Never Buy a Refrigerator

Sometimes mole hills become mountains - even if you are not trying to make them into mountains.


A couple of weeks ago, I was thirsty and I decided that I wanted a glass of milk. I went to the fridge and took out the milk container and it was not cold like it should be. I did not think too much of it, until I started pouring the milk. The end result - let's just say that after checking the refrigerator, it was time to get a new one.

So the adventure of looking for a new fridge begins. The questions starting coming faster than I can even write them down.

• What brand do I want?
• What color do I want?
• Do I want the freezer on the top or the bottom?
  
• What store should I get it at?
• How much money do I want to spend?
• How do I get rid of my old refrigerator.
  
• How big do I get it? (How tall and how wide?) This is the most important question above all other questions.

So, my wife (Yvonne) and I continue our adventure by checking out some web sites of brands that make refrigerators. Yvonne and decide on the type of fridge we want, now it is just a matter of how much we want to spend and how big of a space do we have for a big refrigerator.
We go into the kitchen to see our current refrigerator that is almost keeping things cool since we took out almost everything and found that we had lots of space between the wall and the counter. I take some rough measurements and now we are ready to see how big of a refrigerator we can get as our current refrigerator is almost large enough to be useful.

Yvonne is pretty sure of the make and model she wants and we take measurements to make sure the dimensions listed will fit in our space (There is a big lesson to be learned here).

It is all fine and dandy to look at pictures on the web, but it does nothing to give you the real look and feel of the item. After visiting a couple of stores to see other models to make sure that there is not something else we like better. We finally decide on the make and model Yvonne originally picked and went with store "A".

Store A was actually very helpful - they let us know there was a "big" sale starting in a about a week. We already emptied our old refrigerator, so it was not a big deal to wait a week. After waiting a week, we go to store A and make the big purchase. The fridge is supposed to be delivered on the following Saturday so we just have to hurry up and wait.

Saturday finally arrives and so do the delivery guys. They look at the entry door, the hallway and the turn it will take to get the refrigerator into the kitchen and into the corner where it belongs. Then they measure the area to put the refrigerator - note that earlier I said the measuring had a big lesson to be learned. They measure it a few times and say, "it won't fit. The space is not wide enough in the front of the cabinet, although there is plenty of space in the back. "

They gave me a couple of choices:

1. I can take out the cabinet that is causing the space issue.
2. They can leave the refrigerator and I can try to move it into the space myself.
3. I can refuse the refrigerator and try to find a different model.

I did not like any of the options as we don't have a great deal of counter and storage space already and I don't want to damage the new refrigerator before we even get to use it.

After contemplating my options for a couple of minutes, I decide on option 1 - I will remove the offending cabinet - it is small and I figure I can make do.

So while I figure out how to take out the cabinet, the delivery guys go back to the truck to unpack and unload the new fridge. I empty the cabinet and find that there are only a couple of nails keeping the cabinet attached to the wall - so it is going to be really easy to remove the cabinet. I pull out the cabinet with relative ease; this is the last of the good things that happen this Saturday. After pulling out the cabinet, I find that the floor is not level where the cabinet used to be. There are a couple more layers of linoleum on the floor around where the cabinet was versus the hole that is left.

Just as Yvonne and I are agreeing that the floor is a mess, the delivery guy comes running into the house yelling "don't tear out the cabinet yet. Your refrigerator is damaged." We walk out to the truck to inspect the refrigerator to see how bad it is. We chose a black refrigerator that has an incredible shiny finish. The problem with the bright finish is you can see any and all dents in the doors. There are several dents at the top of the doors and by the handles.

Not only did I take option 1 on this Saturday, but I also took option 3 - refuse the refrigerator. We ask the delivery guys how long it will take to get another one out to our house. Remember when I said that taking out the cabinet was the last good thing to happen on Saturday - it was. The next new refrigerator needs to be ordered and can't be delivered until Thursday.

