S t r e t c h a little further

I do not like taking things back to stores. I always feel kind of dirty. I mean, I bought something, I opened the package, I decided it didn't work or I didn't like it (but I used it or in some way wrecked the original packaging) and now, I want to return it to the store and get money back, as though I never used it. Dissecting that a bit and yes, if something I buy doesn't work, why should I keep it? And yes, if I buy something on a Saturday for $50 and the very next day, it goes on sale for $35, why shouldn't I return the thing, get $50 on the credit card and then re-buy it for $35? The thing has $15 less value in the eyes of the store so, by extension, it has decreased $15 in value to me.

So, yesterday and Friday, I was involved in returns at a local department store. On Friday, Alex exchanged a remote control truck for a jeep. We had purchased the truck because the one he already had didn't work so it was a replacement. Well, after purchasing it, the original truck started working (miracles happen!) so he was going to have two trucks. We allowed him to return the newer truck and exchange it for something else. He picked a jeep.

So, we exchanged it on Friday. On the way out of the store, Alex scanned it on one of those scanners that tells you the price and we found out it had gone on sale. Using round numbers, the original truck was $25 but since we bought it, it went on sale for $15.

There was also a spy kit thing we bought for him. One of the things had static so we allowed him to return it. Using round numbers, the original thing was $15 but since we bought it, it went on sale for $10.

SOOOOO... on Saturday, it became my job to return these two things to the store and, for the truck to get $10 on our department credit card for the truck and $5 on our department credit card for the spy kit thing.

The clerk I worked with was new and had her supervisor do the price adjustment and put the $15 back on our department credit card. So it went as it should have.

The purpose of this post is to reflect on 2009 as a year of doing things I don't like to do as a way to grow as a person. I am hoping that I have to do more things *like* this that are outside of my comfort level. Kind of like the whole MSI file thing "not working" as expected at work, these events are part of my growth as a human. I think that while I grumble to my wife about having to do these things, they are things that must be accomplished.

One other thing that is new in 2009 is that I am going to attempt to not shave for the month of January. It's kind of silly, but I have no idea if I look acceptable in a beard/mustache. There are no family pictures scheduled, no weddings, birthdays, or any other 'big' events scheduled in January. If I like it, I'll keep it. It's a whim. Maybe I won't last the entire month - I reserve that right if I look really ugly.

Another new thing is that I am open to the idea of attending Mass more than once in a weekend. Our music minister told me last night that Keith, our normal bassist, was going to play at 11 AM Mass today and also that "Guitarist Todd" was going to play. She commented that having a drummer with those two would be cool. I was open to going. However, the street in front of our house looks like a sheet of ice. As much as I'd like to play with them, it's not worth traveling on the ice. So, I'm not going to go to 11 AM Mass.

One final new thing is that I am going to turn off my work PC when I leave for the weekend. I am not going to give as many "free" hours as I had been in the last part of 2008. As I wrote about in the last days of 2009, I have 500 hours of work (13 weeks) sitting on my desk. It's kind of hopeless because a) I will get more work in the next few weeks and b) it is unlikely I will get a straight week to only work on documentation. My work is going to continue to accumulate and there's really nothing I can do about it.

It's 10:00 and I need to go upstairs. My in-laws are visiting and my time on the PC is seen as ... not the best use of my time.