BUYERS REMORSE

 



Hello bloggy friends! I hope you are all well and are enjoying some happy days of Spring. The picture above was one my daughter sent me from North Carolina where they are vacationing. It was taken from the upper deck of the house they are renting in the mountains. I could sit and look at that view for hours! Or, with my book or craft project for company. It certainly would be a change from staring at the ocean. 

Today is Tuesday the 11th. It is afternoon and it’s raining. I’ve had a rather busy week since I last talked to you, aside from my usual routine here on the Island. We’ve had lovely weather, temps in the 60’s. Our handyman cut our grass for the first time. 

I finally was able to get Mom out of the house after being in for 7 months. We saw her doctor and she had some blood work done. He was happy with her results and I know she felt relieved. And, he was able to convince her that she needed to have a Covid-19 vaccine and suggested I stop at Walgreens pharmacy on our way home to see if they had a dose available. Normally an appointment is required. (He didn’t want to give mom a chance to change her mind.) So, I did and they did! In fact, they had two, so, it being the end of the day, they said I could have one also. I didn’t know it at the time but the rule of not giving out of staters vaccines had changed that very day. A blessing for me to not have to wait until I returned to Pennsylvania. We both have to go back for second dose in 3 to 6 weeks. Mom needs to see her doctor in a month so I hope I can combine the two. Neither of us experienced any adverse effects other than extreme tiredness and swelling at the injection site. So real progress has been made. Also we have 2 people to do for Mom when I leave to go back home. Both are doing it out of the kindness of their hearts since one works full time and the other has just retired. But I am very grateful for the love they have for her that would allow me to leave her in safe hands.

A bit of a rant or two

I love to read.  I do it especially when I can muster not one iota of interest for doing anything else. Sometimes that’s most of the time. 🤗 I love British murder mysteries set in the 1800’s. Once I start on a series I feel an irresistible impulse to keep going until I have read the whole series. I can read a book in a day if I feel so inclined because I rarely sleep more than 4 or 5 hours a night. However, and it’s a big however, purchasing ebooks lately have become an extravagant indulgence. When I bought my first Kindle, high end books were considered expensive at $5.99!  I read on Kindle because I can enlarge the font to the size I want and I like dealing with Amazon. ( I regret not buying their stock when it was affordable.) With my macular degeneration I need larger print. It is also so easy to indulge my reading interests from my iPad or Fire tablet through Amazon. It’s gotten really expensive to pay the prices being asked per book when I  am itching to get into that next book in the series.  I actually have to deal with buyers remorse every time I click that “buy now” button. What used to be $9.99 went to $11.99 and now I noticed the most popular authors of crime fiction are charging $12.99 and upwards. For shame I say!! What is the world coming to?? The authors blame these exorbitant prices on their publishers. I do read a lot of one off books on Kindle Unlimited. But I want the freedom to choose what I want to read especially if I have discovered an author I really like. ( Don’t get me started on the price of magazines these days. )

I had another rant but for the life of me I can't recall what it is...it may come to me later.😏 

Roger called me several times yesterday to give me updates on what he thinks is a doe acting like she is getting ready to give birth! ❤️ He has seen her "resting" in his tractor lean-to and when he forgot to close the fence to the dog yard she has decided to take up residency in there.  The yard is huge but I'm not sure if  Lucy will be willing to share. He’s decided to just let her be and see what happens.



Aside from medical appointments, food shopping and pharmacy runs I have been doing a bit of crocheting on a shawl. I think of a shawl worn around the shoulders but I shall wear it around my neck when the weather warrants it. It's called the "One Ball Crochet Shawl" and its super simple and quick. I am using a size 4 mm hook instead of the 5.5 the pattern calls for and the yarn is dk. I am about half done.  I have started on my new hobby also.




