# I'm tired of it............



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

What in the Hell do you have to do to get a hold of a real person if you call a business anymore. We ordered a vertical blind for the new sliding door we had installed a couple of months ago from Home Depot.

The blind arrived today via FedEx. Rather than bring it to the front door and ring the door bell, the driver decided that leaving it on the driveway, leaning against one of the garage doors was good enough.

The only reason I know that it had been delivered, was cause one of my wife's gal pals dropped by to say hi, and told us there was a long package leaning against one of the garage doors.

The damn sliding blind cost us over $700.00 and was shipped in a cardboard box. If it had started raining, there's a good chance that the blind would have been damaged.

I also had to make a few calls to companies and got the same ole recorded BS about this and that, and it was all but impossible to speak to a real person. Some companies don't even answer the phone anymore with a real person. It's all recorded crap. I timed one call and it took me 5.5 minutes to speak to a real person, after having gone thru all their recorded BS.

This is the way our society is headed. All technical crap! Seems like half the time, their online websites don't even function properly. And.....they don't list a ph. #.









Product quality is also suffering. Now-a-days, you pay twice as much for 1/2 the quality you used to get.









RANT OVER! *Wake up America!* You're screwing up!!!!!!!!!!






​


----------



## Slowalkintexan (Feb 6, 2007)

Whew, Para, when you get on a rant, you really out do yourself.


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

Maybe it's just me, but I see the way this society and country of ours is headed, and it sucks!


----------



## Shipwreck (Jan 26, 2006)

paratrooper said:


> Maybe it's just me, but I see the way this society and country of ours is headed, and it sucks!


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

paratrooper said:


> Maybe it's just me, but I see the way this society and country of ours is headed, and it sucks!


You decided to install it yourself ?
I bought a couple verticals,, but the installer delivered the product


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

pic said:


> You decided to install it yourself ?
> I bought a couple verticals,, but the installer delivered the product


No. We call Home Depot once it arrives and they send out an installer. The blind was sent to us by the actual manufacturer in CA. The blind was ordered via Home Depot.

The installation cost is included in the price of the blind.


----------



## Goldwing (Nov 5, 2014)

paratrooper said:


> If it had started raining, there's a good chance that the blind would have been damaged.


I think that when Fedex ships they notify you and you can customize the delivery instructions, IE signature required, and where to leave the package if nobody is home.

GW


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

Shipwreck said:


>


I'm not a religious guy, never have been. I'm pretty much convinced that aliens did in fact, have something to do with our species.

Makes a lot more sense to me than some poorly conceived entity.


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

Goldwing said:


> I think that when Fedex ships they notify you and you can customize the delivery instructions, IE signature required, and where to leave the package if nobody is home.
> 
> GW


EXACTLY right! I called FedEx and they told me that. I wasn't aware since we rarely have FedEx deliver stuff. It's mostly UPS or USPS.

But.....now I know.


----------



## Goldwing (Nov 5, 2014)

paratrooper said:


> Makes a lot more sense to me than some poorly conceived entity.


Pretty big jump from Fedex to religion! There are theories that religions were based on visitations of aliens. I do not know the absolute truth, but I am faithful to what I believe.

GW


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

UPS lives matter, 
Tell the installer it was leaning length wise,, looked bent. Take some pics.
Inspect the rail with the installer before installation. 
The rail system is key


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

I'm thinking there's a lot more to that than most people want to think about or admit to. 

When you peel away some layers, it all starts to make sense. There was a Twilight Zone episode many years ago about space aliens and the human race. 

It was pretty eye opening.


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

pic said:


> UPS lives matter,
> Tell the installer it was leaning length wise,, looked bent. Take some pics.
> Inspect the rail with the installer before installation.
> The rail system is key


The box looks to be fine. No obvious signs or indications of poor handling. We were told that this type of particular blinds needs to be installed by an experienced installer.

That's all I needed to hear..................


