I have only had 2nd hand tables & chairs. My current set was I'm guessing circa 1973, the table top was light butcher block with pea soup green square legs & same color corduroy chairs. I purchased the set for 15.00 at a garage sale in about 1993. In 1996, I pitched the chairs and found some cute bistro chars at a garage sale for 4.00 (for the set) I grabbed the paint brush, purchased some fabric and the butcher block & pea green was erased. I now had a very cute yellow table & chairs with new seat cushions in a beautifully Waverley plaid fabric.
But all things must come to an end and now that 2010 was the time I had gone through a major life change, I decided my relationship with this table was over & it was time for us both to move on to new adventures in life.
I made the decision & began the planning and shopping (online) around April or so. I looked at hundreds of sets, read hundreds and hundreds of reviews. I found a set I absolutely loved...I was so excited. I had decided once things settled a bit I would place the order. 11/29/2010 was the day; I first thought I would order online, but I had a question about delivery so I called. The lady on the other end of the phone was very nice & helpful. All questions answered & the order was placed. She even gave me an additional discount, everything was perfect! The ship date was 12/7/10 and it should be delivered by 12/13/2010. Delivery before Christmas and NY, wonderful, I had planned a NY day party and what fun to have a new dining set. The gal that was taking my old table & chairs was going to come get the old set before Christmas.... I was so excited a beautiful new table & chairs for my dining room. Everything was falling in to place perfect.
Within days of placing the order, I received an email notification of a new ship date of 1/7/2011. I was kind of bummed, but I did not have plans for people in my home over Christmas, so that was fine, I did not need the set before the Christmas/NY holiday. The gal that was taking my table could wait till after NY no biggie, or I could use a little camping table. It would work out fine.
I called on Jan 9, 2011 to see if the table had been shipped because I had not received a tracking email as I was advised would be sent. I received a call & email confirmation, item shipped. Again I was excited, a new dining set...woo hoooooo. Jan 14 2011, table delivered! more excitement.
Because the weather was extremely cold, I opened all the boxes and let the items acclimate to the house temps for a couple of days. I then spent Friday & Saturday putting the chairs together. LOTS of bolts to tighten with a tiny allen wrench...not fund days. Then it came to getting the pedestal & legs together, however that did not happen. The pedestal has 4 arched legs, that are the total support for the table, the actual pedestal does not touch the floor. I say this because...every single leg had at least 2 cracks in them. Rendering the table worthless. I called the company, they asked if I wanted a refund or just partial refund and I could find someone to fix. I asked if they could ship a new pedestal & legs, those items came boxed together, so I figured that one box could be resent. It was, I received some time this afternoon, delivered by Fed Ex. So I pack the box in and anxiously open it, unwrapping the end of the legs, to check for cracks. To my dismay, every single leg is cracked. I have now sent a not to the company asking for a full refund and let me know what needs to be done for refund & return..... I sure hope this is not a hassle to get my money back. Hopefully the biggest pain of this will be having to tear down these chairs. Time will tell.
As for me now, I will get this settled, then I will be hitting the furniture stores. I will purchase from a place that will deliver & set up the new, or I may check out the thrift stores first. I have no problem recovering seat cushions if I can find a style of table & chair I like.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Everything's different in a day
Good morning, yest it is still morning, not by much in eastern time, but I am in central time and morning is any time before 12:00pm, which it still is even by eastern time standards. I found myself thinking a lot about this blog yesterday. How does one write without it being too obvious they have thought about it. Isn't the whole purpose of this to be casual and express one's raw, unedited thoughts? Hard to do when you have a million thoughts and/or memories circling in your brain. A lot of memories of my childhood started running through. Truth is, my childhood memories are very random, not too detailed and dates are not at all a part of my memory. As I write this, it is weird a a few strong memories immediately jump to the forefront and demand attention, so I will give it. My Grandparents, all very instrumental in my life in very different ways. Three of them died by the time I had reached the age of 20.
Mom Lawson was the first to go, she died about 1965. I was young but I do remember her, she was a treasure, I remember a very sweet caring grandmother, a little laid back a calm to the engaging circus Dad Lawson could be. We called them Mom & Dad Lawson, not grandpa or grandma, and very definitely not by their first name. I made that mistake one time in front of all the family and I do remember everyone laughing that I had called her Golda, but I thought it was such a pretty name. All but one of her siblings had pretty names. I made sure from that day on she was Mom Lawson, no matter how pretty Golda sounded to my ears.
Dad Lawson, my grandpa Lawson died about 1972 (I remember that because my cousin Aleta was still in school, and she is 3 years older than me. Dad Lawson's personality is a book, a very entertaining book that can't share stage with any other stories. He was a timeless treasure as far as grandpa's go.