Now I remember my other rant…recently I bought some clothes (dusters…do you know what they are?), a type of housecoat that can be worn on it’s own or over a nightgown, usually worn by elderly women. They are hard to find. So, I  was searching and came across two plus a very stylish catalog and went a bit crazy. The first bunch of clothes arrived. First of all, only one garment was what I ordered but didn’t fit at all despite being my size. Mom’s dusters were ultra petite also even though I order 2x. I received an email notice saying rest of order was back ordered. So, I searched through my files to find the original order so I could call the company and get everything straightened out and the items returned. No phone number just email for customer service. I emailed asking for their 800 number and I explained the problem. I received a return email saying they were located in China! They gave a number there  and an address to return items at my expense and couldn’t guarantee they wouldn’t get lost in the mail. I quickly emailed back cancelling the items on back order. “Cindy” emailed saying it was already on it’s way. WOW! I was in shock. How could I have known that this company was not American. Well, I am out a couple of hundred dollars and feel violated. You talk about buyers remorse! I think I was very naive and need to smarten up. But, stuff happens and it is what it is.  😐





  • And there you have it!
  • Take good care of yourselves, 
  • Susan
  • 💕







Comments

  1. That doesn't seem a huge sum for a book (sorry). Books take a long time to write! But sympathy about the dusters. Here in Britain, a duster is a piece of cloth that you use to dust things. But you wouldn't send to China for one... I love the difference in our apparently identical language(s).

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    Replies
    1. It’s expensive for me when I don’t have a physical book to show for it!

      Delete
    2. In Dutch the word 'duster' means exactly how Lynda described it. How interesting.
      Mirjam from The Netherlands 🇳🇱

      Delete
  2. Yes, books seem to be going up in price and so is everything else .

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  3. Check out public libraries for Kindle books. There is one in a town about 50 miles from me and for $10.00 a year, I can order all the books I want for free. They are downloaded right into my Kindle. You can keep them for 2 weeks, then they snatch them out of your Kindle. Those on the bestseller list I usually have to put on hold but there hasn't been a book I wanted I couldn't get. I haven't bought a book in over a year.
    That China deal was really frustrating and that is a lot of money.

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  4. Ugh! China Buyer's Remorse! Cheryl purchased several "specialty items" that had to be manufactured. The company was in the US.... BUT... ( drum roll) the manufacturer of the item was in China. Several weeks later... the Items were not manufactured properly. Cheryl complained, and the company told her there was nothing they could do... since it was manufactured in China. I'm no sure how much money was lost, but we had the minimum order of goods that are now useless. And no way to get "compensation" So much for customer service. Buyer's beware! An expensive lesson, but hopefully the wisdom gained will be of great value later. ( And never buy from that company again!)

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  5. It looks like prices are on the way up for sure!

    It’s great you could get the vaccine so quickly and easily that day! Good to have help for your mom lined up as well. Progress!

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  6. I blame the pandemic for the higher prices as there is more demand and sellers get away with profiteering. I have to use a magnifying glass to read and it is useful to be able to magnify the font on an online reader. Shame about the clothes order, you do have to be so careful when online ordering and I have been scammed too but for not so much money. Good news that you and your Mom had your jabs and wonderful you have care in place so you can return home. The doe is beautiful I do hope she will be OK.

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  7. What good news about your vaccines.
    I think half the stuff we can buy in shops here is manufactured in China - it comes in HUGE ships into the docks at Felixstowe in Suffolk and then travels in 100's of trucks on the busy main roads.
    Many years ago there was a Buy British campaign - but it would be hard to find British now

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  8. Glad you hear your mom got her jab, and you too, much safer for you both now. Yes, prices are definitely on the increase. I have a Kindle but tend to buy books which are on deals for it, otherwise I use the library or buy books from the charity shops.

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  9. Hi Susan. Sorry about the dusters. Last week I finally received a wee dog harness ordered four months ago and which apparent!y came via slow boat from China. The dog hates it...no returns allowed. I'll also be reading the fine print a little closer from now on. Speaking of fine print...

    Join the local public library and ask them about their digital media services. My library here in central NH offers "Hoopla" which allows the borrowing of Ebooks, audio books, movies, etc., to your computer, tablet, and phone. You can also tap into the State library and use their digital service. I'm a kindle fire user and no longer have to spend big bucks on ebooks through Amazon. The prices have skyrocketed this past year and it's just not in my budget to spend $$$ for one book.

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  10. I once ordered an outfit online from China for a friend that required an extra payment because it was a larger size. They charged me twice for the basic outfit. I went to my bank and explained the problem several times, and we finally called it "fraud." The bank then withheld the disputed amount from the China firm. I had emailed the firm over and over again, so I had quite the stack of emails to back me up.. Eventually, someone from the China firm, with English skills, emailed me asking for details and I was able to explain the situation. She understood and could then see the second charge. She didn't dispute it and I got my money back. It is a pain having to deal with someone in the opposite time zone!!

