Disappointment

After getting the shepherd's crook up with the tube feeder attached, I moved the resin birdbath to the front planting bed. I was attaching the new small feeder to the front window...

and knocked over the birdbath, spilling the contents. Side note: the birds haven't used this at all. I need to check the seed. It's been out there for several weeks and may be unattractive. I can scatter it on the ground under the tube feeder where I've seen ground feeding birds like mourning doves and rabbits, in addition to squirrels, eating what's fallen from the feeder. It's rather humorous to watch birds on perches flick aside what they aren't interested in, from the mix in the tube.

The birdbath had fallen over when it was in the back yard and was slightly chipped. This would be, I was told by a friend, easily fixable with a resin repair you painted on. This latest problem would not be reparable with a simple paint job. So, I'd be faced with replacing the birdbath. This one was the one I won last year, so I wasn't out a lot of money.

I hopped online and typed in "birdbaths". The sheer enormity of what's available it astounding. This is a nice looking bath, but I wanted something else. Glass bird baths. Who uses those for anything other than interior decoration? I mean, seriously. We have had strong thunderstorms rumble through Chicagoland the past three days. These come with upwards of 40 mph winds. The absolute last thing I want to do is clean up broken glass because Mother Nature decided to lift the bath off its stand and drop it to the side, in the flower bed. And given the fragility of resin, I couldn't justify the replacement cost to see another bath tipped over and broken. I thought about what I have on the deck. It's low enough that wildlife can use it, but it's extremely rare to have it tipped over by the wind. But I wanted to be able to see the birds who might use this, if I stand up and look out the window. I found what I thought would be a good match for all these criteria on a site called Wayfair.com.

I read the product description. It was white, heavy-duty plastic. It should not crack, even in the winter. If tipped over the product shouldn't break where the column meets the dish. It was a good buy.

The box was rather big.

It was also much lighter than I understood from the product description. Hmmmm. I unpacked it. Here were the two pieces.

Okay. Now what? There were no directions. The top and base had the indentations for, perhaps, nails, screws, something, but it wasn't clear. I pulled off the packing slip and there were instructions. "Attach basin to post with included screws." That's all that was on the slip. I looked for "included screws". I couldn't find any. Not to worry. I'm a homeowner. I have a couple hundred (It seems.) screws in the basement which would work. I screwed the top onto the base and carried the bath outside.

This will look very nice. I went to add water but when I came out, it had tipped over. No matter. I'll just right it and add water to the basin. The water's weight should keep it upright. Nope. It was a slightly windy day; gust upwards of 15 mph. It tipped over repeatedly. Frustrated, I found a stake, wired the bath to the stake and shaved off a small section of ground in case where I had it was not level. It lasted upright 10 minutes. The thing is too light to stand on its own and even anchoring it simply delayed the inevitable tipping over.

Frustrated and angry, I went back to the web site. Suddenly, all these comments became visible. "Screws weren't provided." "Holes for screws not properly drilled." (I didn't have a problem with this, but I could see how it could be a problem since this appears to be injection molded plastic.) There, buried about 15 comments down was this. "Instructions woefully insufficient. Base must be filled with sand or dirt for the bath to stand upright. This is NOT printed anywhere on the instructions. I had to figure it out for myself." AHA. This is the problem.

Wayfair.com is simply a reseller. They aggregate items from manufacturers, add some mark-up, and resell it to you. My daughter has had good luck with the things she's purchased. I am extremely unhappy with this. The description of the birdbath on Wayfair is woefully inadequate. Nowhere does it say you need to fill the base with sand for stability. This should be in the product description. I never saw the negative ads. I only saw glowing ads touting the product. All relevant comments, even negative ones, should be available to view. Instructions could be Ikea-style, where it's a simple sheet with a blow-up diagram of the product and its assembly. Instructions need to be on a separate sheet, not printed on the packing slip.

You know what, I did find the screws. They were in a tiny plastic bag, taped to the bottom inside wall of one of the sides. I only found them when I ripped the box apart for recycling. They could, very easily, be taped to the basin where they would be visible. Is that Wayfair's fault? Possibly not, but they could, as a reseller, ask the manufacturer to do this. I simply added the screws to the container of random screws I already have.

So, this weekend, I need to head to the hardware store and get a bag of sand. Then, I need to deconstruct the bath, add the sand, and put it back. The total cost is still going to be cheaper than any resin birdbath, which would not have tipped over, would be. I guess the moral of this is that I got what I paid for. Actually, I got less. Once the sand has been added. this will be a nice addition to this spot. Since I have to buy a hummingbird feeder, getting the sand isn't an added inconvenience.