Next I recall my grandpa Chandler, he died in Nov. 1977. I remember that because I had hurt myself on my job. I worked at Tobin Hamilton shoe factory in Mansfield Missouri. I went from boxing cut leather to send up the line, to a cutter which could be one of the better factory jobs. Factory work is piece work, meaning every part of the shoe is assigned a price, and you were paid by what you produced based on that price and the quantity you put out in an hour. In 1977 I was making $10.00 an hour, I know, Jan 2011 that is a poverty wage, however, that was a good wage in the day. That career ended when I severely cut my thumb. Now getting back to my grandpa Chandler. I was hurt in Nov. I had stitches & a guard over my hand and heavy duty pain pills. My cousin Kaye & I had tickets to see the Beach Boys in concert in Springfield. We went up a the day before the concert, and spent the night with a friend. Late that night we received a call that my grandfather had died. My mom told me to stay, enjoy the concert then come home, there was nothing I could do that day. So I did just that.
Grandpa Chandler was an awesome man, he was probably the calmest man I will ever have known in my life. I never saw him mad, even upset that I can recall. He was a very handsome man, with a soft voice, beautiful blue eyes that shone and a comforting smile. He was an animal person, he raised & sold rabbit hunting dogs (beagles). People came from far corners of the US to buy a dog from my grandpa. He loved to hunt & spend time with his dogs, he never had a desire to travel, and could always be found at home or hunting. Grandpa also loved a good game of checkers or dominoes. He was a very smart man and extremely talented when it came to strategy games such as checkers and dominoes. Grandpa was color blind so right before the final crushing move on a game of checkers he would often have to ask if "that" (crushing blow)checker was red or black, and unless you lied, you just assisted in your own defeat. Ah and you know the games that now sit on every table at Cracker Barrel..the golf tees in a triangle board, you have to jump down to just one tee; well grandpa Chandler did that every time for as long as I can remember ever seeing that game. I am lucky enough to have a small work desk that he made for me when I was 5, it is a priceless treasure.
My grandma Chandler died most recently (2004), like Dad Lawson, a story of her can't share stage, she was one of a kind, an artists and an awesome grandmother. The traits I have received from her I affectionately call the Cleo gene.
I was so blessed with wonderful grandparents. I am so proud, lucky & honored to have been born into their families. Next to God our families are our greatest treasure.
I guess my conversation has taken this turn due to events of the last few days. I have a cousin dealing with the death of her spouse & and 2 high school mates dealing with the death of a sibling & husband. Both are untimely, early deaths. My heart goes out to the families of both men. My prayer is that they continue to seek God for the peace & comfort that only he can give, and to always know that we have these wonderful memories to make us smile & feel the joy in what they gave during their time with us.
Matthew 5:4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. (niv)
Mom Lawson was the first to go, she died about 1965. I was young but I do remember her, she was a treasure, I remember a very sweet caring grandmother, a little laid back a calm to the engaging circus Dad Lawson could be. We called them Mom & Dad Lawson, not grandpa or grandma, and very definitely not by their first name. I made that mistake one time in front of all the family and I do remember everyone laughing that I had called her Golda, but I thought it was such a pretty name. All but one of her siblings had pretty names. I made sure from that day on she was Mom Lawson, no matter how pretty Golda sounded to my ears.
Dad Lawson, my grandpa Lawson died about 1972 (I remember that because my cousin Aleta was still in school, and she is 3 years older than me. Dad Lawson's personality is a book, a very entertaining book that can't share stage with any other stories. He was a timeless treasure as far as grandpa's go.
Next I recall my grandpa Chandler, he died in Nov. 1977. I remember that because I had hurt myself on my job. I worked at Tobin Hamilton shoe factory in Mansfield Missouri. I went from boxing cut leather to send up the line, to a cutter which could be one of the better factory jobs. Factory work is piece work, meaning every part of the shoe is assigned a price, and you were paid by what you produced based on that price and the quantity you put out in an hour. In 1977 I was making $10.00 an hour, I know, Jan 2011 that is a poverty wage, however, that was a good wage in the day. That career ended when I severely cut my thumb. Now getting back to my grandpa Chandler. I was hurt in Nov. I had stitches & a guard over my hand and heavy duty pain pills. My cousin Kaye & I had tickets to see the Beach Boys in concert in Springfield. We went up a the day before the concert, and spent the night with a friend. Late that night we received a call that my grandfather had died. My mom told me to stay, enjoy the concert then come home, there was nothing I could do that day. So I did just that.
Grandpa Chandler was an awesome man, he was probably the calmest man I will ever have known in my life. I never saw him mad, even upset that I can recall. He was a very handsome man, with a soft voice, beautiful blue eyes that shone and a comforting smile. He was an animal person, he raised & sold rabbit hunting dogs (beagles). People came from far corners of the US to buy a dog from my grandpa. He loved to hunt & spend time with his dogs, he never had a desire to travel, and could always be found at home or hunting. Grandpa also loved a good game of checkers or dominoes. He was a very smart man and extremely talented when it came to strategy games such as checkers and dominoes. Grandpa was color blind so right before the final crushing move on a game of checkers he would often have to ask if "that" (crushing blow)checker was red or black, and unless you lied, you just assisted in your own defeat. Ah and you know the games that now sit on every table at Cracker Barrel..the golf tees in a triangle board, you have to jump down to just one tee; well grandpa Chandler did that every time for as long as I can remember ever seeing that game. I am lucky enough to have a small work desk that he made for me when I was 5, it is a priceless treasure.