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

Slowalkintexan said:


> Whew, Para, when you get on a rant, you really out do yourself.


By the time paratrooper is done dealing with Home Depot, the blinds will be almost free


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

paratrooper said:


> The box looks to be fine. No obvious signs or indications of poor handling. We were told that this type of particular blinds needs to be installed by an experienced installer.
> 
> That's all I needed to hear..................


Yeppers , the vertical blind lengths were measured by the installe ??
Sometimes the home owners measure from a different point that the installer is gonna mount the rail system


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

We buy a lot of stuff from Home Depot. The 10% I save on every purchase adds up. Mores stores should do that.


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

paratrooper said:


> We buy a lot of stuff from Home Depot. The 10% I save on every purchase adds up. Mores stores should do that.


Home Depot , very good return policy. , lol. 
Lowes also


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

pic said:


> Yeppers , the vertical blind lengths were measured by the installe ??
> Sometimes the home owners measure from a different point that the installer is gonna mount the rail system


Nope! The HD installer came out and took the measurements. That cost $50.00, but that came off the overall price once you paid for the blinds.


----------



## Goldwing (Nov 5, 2014)

pic said:


> By the time paratrooper is done dealing with Home Depot, the blinds will be almost free


I, unfortunately, am just the opposite. I returned an item to Menards yesterday. They had me scan my credit card for my refund. Not only did they not refund the money, they charged me for it again. I am out $104 so far, but John Menard has a home in my home town so I doubt he wants to screw a hometown boy out of a "C"note.

GW


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

paratrooper said:


> Nope! The HD installer came out and took the measurements. That cost $50.00, but that came off the overall price once you paid for the blinds.


That's what I said, the installer usually takes the measurements.
I've had verticals installed to the ceiling or the wall. 
They like to measure themselves to get the correct vertical length and hopefully pre cut the verticals ahead of time. 
This is important wife stuff. ,lol


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

Goldwing said:


> I, unfortunately, am just the opposite. I returned an item to Menards yesterday. They had me scan my credit card for my refund. Not only did they not refund the money, they charged me for it again. I am out $104 so far, but John Menard has a home in my home town so I doubt he wants to screw a hometown boy out of a "C"note.
> 
> GW


You better have me call for you. Get your refund, lol.


----------



## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

paratrooper said:


> What in the Hell do you have to do to get a hold of a real person if you call a business anymore. We ordered a vertical blind for the new sliding door we had installed a couple of months ago from Home Depot.
> 
> The blind arrived today via FedEx. Rather than bring it to the front door and ring the door bell, the driver decided that leaving it on the driveway, leaning against one of the garage doors was good enough.
> 
> ...


It all has to do with lack of personal responsibility, both in your personal and your work life. 40 years ago bosses would have been screaming at and cussing out delivery guys that did crap like that. Now, nobody gives a crap, and this is what we get as a society.

It won't change until we start allowing ass kicking and such in schools and local communities again, if we ever do. We seem to be going the other way, by eliminating cash bail because it discriminated against the poor. Well, how did they end up in jail to begin with? Not because of poverty but because they broke the law. People have lost their damn minds in the world today.


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

pic said:


> That's what I said, the installer usually takes the measurements.
> I've had verticals installed to the ceiling or the wall.
> They like to measure themselves to get the correct vertical length and hopefully pre cut the verticals ahead of time.
> This is important wife stuff. ,lol


Home Depot doesn't stock these blinds. They called the manufacturer and placed the order after having the measurements taken.

We put down a deposit, and then the installer came out. If you decided to go ahead with the order, the $50.00 measuring fee came off. If you decided not to order, well.......you're out $50.00.


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

paratrooper said:


> Home Depot doesn't stock these blinds. They called the manufacturer and placed the order after having the measurements taken.
> 
> We put down a deposit, and then the installer came out. If you decided to go ahead with the order, the $50.00 measuring fee came off. If you decided not to order, well.......you're out $50.00.


