Sears Update

So we did get our fridge this weekend, but not without more hassle and trouble from Sears. I will never buy from there again. We received our time slot as 8:15-10:15am, luckily enough. And even luckier -- they showed up right around 8:30 -- so it didn't mess up our vet appointment. But that was pure luck. So, the delivery guys came in, took one look at our fridge space after they pulled the old one out and said they could not install the new one. When we asked why he said because there is no shut off behind the unit. We explained to him that the salesperson told us that would be fine. He told us in the store, that if the shut off is in the basement, they won't shut it off, but we can shut it and they'll install it. That was not true. I asked what we need to do and he said we need a plumber to install a shut off for us. I was livid at that point because I was not ready to pay for a plumber to come out on the weekend, without an appointment, and do that. Sears should have paid for that if that was what I needed, after the run around they have given me from the start.

So, after a lot of back and forth, we told him to just leave the new fridge and my husband installed it himself. The delivery guy told him how to do it but refused to touch it. Instead, he took pics of the setup to cover his a@@ and prove that he didn't touch the installation. I am angry at Sears for misleading us after already screwing up our delivery. Now, unless Sears makes this right by offering a discount for our troubles, I will never go there again and I recommend to anyone reading this that you go elsewhere as well. I have never dealt with customer service that was so inept and unhelpful. Goodbye Sears....I never shopped there and now I really know why.

All I'm Asking for...

I'm so frustrated. Last week, our old refrigerator started leaking. For the second time. The first time it happened was right after we moved in. We have a home warranty that we got as part of the sale, so we figured we would use it! Unfortunately, that was a big hassle. The repair people took forever to come out. Of course they can only come from 9-4 on weekdays, so my husband had to work from home to wait for them. When they came, they told us they'd have to order a part. That took almost a month to come in and then it was another few weeks until they could come back out. The second time, my mom came over to wait for the repairman. And, he came in and refused to install the part -- he said the part we had was actually better than the new one, but they only had to go through the part-ordering part so that the warranty would cover it! So shady!! Then, he 'fixed' the fridge and it was fine....until now.

So, now it's leaking again. Worse than before. I eventually want to replace our appliances anyway, so I figured, let's just take the easy way out and buy something new. That will be so much less hassle, right? Wrong. We shopped around like crazy last weekend and finally settled on a stainless steel model from Sears. The price was right, the size was right, and they could deliver Friday (today), which was the day my mom was planning on coming over to walk our puppy anyway to help me out. Everything was set -- we had the perfect fridge, and the perfect price, and the perfect delivery day. Last night, I was starting to empty our fridge after I got a call from Sears saying they didn't have a delivery window yet but they'd call back after 7 and let me know. Then, at 6:27, I got the next call from Sears -- there has been an "unexpected delay" and they need to reschedule and speak with me immediately. I was yelling" No, no no no!" at the horrible pre-recorded message. So I immediately called the number they provided. The man on the phone said pretty much the same thing. There is a 1 day delay and the fridge will come on Saturday. No explanation. No price-discount for my trouble. No nothing! He just said they'd call again tomorrow with the delivery window. I was pretty pissed and just said that it better come on Saturday.

Saturday is not really the best day for this. I had plans. We have a vet appointment for the puppy at 10:30 and we were supposed to have friends over for lunch. Now I have no idea what time the fridge will be here. I have to cook a lunch with no fridge somehow. And I can't plan anything because they don't tell you the delivery window until the night before. And, who knows how many "unexpected delays" they can have? I feel really frustrated and like there's nothing I can do but take it. I think it's not fair that it's ok for them not to honor their commitment. What would happen if I decided I didn't want to honor my commitment to pay for the stupid thing? I really feel like they should give me something -- any discount! Just something to compensate me for this experience. I am not happy with Sears and at this point, unless they do something to make me happy, I will never shop there again. And I will tell everyone I know not to either. (hence, this blog). So much for avoiding hassle by buying new. I can't win. All I'm asking for is what I paid for in the first place. You can't do that now, so make this right.