I refuse the refrigerator and Yvonne and head back into the house to examine the floor again.

Both Yvonne and I agreed that we could not handle looking at the disparity in the floor for a long period of time. So ... we need to get either new flooring or try to patch what is there. Did I mention, there is linoleum on the floor? To boot, my house was built during the mid 1970s - it is not pretty linoleum.

Neither Yvonne nor I like the linoleum that is on the floor - it does not match to what is in the hallway that passes next to the kitchen and also has linoleum nor does it match the linoleum that is in either of the bathrooms.

It's time to look for new flooring.

We decide to check out a couple of stores and call company "B" to have someone come out with some samples to show us.

Nothing at the stores looks like what we want and it can't get installed by the stores by the time the new fridge is supposed to arrive. So we wait the day for company "B" to come to our house.

The day comes for Company "B" to show up at the house. The sales guy brings samples of what we originally asked to look at as well as a couple of other alternatives. Yvonne and I view each of the samples and decide there are a couple that look like what we were thinking of for the floor and then place them down to view in the kitchen. The both look ok, but nothing that says, "man i gotta have that." So next the salesman brings out some alternative choices and there is both Yvonne and I spot the one sample and say that it is what we were really wanting. Next is the fun part - how much is it going to cost us for getting what we really like? Believe it or not, what we really wanted was actually cheaper than what we thought we wanted and about the price range that we expected to have to pay. So we finally have something go our way with getting this new refrigerator. And some even better news - the new floor can be installed prior to the delivery date of the new fridge. Mind you now, the refrigerator is now costing "X" plus the cost of the new flooring - this refrigerator is getting expensive. One of the silver linings - we finally get to get rid of the hideous 1970s linoleum.

Now that we are getting new floor, we have to clear out the kitchen, pantry and hall closet so the new flooring can be installed. We are moving stuff all over the house to get the kitchen ready for the flooring. In a little over a day, we went from organized, to chaotic and then we should be back to organized again in about another day or so.

The next day, the installer comes to install the floor and states that he should have no problem putting the new floor over the top of the old linoleum. Hold your horses there lulubell. That is not what I had in mind - we were supposed to have the old 1970s linoleum removed and the new floor installed. The installer says he needs to make a call to see what is supposed to happen versus what he had originally planned. While on the phone, the installer notes there are 3 layers of linoleum on the floor and asks when the house was built. I tell him in the mid-1970s and after notifying the other person on the floor, the next question is, "do you have anything in writing that says the linoleum is asbestos free?" I look at him and say, I have no real idea, I just bought the house last year and I have all the paperwork from that transaction. So far, things are not going overly well with this installation. I pull out all the paperwork and start searching - nothing in the home inspection and nothing in the main paperwork that says there is no asbestos in the house. The installer says that unless we have a "clean bill of health" the old linoleum cannot be taken out of the house; he is willing to work with us and he can still work with us and install the new floor over the old linoleum - he can build up the hole where the old cabinet was and the new floor will be fine - it is a "floating" floor, so technically, it would be fine. We have one major problem - we have a "BIG" new refrigerator coming the next day and with the new floor on top of the old linoleum, the refrigerator won't fit under the cabinet. In the meantime, the installer's boss calls and gives me the information about not being able to dispose of asbestos products and we would need to have a written document stating the linoleum was asbestos free. I asked her if she had any companies that she worked with in the past that could do this and how when the floor could be installed when/if the floor was asbestos free. She gave me a few numbers to call for companies that they have worked with in the past and said that she could have an installer out the next morning if all was good.

I call up one of the companies that was more local than the others and speak to one of the inspectors. He said that he could be out later that day, but the turn around time is normally about 48 to 72 hours. My day has definitely become more challenging.