Yep, plus we don't have to think about it, 
but,,,,It releases the liability of you measuring wrong

Yep, they measured wrong on two of my installations, the installer wasn't happy because he had to hand cut each vertical blind.
I wasn't happy because you can't get a consistent hand cut across the bottom.

It worked out. , lol


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

Our installer actually measured twice. He said that he always does that.


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

paratrooper said:


> Our installer actually measured twice. He said that he always does that.


Plus they have to be careful of the squareness, floor to ceiling measurement might vary,


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

My wife has been driving me crazy with all the improvements she wants to make with this house we bought. Prior to purchasing, she said *NOTHING* about major renovations.

I swear, now that we're retired, we're working harder than ever.


----------



## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

paratrooper said:


> My wife has been driving me crazy with all the improvements she wants to make with this house we bought. Prior to purchasing, she said *NOTHING* about major renovations.
> 
> I swear, now that we're retired, we're working harder than ever.


Probably figured if she told you her plans before closing you would have said your present house was just fine! I've done two now (houses, not wives). Not planning on doing another one of either, although a house would probably be cheaper, and maybe less stressful.


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

Yeah, gotta say, that when we have "issues", more likely than not, they're house related. 

She seems to think that the money we got from selling our former home is to be used to renovations. I keep telling her that although we are getting older by the day, we still have a ways to go before we die. 

I tell her, we need to have some money on hand for living expenses, emergencies, and such. She keeps saying that whatever money we put into this house, will be recoverable. Yeah, that's all good and well if we should decide to sell and move again.


----------



## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

Recoverable? Probably but you’ll have to sell to get it and buy something else or rent somewhere. I find women tend to tire of the same house much faster than men. Usually just when a man has it set up and broken in properly, a woman either wants to renovate, or sell and buy something else.


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

I was perfectly happy in our former home. Bought it new in August of 1988. Paid it off 1.5 yrs. early. 

I like the location of our new to us home and it's great view. The house itself though is quirky. That, and the fact, it's too big for just the two of us. 

If I had to do it over again, I would have been more resistant to buying it. Not crazy about the possibility of moving again in a few years.


----------



## DDickie (Aug 15, 2019)

paratrooper said:


> What in the Hell do you have to do to get a hold of a real person if you call a business anymore.
> 
> RANT OVER! *Wake up America!* You're screwing up!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> ...


Not just America! 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Minorcan (Apr 18, 2020)

paratrooper said:


> I'm not a religious guy, never have been. I'm pretty much convinced that aliens did in fact, have something to do with our species.
> 
> Makes a lot more sense to me than some poorly conceived entity.


If it was aliens I would think that they could make and deliver the blinds in one piece. Maybe just drop them off when they beam me up for abduction or something?


----------



## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

paratrooper said:


> I was perfectly happy in our former home. Bought it new in August of 1988. Paid it off 1.5 yrs. early.
> 
> I like the location of our new to us home and it's great view. The house itself though is quirky. That, and the fact, it's too big for just the two of us.
> 
> If I had to do it over again, I would have been more resistant to buying it. Not crazy about the possibility of moving again in a few years.


We went from a 2700 sq ft 3 br house in upstate ny to a 2 br condo in .charleston and since to a 2 br Townhouse in Savannah. This one is The smallest of all of them. It was a shock decluttering from a 3 br home after 29 years but we did it. My only regret with this one is not enough storage. Had to rent a small storage unit for stuff we just couldn't get rid of, primarily my tools and some gun related stuff. If this place had a garage it would be perfect at 1600 sq ft for the 2 of us.


