately, as evidenced by my Facebook feed, there are plenty of people who choose to believe the whole COVID 19 thing is nothing more than a media frenzy and a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese, the Democrats, the Left, (choose your villain).

We also know that there are a handful of confirmed cases in Osceola and Polk counties. We believe that for every confirmed and reported case there are hundreds more unreported and unconfirmed. And my best guess is that some of those people don't even know they have it. Just another reason I don't want to go shopping or be in close contact with anyone right now. We both caught colds last November and while Mark was recovered in two weeks, it took me nearly a month and three courses of antibiotics to get over it. I'm not willing to risk getting this virus. The fact that just about everything is closed or cancelled right now just makes it easier.

Scare Tactics

No, I'm not talking about COVID 19. But I've always heard you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. I think there are people who don't understand that being nice gets you further with most people than using scare tactics.

In January we decided to put our Texas house back on the market. There was one agent I phoned simply because she sent me a Christmas card. I knew very little about her but we chatted about the house and what might have gone wrong when we put it on the market last May. Then she said she'd go over and have a look and get back to me.

She got back to me alright.She sent me a terrifying email - told me the ceiling was falling down and that the house was covered in mold. I was panic stricken. I know things can go wrong in a vacant house when no one is paying attention. But we'd been there in October and it was late December - less than three months later. I sent one of our inspector's over to check it out. Bottom line, no collapsing ceilings that he could find and no evidence of any organic growth. And if terrifying me wasn't enough, she also insulted me. She said the entire house was in DIRE need of a redo - especially the kitchen. She told me it would never sell like that - not at ANY price, except to an investor who wanted to rehab it. We'd redecorated the living, dining rooms and hallway less than two years ago. The kitchen redo was about 12 years old - all the cabinets had pull out drawers and the corner cabinets all had lazy susans. The laundry room redo was less than two years old. (I couldn't believe my taste was so bad that the entire house needed to be redone. Most people who came into our home were very complimentary about it. And I believe the compliments were sincere because if you don't like it, you don't have to say anything at all.) I suspect she was trying to set my expectations extremely low.

She said my best move would be to sell it to an investor (flipper) because no one would buy it unless it was completely renovated. And this was where she could save me money by NOT putting it in the MLS, but focusing on her list of over 50 investors. I didn't ask her how she thought that limiting exposure to other agents and their clients was going to save me money because I didn't want to argue with her. So now, in addition to insulting my taste, she also insulted my intelligence. Her big point was that other agents were just tossing out unrealistic high prices to make me happy and get the listing when they knew full well they couldn't sell it at that price. (Still trying to lower my expectations.)

Long story short, we didn't list with her. I didn't appreciate that she tried to scare me into thinking something dreadful was wrong with the house. I didn't appreciate that she insulted my taste and sensibilities by trying to convince me that the house was hopelessly unappealing. And I didn't appreciate that she tried to position herself as the only person who was telling me the truth and then being so bold as to try to tell me that not listing it with MLS would save me money. (To me, that was stretching the truth way too far.)

In the end, we listed with another agent who came highly recommended by a friend and who did not think there was anything dreadfully wrong with the house, and her only suggestion was that we repair and repaint the wall in the hallway. The wall's previous amateur repair job had been covered by a bookcase when we lived in the house, so it wasn't something we'd noticed needing attention. Anyway, the house sold within three days of hitting the market and we had three offers to choose from and only one of those offers was from an investor. The other two were people looking for a home.

How Old Does It Need to Be?

Sometimes I think that spam calls and robocalls are the bane of my existence, and then I'm forced to call for "customer service". When I reach someone in the Philippines, I am reminded that the spam and robocalls are actually pretty easy - I can just hang up, if I bothered to answer it in the first place.

But let's face it - who calls customer service just to see how they're doing? You need something. And so you do your best to communicate with them.

Last week I had to call a bank - BBVA Compass (why not name names?) because they said I didn't make a loan payment. I looked in my account to make sure I had indeed paid and it appeared that I did. I realized from previous experience that just because the money came out of my account, it didn't necessarily mean that it had arrived where it was sent. So I called the bank the payment was drawn on and they confirmed that BBVA had cashed the check. Just the type of thing that customer service should be able to help with.

But when I called the number that was on the late payment notice they sent me, I was directed to the wrong department. Banks are fairly notorious for this.

Flashback to before phone systems were automated and a human answered the call. I worked for a company that provided courier services to financial institutions. Sometimes when the bank got behind on the bill, I would need to call to see what the problem was.

"Hello, may I speak to someone in accounts payable please?"

"Is it about your car payment?"

"No. I need accounts payable."

"Is it about your mortgage?"

"No. I need accounts payable, please."

"Is it about your checking or savings account?"