My grandma Chandler died most recently (2004), like Dad Lawson, a story of her can't share stage, she was one of a kind, an artists and an awesome grandmother. The traits I have received from her I affectionately call the Cleo gene.
I was so blessed with wonderful grandparents. I am so proud, lucky & honored to have been born into their families. Next to God our families are our greatest treasure.
I guess my conversation has taken this turn due to events of the last few days. I have a cousin dealing with the death of her spouse & and 2 high school mates dealing with the death of a sibling & husband. Both are untimely, early deaths. My heart goes out to the families of both men. My prayer is that they continue to seek God for the peace & comfort that only he can give, and to always know that we have these wonderful memories to make us smile & feel the joy in what they gave during their time with us.
Matthew 5:4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. (niv)
Sunday, January 23, 2011
What's next...
Everyone seems to be blogging these days, so I have decided I would attempt this new way to journal. My guess is this will be quite a challenge for me as I have never been much of one to journal. Like many, I have gone through short phases of keeping a journal; the longest period maybe a year of inconsistent journalling. I might have been better off starting this blog last year as it was quite an eventful year in my life in many ways good & bad, but I did not. I am here now and life goes on, so I begin with the here & now.
It is another snowy morning in KC, not a heavy snow, just a light pretty coating, but layered over ice, so I did not venture out to church this morning. Instead I sit here to try my hand at blogging; while watching a Hallmark movie & of course every so often I must click over to my Facebook page to play a game or check a status. Oh, I cant forget that I also have brine cooling on the stove to make a corned beef, St. Pats is just around the corner. I guess all of this could be a form of multitasking?? Shortly, I will add a load of laundry and doing dishes to my multitasking list. Such is the life.
Mine is not an exciting life, just simple, in fact not something most would not consider worth taking the time to blog. This makes me ask why am I doing this? Is it because so many others do, that is pretty lame. Maybe I am searching for a deeper me? Maybe I am bored, no can't be bored, too much to do to be bored. Maybe this is just a bit of a creative outlet, or do I feel I need to learn more about myself and this is a tool to do just that? Maybe I will figure out why I am doing thing as time goes. Then again, maybe this will be my first & last time here. In any event, I will be able to say yes, I have blogged.
Before closing this post, I will share with you the most important part of me & my life. I am a Christian, I believe in Christ the son of God sent to live among us & die for us. I believe in a daily relationship with God. I know this relationship has walked me through life and provides peace & strength through all times good, bad & ugly. I am so thankful for God's presence in my life and honored to be called a child of God. I am a member of Pleasant Valley Baptist Church in Liberty, we are doing a year long program to read specific scripture called Red Letter year. I will include in my blog some of the scripture for that day/week. I also want to share a great website with anyone that may be reading this, Bible Gateway is a site that gives you almost any version of the Bible you want to use. I highly suggest this site http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/
This week's memory verse:
Matthew 6:33 But Seek first his kingdom & his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (NIV)
I think I have said enough today, any more I will feel like I am rambling and I hear a multitask alert calling..
It is another snowy morning in KC, not a heavy snow, just a light pretty coating, but layered over ice, so I did not venture out to church this morning. Instead I sit here to try my hand at blogging; while watching a Hallmark movie & of course every so often I must click over to my Facebook page to play a game or check a status. Oh, I cant forget that I also have brine cooling on the stove to make a corned beef, St. Pats is just around the corner. I guess all of this could be a form of multitasking?? Shortly, I will add a load of laundry and doing dishes to my multitasking list. Such is the life.
Mine is not an exciting life, just simple, in fact not something most would not consider worth taking the time to blog. This makes me ask why am I doing this? Is it because so many others do, that is pretty lame. Maybe I am searching for a deeper me? Maybe I am bored, no can't be bored, too much to do to be bored. Maybe this is just a bit of a creative outlet, or do I feel I need to learn more about myself and this is a tool to do just that? Maybe I will figure out why I am doing thing as time goes. Then again, maybe this will be my first & last time here. In any event, I will be able to say yes, I have blogged.
Before closing this post, I will share with you the most important part of me & my life. I am a Christian, I believe in Christ the son of God sent to live among us & die for us. I believe in a daily relationship with God. I know this relationship has walked me through life and provides peace & strength through all times good, bad & ugly. I am so thankful for God's presence in my life and honored to be called a child of God. I am a member of Pleasant Valley Baptist Church in Liberty, we are doing a year long program to read specific scripture called Red Letter year. I will include in my blog some of the scripture for that day/week. I also want to share a great website with anyone that may be reading this, Bible Gateway is a site that gives you almost any version of the Bible you want to use. I highly suggest this site http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/
This week's memory verse:
Matthew 6:33 But Seek first his kingdom & his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (NIV)
I think I have said enough today, any more I will feel like I am rambling and I hear a multitask alert calling..
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