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  11. I hear ya' about the price of amazon books going up. But still (as others have pointed out) a book is a bargain. At $12 a book, for four or six hours of entertainment, it's cheaper than a movie ... or a latte at Starbucks.

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  12. Good news about both you and your mom being able to get the first vaccine doses, Susan. I know what a relief that must have been for you, perhaps for your mom as well. It is getting harder and harder to find anything NOT made in China, but your story was unfortunate especially the loss of $. I also read a lot of books on my Kindle and all are downloaded from the local library website. As another blogger, Camille, commented, I can also access ebooks on Hoopla, a streaming service provided free through the library website. Of course, it is frustrating that many times, a book I'm interested in isn't available. I haven't read or bought anything on Amazon.

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  13. Oh, I'm so glad to read that your mother was persuaded by her doctor to get the vaccine. And I'm glad you were able to get one too. Is your new hobby rug hooking? You've probably told us this in past posts, and I've forgotten. So sorry to read about the clothing debacle. I think I ordered something once upon a time off of Amazon that came straight from China, but I didn't realize it at the time. It took forever! My lesson learned wasn't as expensive as yours, but it did teach me to check where something is coming from that I'm purchasing. I hope you'll have something that works in what you receive. FWIW, I'm with you on the high price of e-books. I've never understood why they cost nearly as much, just as much, or sometimes more than a print book.

    BTW, your comment did come through on my blog last week. Thank you for trying again. I just needed to get in there and approve it - I think it was a few days after you posted. I hate that moderating comments sometimes means a comment has to wait to be approved, but I find that a better solution than having SPAM come through and finding that days later instead. Sometimes SPAM is a big problem, sometimes it's nonexistent. (shrug)

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  14. I'm so glad to read that your mom and you were both able to receive your first vaccine doses with minimal side effects and you've found two persons to care for her when you are not there with her. I don't have a Kindle, but, I have used Hoopla to access books online from my library. As for the saga with the dusters, one of the problems is how manufacturers define sizes, especially those that are located in Asia. I can wear a US size medium quite comfortably and a large is too big, but, according to Asian sizes, I am an extra large and a large is too snug! When I was a teen, and weighed 100 lbs., I was considered "chubby"; my cousins all weighed around 80 lbs. I hope you are able to find another use for the too-small dusters - maybe add another panel of fabric to make them larger? Or, donate them?

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  15. I am so sorry for the deal with the clothes. I hope some of them fit at least. It sure pays to be very aware of things. I will take this to heart. I ordered 3 tops from a well known company...did not know for sure what size to order. I got them and they were huge. Would have cost about as much to mail them back so I just kept them. I may grow into them the way I am going.

    Roger just seen something he wants to try...it is a complete waste of $70 bucks, but I told him I will get them this time, but no more. I will eat my hate if it helps. Anyway, I started to go to this company's website, but could get it cheaper through amazon...I started to fill out the info and realized they were asking the price for one and had to order 6 bottles...I got a phone call from that company a few minutes ago. I did not answer it...but still, that is kind of scary.

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    Replies
    1. Susan, I have no idea what I was trying to say in that second paragraph where I said 'I will eat my hate if it helps'.....have no clue...I would delete it but will just leave it and explain here in case anyone else reads it.

      And I had meant to say so glad you got help lined out for the summer, and glad you got your first shot.

      Delete
  16. Good to read that both you and your mom have been able to get the first vaccination.

    Take care, my good wishes.

    All the best Jan

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  17. I think publishers are charging too much for ebooks, their expenses are so much less for ebooks than for print books. No cost of printing books, no cost of storing books in warehouses, no cost for trucking the books around the country. One free source for ebooks for many in the USA is public libraries that let you borrow ebooks.

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  18. The Chinese Companies have some real cute stuff. I was looking for something and could not believe how many foreign companies there are out there.
    Check out the library...I hear that electronic books are free there. I usually order from Thrift books...they are not foreign.
    So good o hear that you and your Mom are both vaccinated! :)

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