One of my best friends IMs me and asks how things are going. I tell him that they could be a lot better and give him the lowdown on what has already occurred. He says that the cabinet is not a real problem - just raise the cabinet up and the new floor can be put on top of the linoleum and I won't have to worry about disposing of asbestos linoleum if the test comes back positive. Now I like this idea. I tell Yvonne about the idea of lifting the cabinets and she likes it as well. My only challenge is how do I do it.

Yvonne talks to our neighbor about the problem and she says that her husband can help do that - it should not be a problem. Later that evening, our neighbor comes over to look at the cabinets and formulate a plan. Less than 90 minutes later, the cabinets are lifted up and Yvonne is on the phone to the floor company and they will have an installer out the next morning. This is a good thing as our second round on delivering the new refrigerator is supposed to happen tomorrow as well.

We now have a minor problem. The cabinets are now 2" higher on the wall than before, and the paint color of those two inches does not match the rest of the wall. Yvonne says that she will paint the walls so they are all one uniform color tonight as it will be easier with everything out then after everything is moved back into the kitchen. A quick run to the paint store is in store. This is never a really cheap venture, especially when you want good paint that won't peel and will hold up to all the rigors that a kitchen has. The refrigerator just got more expensive.

Tomorrow comes and we actually get the same installer as the previous day. We explain to him what our choice was and what we did to come to this decision. The installer is a very hard worker and is doing a good job not to disturb us, as much as possible when there is hammering going on, and is friendly answering whatever questions we have when we ask. We tell him that the new fridge is supposed to be delivered sometime today, but we have not received a confirmation call yet stating when it will be delivered. He said that would not be a problem; he will move the refrigerator to where it needs to be when he is done. We only have one minor problem. When taking down the old 1970s coving that is supposed to pass for baseboard trim, parts of the drywall come off and the new baseboard, which is tremendously nicer, is not as tall as the old trim. Some more work is required by Yvonne and me to fix and paint the areas above the new baseboards when the floor is completely installed; this needs to be done before the fridge gets here, or it is going to be more work moving the fridge around some more.

When the day is done, the floor looks great, but there is no refrigerator. Then finally, we get an automated call stating the refrigerator will be delivered tomorrow. The silver lining to this is we have some more time to repair and paint the walls. The installer gave us his card and said that if we need his assistance with anything regarding the floor, give him a call -as lives in the area and wants to make sure we are happy.

The next day, towards the end of the time window provided for the delivery, the new refrigerator arrives. Yvonne calls me at work and tells me she has some good news and some bad news. The good news is that the new fridge arrived. The bad news, the fridge won't fit in the space where it is supposed to go - not because it is too tall, the raising of the cabinets actually worked correctly, is again too wide due to the baseboard trim and the upper cabinet. Yvonne calls the installer and he comes by and modifies the baseboard so that the refrigerator will fit in the space - mostly. Remember when I mentioned my house was built during the mid-1970s? The cabinet is not perfectly straight - part of it leans inwards towards the new refrigerator. The space now is just barely wide enough for the fridge to fit. Somewhere down the line, we are now going to have to get new cabinets so the cabinet and the new refrigerator are not so close. The good news is that going with company "A", the old refrigerator was removed as part of the installation of the new one, we get a rebate for buying an energy efficient refrigerator and get a credit on our taxes for the same reason.

We have our neighbors over to look at the new floor and the new refrigerator in the freshly painted kitchen. I ask the manly questions -what do you think of the new floor and the new refrigerator? Ooh. Ah. Very cool were the responses. Yvonne asks the womanly question - do you like the color of the kitchen and does it clash with the new floor. Being as dense as a brick like I am, I don't get the clue that Yvonne does not like the color of the kitchen any more. The silver lining is that we have not moved much back into the kitchen.

Yvonne is going to paint the kitchen the color we decided for the spare bedroom - it looks much nicer with the new floor. Cha-ching - that refrigerator just got more expensive.

The mole hill of getting a new refrigerator because the old one was going out, became a mountain with all of the obstacles that we encountered while trying to put it in the kitchen.