120 vs 190

I'm talking about calories. Specifically, calories in my morning yogurt. The normal yogurt I eat each morning is either Fage or a store brand of fat free Greek yogurt that is 120 calories. It is 3 weight watchers points plus (not that I track so well these days...but it's always in my head). I recently discovered the Chobani Flips yogurts that range from 190-250 calories. I have only let myself try the 190 ones, I won't venture above 200 for yogurt, but the 190 calorie ones taste so much better. They would be the equivalent of 5 points plus, which is way more than I would have ever had for breakfast on my 26-points-a-day-plan. But I enjoy it so much more. If it filled me up more, I would easily opt for the 190 calorie yogurts, but they seem to last the same amount of time.

Anyway, that's my yogurt rant. Speaking of food - yesterday I was proud of myself for planning ahead and cooking dinner for tonight in the slow cooker while we ate last night's dinner! I made simple enchilada chicken with 4 chicken breasts that I put in the slow cooker with enchilada sauce and some leftover salsa. I let it cook on high for 4 hours and shredded it up before bed. Now tonight I'll reheat that and sauteed it with some onions and peppers and we'll have fajitas! Easy! Just wanted to share that super-quick-and-easy recipe. Have a great day everyone!

Conversations You Know Nothing About

It's so weird when you overhear conversations between co-workers. Especially when they are talking about something you know a lot about. Even more so when they think they know a topic well, but you know more than them. 2 of my co-workers talk constantly about travel and New York City. Now, I'm not an expert in either by far, but I did live in NYC for a year and I went there every other weekend for 3 years prior to that, and my husband lived in NYC for 5 years. Also, my husband worked for 2 major airlines and we took a lot of flights during that time, so I do know quite a bit about how that all works too. So, though I'm not an expert in either subject, I do know that I know more than they do about both topics. They know that about my history too, and still it drives me crazy when I hear them talking sometimes. I don't want to jump in to the conversation because it's none of my business and I don't want them to know I'm listening really, but it's just hilarious sometimes. I could honestly give them some helpful advice sometimes, but I know that sometimes, people just want to do their own thing. Have a great day everyone!

Missing Paul

One thing I haven't done recently is go to a concert. That used to be such a common thing for me -- I'd have shows lined up and tickets purchased months in advance. I'd be the first one on ticketmaster refreshing the screen until the sale came up and stressing about whether to grab the first seats I got or risk losing them for better seats. I had it down to a science - using multiple computers and even taking off work or school to concentrate on ticket purchases.

Now, I feel very old. Haha! I still love going to concerts, but now they are both expensive and inconvenient. When you have to pay $1000 to replace a broken fridge or $1500 to fix a wet basement, money gets put into perspective. Also, when you have 10 vacation days a year and want to both go on an actual vacation and also visit family, that doesn't leave any time to just take a day or two off for little things. The other people in my office don't have that issue because they all have plenty of vacation time, being that they've been here for years and also are exempt, rather than the lowly non-exempt position I'm in.

I just found out that Paul McCartney will be playing 5 minutes from my brother's apartment on October 15th. He lives 4 hours away from us, but, at any other time, I would have been buying tickets immediately. I already missed Paul's show in Philly this summer. But October 15th is a Thursday night...I'd have to take off at least a day and a half on order to do it right. And then we'd have to come back home on Friday and then travel to NYC on Saturday for a wedding. It's just too hard and too expensive. Also, I feel like nothing can top the experiences I had at Paul's shows back in 2001 and 2005. In 2001, I ended up with front row seats, and in 2005, I ended up with entry to Paul's soundcheck, as well as meeting the band and getting 4th row seats to the second night's show. Being that close to the stage is a completely different experience and makes any hassle well worth it. Being up in the cheap seats is still fun of course, but it does lose something, and it's just a different experience. Some day the timing will work out so I can make it to another show - whether it's Paul or Ringo, or thenewno2, or who knows who...but until then, I'm very grateful that I went to shows when I had the time and money to do it and that I had such awesome experiences when I did. Now I am focused on my family and my house, which is wonderful and seems perfectly appropriate for this stage in my life. :) Have a great day everyone!