----------



## Budlight_909 (Aug 31, 2020)

paratrooper said:


> What in the Hell do you have to do to get a hold of a real person if you call a business anymore. We ordered a vertical blind for the new sliding door we had installed a couple of months ago from Home Depot.​​The blind arrived today via FedEx. Rather than bring it to the front door and ring the door bell, the driver decided that leaving it on the driveway, leaning against one of the garage doors was good enough.​​The only reason I know that it had been delivered, was cause one of my wife's gal pals dropped by to say hi, and told us there was a long package leaning against one of the garage doors.​​The damn sliding blind cost us over $700.00 and was shipped in a cardboard box. If it had started raining, there's a good chance that the blind would have been damaged.​​I also had to make a few calls to companies and got the same ole recorded BS about this and that, and it was all but impossible to speak to a real person. Some companies don't even answer the phone anymore with a real person. It's all recorded crap. I timed one call and it took me 5.5 minutes to speak to a real person, after having gone thru all their recorded BS.​​This is the way our society is headed. All technical crap! Seems like half the time, their online websites don't even function properly. And.....they don't list a ph. #.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


in my situation, i am retired. so, i track my packages, and when i am given a time of delivery, i make sure that i am at home, or the wife is. i usually meet the delivery person, all delivery companies know of where a package is to be placed at my house.

you can have your packages delivered to a pick up point, like a CVS or other stores now. heck, you can even have them shipped to a UPS store as well.


----------



## Slowalkintexan (Feb 6, 2007)

I think the two of us are happy in 1200 sq ft. Have been for about 14 years,, sure I have a workshop and garage in a separate building, but we don’t collect a lot of ‘crap’ so don’t need much space. We use every inch and that is the economical way to do it... Only one bedroom so no room for over night guests, put them up in a motel,, free breakfast and a pool.


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

Our former house was a little under 1400 sq ft. It had an attached over-sized two car garage, which was my man cave. 

We had two large storage sheds on our lot as well. One was a 12x20x7 and the other was 12x24x13. We put a loft in the larger one. 

Our new to us home has two levels and is approx. 3400 sq. ft. It was my wife who wanted more room. 4 bedrooms, 4 full baths, and a three-car garage. 

The best thing about it, is it's location and the 3-car garage. It also has the proverbial $M dollar view. We've never owned a house before with any kind of a view.


----------



## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

Maybe you’ll get lucky and eventually she’ll get tired of cleaning all that space.


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

Reno


paratrooper said:


> My wife has been driving me crazy with all the improvements she wants to make with this house we bought. Prior to purchasing, she said *NOTHING* about major renovations.
> 
> I swear, now that we're retired, we're working harder than ever.


You know it doesn't stop, lol. 
Decorate ? Like the blinds. 
Or she's talking something about something much bigger. ,lol


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

I just replaced My hot water tank. 
Six years old. 
It automatically kicked the breaker switch on the unit inside the little panel. I said uh oh, I reset it, but knew something was up. Next morning it was off again, 
Time to call the manufacturer 
I had a nine year warranty. 
I had Rheem on the telephone, very good customer service. 
Water hit the electric switch and melted the plastic. , sent a few pics as I had the rheem service guy on the phone. 
As soon as he seen the pictures, he gave me full replacement value . 
Drained the tank this morning , brought it over to Home Depot. 
I upgraded to a leak sense detector model with auto shut off with wifi. 
Unbelievable. 
Just tied in the electric. It's an electric water heater. We don't even have a gas line running into the house, everything is electric. 
No help around when you need it, lol. Getting the old tank out was a bitch. 
The new tank, piece of cake sliding It down the stairs in the box.


----------



## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

Job well done. Probably saved yourself $400


----------



## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

RK3369 said:


> Job well done. Probably saved yourself $400


Very good estimate, my credit towards the upgrade was 479.$


----------



## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

We have two 70 gal. natural gas water heaters. Both are a bit over 20 yrs. old, but are still functioning fine. 

Our plan is to have both replaced with one 50 gal. tank and have both floors feed off of it. They sit about 5' apart, so it should be easy to make some external water line runs on the wall of the storage room. 

Both have recirculating pumps on them and both are on timers. Off @ 9pm and back on @ 9am. 

It will be a costly job, but we are prepared for it.


----------