In the end though, we have the refrigerator we want, the floor that we want, and Yvonne has the kitchen the color she wants. :-)

My parting advice - Never buy a refrigerator.

Make someone's day and perfrom a random act of kindness. It could be small or as big as helping your neighbor raise their cabinets 2" higher in their kitchen.

At the End of the Day

The company that I work for, Fiserv, is truly a global company.

Headquarters is located in Wisconsin. We have offices, in NY, GA, OH, Oregon, Europe and India, to just name a few.

The reason that I mention this is because of come of the colloquialisms that I hear on a daily basis.

Don't worry about it.
No worries.
Forget 'bout it.
You're welcome.

All the above are responses you could get depending on who you are talking to when you tell them "thank you."

The phrase that I have been hearing frequently from people from Georgia is

At the end of the day ... yada yada.

Most of the time I state when all is said and done ...

The majority of the time I hear either phrase, it relates to how important or unimportant something is. For example, at the end of the day, does it really matter if I wear my brown shoes with my brown belt, or my black shoes with my black belt?

There are a lot of events that happen during a given day and very few of them really matter at the end of the day.

Don't let small things bother you all day because at the end of the day, they probably won't matter.

Make someone's day and perform a random act of kindness. It could be as easy as reminding them at the end of the day, the small thing that was bothering them really does not make a difference.

86400

If 86,400 is the answer, what is the question?

How many seconds are there in a day?

You can always get more money, but what you can't do is get more time.

How well do you use your 86,400 seconds a day?

Do you find yourself spending your time wishing for the good 'ol days? Or being mad at someone for something they did to you in the past? Or waiting for something good to happen to you?

Make the most of the time you have and make the good things happen. One of the best ways to make good things happen for yourself to make good things happen for someone else.

Let the past be the past; don't carry around the burdens of the past with you today. Enjoy all the good blessings that are in store for you today.

Make the most of your 86,400 seconds starting right now.

Make someone's day and perform a random act of kindness. It could be as simple as reminding them of how good today is.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving 2008

I have lots to be thankful for this year.

A tie for first place is that I am alive to celebrate Thanksgiving this year.

The second half of the tie goes to being able to spend the time with my wonderful family.

I am thankful for the good friends that I have.

A minor thing that I am thankful for is the price of gas going down.

I am thankful for living in a country where we have the freedom to write a blog if we so choose.

I am thankful that I have a great job during the global economic crisis that we are experiencing.

When you are feeling down, remember to count your blessings, they far out way your problems.

Make someone's day and perform a random act of kindness. It could be as simple as reminding them of all the things they have to be thankful for.

Eli Stone

Last night was the first episode of the second season of Eli Stone. For those who don't follow the show, the basic premise is the character Eli Stone is a San Francisco lawyer who starts having visions which leads him to find out that he has a brain aneurysm. His visions lead him to accept cases with little monetary gain but a lot of moral goodness; in short, it leads him to God.


This is a pretty risky show for a big network to take on as it could alienate viewers that don't share the same beliefs. I give ABC kudos for doing so. When shows were being canceled for this season, I was extremely happy to see this show make it for at least a second season. If you can watch the first season and the first episode of this season, I think you will be hooked as well.


Make someone's day and perform a random act of kindness. It could be as simple as sharing time with them and watching this week's episode of Eli Stone.

Gone to the Movies Lately?

For as much as I like movies, I seldom actually go to the movie theater; I normally don't stay awake during the entire movie.

I don't have a real high standard for movies - if it can take my mind off my troubles for a couple of hours, it did its job and I will classify it as a decent to good movie. If the movie is on a subject that I enjoy and is somewhat accurate, I can classify the movie as good. There are not many movies that I classify as great, even movies that I consider my favorites.

