Marriage vows talk about for better or for worse. This week has been the “worse” due to miscommunications and aggravations, but Chuck and I endured them together.
Grab a cup of coffee or a glass of tea. I have a story to tell, and you know it’s never the Reader’s Digest version.
It’s challenging to know where to start when telling the saga of this past week in Tampa. For two weeks, I’ve been taking care of my daughter, Emily, and her family as she recovers from shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum.
Chuck was to fly in for a relaxing week before we headed back home. Relaxing took a twist. On the way back to Chuck’s house, a few miles from where Emily lives, I stopped at Publix to pick up some groceries.
When I arrived home, I opened the freezer and saw that the popsicles had melted. I opened the refrigerator and felt more warmth than cold. Our refrigerator’s compressor had died.
I researched and found what I wanted at the nearby home improvement store. When I picked Chuck up at the airport, I softly broke the news to him, “Honey, I cleaned out the refrigerator last night.”
After doing my due diligence, I walked into the store and was in and out in 15 minutes – easy peasy, so I thought.
At 4:00 on Friday, the warehouse called to tell me when our refrigerator would arrive on Saturday IF we had metal components rather than plastic or copper, to which the delivery guys would attach.
WHAT? No mention of this was made when I purchased the refrigerator.
Who would have thought that it made a difference whether you had a metal, copper, or plastic connection for your refrigerator? (Photo provided)
We scrambled to find a plumber to come on Saturday morning before the refrigerator arrived as we did not have the metal components. Upon his arrival, he said, “You don’t need a plumber; the delivery guys could do this.” He went to his truck and carried in a metal component.
An hour later, the delivery guys carried in our new refrigerator. Chuck stood by and watched as the delivery guy removed the component the plumber had just put on. He handed it to Chuck. I could read Chuck’s body language, and it wasn’t pretty. Chuck said, “We just had a plumber put that on an hour ago!” The guy asked, “Why? I do this every day. You purchased it when you bought the refrigerator. I just have to attach it to the components in the wall.”
$257 is what we paid the plumber to come to our house and attach a component that the delivery guys then unattached and then put on the same component we paid the plumber to put on.
Does the word LIVID seem appropriate?
Did you know you can send a private message to a home improvement store on Facebook? Surprisingly, within a few hours, I received a call from the nicest customer service executive. It took four days, four phone calls, and eight emails to “somewhat” resolve our issues. They agreed to cover half the plumber’s bill. I know, I know – they should have paid it all. It shouldn’t have been an issue in the first place. Hopefully, they improve their communication skills, so others won’t have to endure feeling livid.
Was that our only aggravation? Oh, heavens, no.
Chuck’s little red Ford Focus entered the shop for an oil change. It came out with an alignment, a new serpentine belt, and two new filters.
Chuck went to the golf course and came home with broken glasses. It’s a complicated story involving sunscreen and the trunk of the car.
One good thing was resolved. After five months of not having cable TV in our bedroom, we got it fixed. There was a Frontier van parked in front of our house. I had Chuck put a note on it, asking the man to knock on our door. Five minutes later … Knock, Knock, Knock. Fifteen minutes later, he pressed B on the remote, and we had cable. Not once in the discussions, over the five months, with the cable company did anyone ever say “Press B.”
It’s Friday, and we’re flying back to Indianapolis. So far, our flight has been delayed an hour. We shall see. Oh, and when I checked in for my flight on Southwest, my phone died before I could check in. (IYKYK)
Into our lives, a little aggravation must fall. It’s hard when so many fall all in one week. Chuck and I said all those 11 years ago … “For better or for worse.” I hope the “worse” is over for a while.
Janet Hart Leonard can be contacted at janethartleonard@gmail.com or followed on Facebook or Instagram (@janethartleonard). Visit janethartleonard.com.
Oh, I hope so too. But thank you for sharing your vexations, some weeks are just like that.