Monday Blogging

Well I'm back at work after a short, somewhat stressful, but overall really nice weekend. It was only stressful because the puppy was being frustrating the the mornings -- I'd take her out, she wouldn't go, she'd come in, and go inside. Yesterday morning, I took her out 4 times in the course of an hour and a half and every time, she was only interested in eating bugs and leaves and sticks, and then she'd still go to the bathroom inside. I know she knows the right thing to do, overall, she's been pretty good at housebreaking, but for some reason, this weekend, she was just not getting it. She seems better today - maybe because it's Monday and she's back in her routine.

Anyway, this weekend, we bought a refrigerator! That's something I never bought before! The fridge that came with our house was leaking when we moved in. We have a Home Warranty Service, who sent a contractor out to fix it - that was a huge pain. The contractor took at least a week to call, and they only come out Monday - Friday between the hours of 9 and 4 and give a 4 hour window -- not very helpful when we both work full time. My husband worked from home one day and they came out and told us they needed to order a part. The part took at least 3-4 weeks to come in and then we have to schedule them again. This time, my mom came on her day off to wait for the repair man. He ended up not installing the part -- saying it wasn't necessary -- and that our current part was actually better than the new one. He said that they just needed to order the part so the the home warranty service would pay for it. Shady!! My mom tried to insist that he install the new part since he had it anyway, but he refused. We were super disappointed with this, but the fridge seemed ok, so we dealt with it. Now, last week, it started leaking yet again. Honestly, it's not such a great fridge, and I want to eventually replace our appliances with stainless steel anyway, so we decided not to deal with the warranty and shade contractors anymore and just replace it. We shopped around a lot -- looking at Sears, Best Buy, Home Depot, and Lowes. Our main problem was finding fridges less than 68" tall -- most are around 70" now, but out space is only 68". We found about 4 to choose from and eventually went with a Kenmore model from Sears. It comes on Friday, so here's hoping it all works out!

Crazy Morning - What Being Tired Will do to You!

I'm so tired. I know this is just good practice for motherhood, but having a puppy is exhausting. I love it and I love her, but sometimes I feel like I'm going insane. I can't seem to get myself together lately. Just getting dressed and going to work is a huge chore - let alone trying to make coffee, haha. Last night, it was raining, which means Moxie was confused about going outside to go potty. She did number 1 outside, but number 2 was another story. So, this morning, we woke up to a present in her playpen. This happened about a half hour before my alarm goes off. In my sleepy state, I cleaned the pen and then sprayed it with bleach cleaner. I wiped it all up while my husband took her out, and then we put her back in. Cut to about 30 minutes later when she started retching -- presumably from bleach fumes. I took her downstairs to get some water, then brought her outside and got her some fresh air. That helped. But then I didn't want to put her back in the pen with the bleach, so I cleaned it again with our usual pet stain cleaner. Then of course, the normal routine of taking her out, playing, feeding, etc. We usually have a camera on her during the day so we can see her while we're at work. I forgot to set that up this morning.

So now I got to work, and turned the camera on and realized I didn't set it up. Dumb! I wanted to make sure she was ok! Then I googled bleach and found out that it really was a bad idea to use that in her pen. Then I googled the pet cleaning spray and tried to find out what was in that...and came across a warning that says "Do Not Mix with Bleach." So of course, I freaked. Luckily, I was able to run home and check on her and I re-cleaned the pen with simple soap and water and set up the camera correctly. Now I'm back at work. I just feel like I can't do anything right lately. Whatever I try to do gets all messed up somehow. And the more tired I get, the more I screw up. All I can say is this weekend cannot come fast enough. I am so glad we have no plans. I am so exhausted! I know it won't last forever and I want to enjoy her being a cute puppy while she is one, but sometimes it's so frustrating! Now -- I have no work to do at the moment so it is time for me to eat my yogurt and relax a bit. Oy vey!