"No. I need to talk to the person who pays the bills."

"But we're a bank."

Anyway, back to the present. After establishing that I was not calling about a mortgage or a checking account, I was finally connected to someone who could supposedly help me.

But first she had to locate my account. What was my account number? The notice I had showed only the last four digits. My statement showed only the last four digits. I understand about security and privacy, but if you want me to know my account number, you need to put it on something. Bottom line - I don't know it and she can't look it up based on the last four digits.

Let's try by social security number. Okay - she can't find it that way, either. It appears that I don't have an account. Unfortunately, I know that I do, and I know that even after they sort out what happened to that payment, there will be other payments due in the future.

She said she could look it up by my phone number. Hey, it's worth a try. I gave her my cell phone number. The cell phone number that I've had since 1982 - back in the days when the phone was permanently mounted in your car.

She couldn't find it that way, either. Her next question to me was "Do you have an older phone number?"

"No, I'm sorry. That number is 38 years old. I don't have an older number."

And that was seriously the end of the conversation. I wanted to tear my hair out.

What I Learned

Any day you learn something is a good day. Let me tell you, I've had a banner week. I've learned (discovered may be a better word) several things.

1. I discovered that three layers of mascara might look good, but is probably ill-advised. If you do put that much on, make sure you get every bit of it off before you go to bed. 
2. Talking about something as benign as the pros and cons of bifocals is enough to raise my blood pressure. A political discussion would probably kill me. 
3. Women are held to a higher standard than men.
4. Some people are not able to connect the dots, even when the dots are numbered. 

The Caribbean Circle

I didn't realize until the cruise was almost over that the itinerary had a name - The Caribbean Circle Cruise. So named because it starts at Fort Lauderdale and heads southeast toward St. Thomas and progresses down toward the southernmost Caribbean island of Trinidad. From there it heads northwest toward Curacao and ultimately back to Fort Lauderdale - a big circle.

We stopped in St. Thomas, St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Martinique, Barbados, Trinidad, Curacao and Aruba. Some places we'd been to before but most were new to us. Of course we didn't do much in most of the ports other than walk around the town a bit. We only had "activities" planned in a few ports - a Range Rover tour in St. Kitts, a beach day in Barbados, and a sunset sail in Aruba. And there were days when one or both of us didn't feel up to moving so it was good not to have too many obligations.

So I asked myself if we had a favorite island. I thought St. Kitts was more ruggedly beautiful but it could be because we got out of town and went up into the hills. We also talked about going to Aruba for a vacation (not just a cruise port visit) - but we've done that before. (We liked it but never went back because it was challenging to get there from Texas. It will be easier from Florida.) I also liked Curacao. It seemed a lot like Aruba - very clean. But I've determined that you can't tell much about a place by walking around for a few hours. If/when we go back, I'd like to see a bit more of the countryside.

Here are a few pictures of the islands.

St. Thomas

St. Maarten

St. Kitts

Martinique

Barbados

Curacao

Aruba

Muddling Along

We've been back from our cruise now for two weeks and I haven't written one word. Probably because we got home and I still had remnants of a cold, and a broken toe, and then it was Thanksgiving and then it was time to put the fall decorations away and get out the Christmas decorations.

But let's talk about the cruise. Mark started getting sick in St. Thomas and by the time we got to Martinique he was too sick to get off the ship. It was bad enough to see the ship's doctor. (There's a hefty fee associated with that, so you don't do it lightly.) Of course, he shared it with me so we muddled along the other days until we got to Trinidad where neither of us felt well enough to get off the boat. But that was the one port that came with warnings not to venture outside of the main tourist area and to be constantly on your guard - so if we had to miss a port, that seems the best one to miss.

I say we muddled along because I caught my foot trying to settle into my beach chair on Barbados and broke my toe - the same toe I dropped a shredder on a month or so ago. I was not going to let that ruin my beach day. I figured the salt water would make the bleeding stop (and it did). I just pretended to be asleep when the beach vendors came by. They're selling everything from ice cold beer to jewelry and beach cover-ups and I didn't want to buy anything. When we got back on the ship, I decided I needed to see the doctor because even though I'd been fighting off getting Mark's cold, I was losing that fight. He also took a look at my ailing toe and told me it was most likely broken. The only way to confirm it was to do an X-ray. I asked if it made any difference in the treatment options. (It didn't so there didn't seem to be any reason to go to the expense of the X-ray.)

And now we've been back for two weeks and I've seen my doctor here to get more antibiotics in hope of finally getting rid of the cold. My toe is still broken. It's healing and I may mention it to the orthopedic doctor this afternoon when I see him, not because I think he can or should do anything about it, but because I re-injured my wrist at the same time I broke my toe.