This past weekend I went to see not one, but two movies at the theater. The first one was the Coen Brothers movie, Burn After Reading (BAR). OMG, this movie has to fall into the category of Ishtar and Waterworld as one of the worst movies ever made. BAR used the f-bomb like it were one of the character's names in the movie; and that was not the worst part of the movie. I had a hard time following the storyline; there were a couple of funny scenes at the beginning of the movie, but that was about it. I dozed a couple of times during the movie, which is part of the reason I don't go to the theater very often.

I saved the best for last.

The second movie I saw with my friends was Fireproof. The premise of the movie is a couple's marriage is falling apart and the husband, through the help of his father, starts this 40-day journey to find the true love of God in order to share with his wife and save his marriage.

Fireproof is the first movie that has really moved me in a long time. Needless to say, I did not doze or fall asleep during this movie. It is a religious movie (there I said it) that can get you back on the right path, help you walk the path, or lead you further down the path with God than you have ever been. This is a movie that can change your life for the better if you let it. No matter what state your marriage is in, you need to see this movie.

Make someone's day and perform a random act of kindness. It can be as simple as taking them to see the movie Fireproof.

Bringing Mom to the 21st Century

I recently returned from a trip from visiting my in-laws.

When ever I go to visit the family, I am the resident computer geek. Something on the computer needs to be fixed, updated or configured - "Phillip will fix it." is the normal statement. Any geek worth his salt generally likes to be that guy.

This trip was no different in the demand, but it was very cool for what my mother-in-law wanted. Mom upgraded from a desktop computer to a laptop computer, mostly on her own, but without any help from me since the last time I visited. Way to go Mom.

I brought my Garmin (my hand-held GPS unit) with me, since I can get lost in a brown paper bag. My mother-in-law saw it and saw how easy it was to use that she decided that she thought she wanted one. We went to one of the big stores there and we meandered to the electronics and television department. Mom said that she was interested at getting a flat-screen television; one of the cool factors of shopping for televisions is that most stores have multiple televisions displaying the same show or recorded program so you can see the difference in sets.

Mom found a 32" flat-screen television set that she liked and we asked the associate if there were any in stock; unfortunately, there were none, but we were told to check back on Saturday, as they might get a shipment. We call back on Saturday -no shipment. Mom is resourceful; she has another place she can go to find a good flat-screen. We go to this other place and Mom finds a nice 37" HDTV Toshiba flat-screen that she decides she wants. Mom is still pretty simple, she does not need the very latest and greatest, but she wants something big enough to watch her sports on, especially her beloved NY Yankees. While we are there, she decides that she wants to see if they have a Garmin Nuvi 260W like I have. To her happy surprise they do, so she decides that she is going to get one. So we head home with not only a larger television than she originally thought she was going to get, but also a Garmin. I quickly programmed the Garmin with her home address and set it to go home and Mom used it to get home - if you are looking to get a GPS, I highly recommend Garmin - my friend Ron got me hooked on it. She was a happy camper.

So we get home and my first task is to setup the new television after taking down the old one. For physical tasks, this is pretty easy. Her old 31" CRT is tremendously heavier and bulkier than the new flat-screen television, but still easy enough to move. So the first challenge comes about for connecting the satellite to the new flat-screen and making it work - this should be a no brainer - boy was I WRONG.

Mom has the second connection to the satellite and it operates on channel 73, not the standard 3 or 4 that old cable would use - this still should not be a big deal. I make the physical connection and turn the television to channel 73 - after allowing the set to automatically search for channels. A great big nothing - only gray and white snow on the set. Mom says that she knows the number for the satellite company and calls it. She talks to the guy for about 2 minutes and decides that if she wants it done with the smallest headache that I should talk to the guy, so I do. The guy is pleasant and appears to know what he is doing. He has me go to where the primary satellite hook-up is located and press the menu key and 6-1-5, select the secondary connection, change the channel to 60 and save. He then tells me to go to the secondary set (the new flat-screen set) and change the channel to 60. Voila. Like a champ, it is working.