I'm not shopping at Wayfair again. When I complained, explained what they should have done, they offered me 10% off my next purchase, as long as it was done within the month of June. That's kind of an insult. I'm not sure when I would be shopping with them and 10% isn't going to cover shipping and handling costs for anything. A friend asked what would get me to shop there again. "You know what, you make very valid points. We failed in our description for this product. We're going to fix that. I'm sorry you're unhappy with this product. We can replace it for you, sending you a box to ship it back and give you your money back towards the purchase of something else. Or, we can offer 25% off anything, including sale priced merchandise, good through the end of the year. Again, we're sorry this product did not meet your standards."

I won't hold my breath.

Beverage:  English Breakfast tea

Deb

How Was Your Summer, Part 3

It was a, mercifully, quiet July 4th. I was terrified of driving anywhere in the rental car so I think I drove to the grocery and a couple other errands and drove home. The insurance company of the truck driver had called to make sure I was okay and to go over the steps to getting the car fixed.

"We're going to make this right," the gal said. I asked her to put things in an email, so, if my insurance company asked about anything, since the sheriff had taken my information, I would have it all in writing. That was done. All that was left was to wait on the inspection of the Jeep.

On July 6th, Wehr's called. The appraiser had totaled the car. He said there was engine damage, something I wouldn't have been able to determine since I don't know cars. They would give the dealer the full value of the car as it had been on the lot, or they would pay him the scrap value for him to fix it. He told me, when a car is "scrapped", even fixed, I would have a tough time convincing the bank there wasn't something dreadfully wrong with it.

I was heartbroken. I had pinned my hopes on that car. It was so perfect. Now, I felt real rage at that kid. My mind echoed the words of the roller guy. "How the hell do you not know who is following you?" Your driver's license should be shredded and your momma should drive you around for 6 YEARS, yes, YEARS, so you learn how to drive, you sniveling piece of humanity. I was crushed. There was more to come. His insurance emailed, not called, the news that because I didn't own the car, they would not pay for the rental. I would have needed to get a rental because my original car had died. Because the dealer owned the car, he would be reimbursed. I sent them a copy of the email where they had agreed to pay the rental. I was told that was not official and was pending review. My insurance told me a claim for rental would increase my rates (which is probably not true and was their way of getting out of the claim) because I would be seen as having caused the accident even though I could get proof it was not me.

That night, I cried for a couple hours. I've always felt a little snake bit, if you will, by life. This was yet another example of kicking me while I was down. It hurt so much. I would have to find a car. I stumbled into the office the next day, keeping my personal issues silent. Mike asked if I was okay. I simply said, "They totaled the car. I have to find another." He said, "Take all the time you need."

About mid-morning, Wehr's called the office and said the paperwork to scrap the Jeep had arrived. They knew that was heartbreaking for me. They did have, on the lot, two other cars I'd maybe like to consider. They were cars, not SUVs, so they didn't know if I had my heart set on another SUV. I called Carole and apprised her of the situation and she pounced on car research. She looked at both of the cars Wehr's suggested and looked at cars within a 50 mile radius of me. She found some, but one of the big issues was, what to do with the Jeep. I'd have to find someone to tow it back here to be scrapped or find someone out there willing to pay me $150 for it. Wehr's was still willing to take the Jeep.

I talked to the bank. They approved me for a higher amount if I wanted to buy either of the cars Wehr's had. I thought about it; really thought about it; and talked it over with Carole. I decided to test drive a 2011 Chevy Malibu Wehr's had on the lot. It was low mileage and nothing wrong with it. It was $3,000 more than the Compass, but the low mileage was attractive to me. I drove to Bangor on the day I was to do the final inspection to give it a test drive.

I loved it. Carole said the other car they suggested, a 2013 Chevy Impala, might be better because it was bigger. It was the same price, but it had double the mileage of the Malibu. I called my bank and they talked with Wehr's and we agreed to do the same thing as before. I signed everything I could there. They faxed everything to my bank. The next day, I would come in, finish the paperwork and they would next day everything back to Wehr's. We joked about how I probably needed to stay 4 or 5 car lengths behind "kids" pulling trailers. I dropped off the rental car and came back for the keys to my new-to-me car.

I finished the inspection, which had been rescheduled, and headed home. It was weird, sort of. I've been renting cars so much that I'm kind of used to a car, but there was a difference. This was mine.

All the way home, I let that sink in. This was mine.

Beverage:  Belhaven Oatmeal Stout

Deb