The problem with a satellite connection is you need to have a receiver for every television in your house, or all the televisions have to display the same show. The reason I mention this is because Mom has a little 19" CRT set in her bedroom that she uses as white-noise to go to sleep. Mom goes into her bedroom to do something and turns on her "little" television - nothing but white-snow. She calls to me and asks what did I do, because she can't watch television in her room now. I do the typical geek thing, scratch my head and say, "hmmm." The first idea that crosses my mind is to turn off the big-screen and perform the same steps I did to get the other television working. [Buzzer sound] Thanks for playing, but you lose is all I get. Ok, I scratch my head a little more and think that the televisions are two different types. So I wonder if I change the channel back to 73 using the main system, if the CRT will work. What do you know - the small CRT works and as expected, the flat-screen does not. I tell Mom I know what the problem is and she has two options - either buy a smaller flat-screen to watch in her room, or go without. Mom has to think about this as she says she only watches about 15 to 30 minutes of shows in her bedroom in order to fall asleep. For the present time - we do nothing for the bedroom.

Earlier, I mentioned that Mom upgraded her computer system to a laptop system. She has an additional keyboard and mouse for the laptop so her great-grandson does not destroy the laptop by banging too hard on the keyboard or touch pad. Another cool -factor about the LCD flat-screen is that it has a VGA connection so it can be used as an additional monitor. The next time we went back to Mom's regular store, I looked around for a male-to-male VGA cable, but there were none to be found. Well, any self-respecting geek knows where he has to go - even though he will seldom admit it - when he needs an electronic part and the regular store does not have one - RadioShack®. So I ask Mom to bring me there and I pick up the part I need. We get back home - using the Garmin of course - and I connect the laptop to the big screen and push a couple of buttons and Mom can now see the laptop screen on her big screen television. She is as giddy as a school girl with her first crush.

One small problem with my setup. Mom is a neat freak and does not like having a mess anywhere. The geek in me has to figure something out so she will use this cool stuff she has.

The next day we are expecting the great-grandson, Anthony, to come over for a visit. Yvonne and I saw some cool 3D chalk one time back home, but have not been able to find it since. Yvonne's twin sister Darlene says that she saw it at Toys R Us. So we all decide that we are going to meet for lunch, but Mom, Yvonne and I will stop off to get the 3D chalk first. When we get to the store, we see a sign on the window that they have WII in stock. Yvonne and I have been trying to buy a WII for months, without any luck because they have been out of stock. I digress; Yvonne and Mom start looking for the 3D chalk and I set out on my own mission to see if they really have WII in stock. Yvonne and Mom have good luck and find the 3D chalk. I in the meantime am still looking for the electronic games section, which I finally find. I ask the associate if they truly do have any WII in stock and she tells me they just got some and they still have some. By this time, Mom and Yvonne found me and Mom says that she wants a WII too. I shake my head in bewilderment wondering not only why does a 72-year-old woman want a WII, but how does she even know what one is. Mom knows exactly what one is and thinks it will be something good for Anthony to use when he comes over - as well as looking really good on her new 37" HDTV. Color me surprised, but she ended up getting one.

While we are in the store, we find out that Darlene is running late, so we can take our time and meet her there in a bit. We have lunch and we head back to Mom's place where my next task is hooking up the WII to her big screen television. Fortunately, there is nothing overly complicated about setting up the WII and we are playing games before long.

Mom decides that she would like to have a television in her bedroom, so we head out to her regular store and start looking at smaller sets. She finds this nice 20" LCD HDTV that is in her price range and they have it in stock. She gets the television and homeward we go for me to setup the new television. The first thing I need to do is disconnect the old CRT television. The challenge in doing this is that the plug for the television is behind her heavy dresser. The dresser is not all that heavy, but it is bulky and challenging to move, as we had to take most items off and make sure the mirror was connected securely,which it was. After getting the old television removed and connecting the new HDTV in Mom's bedroom, I changed the channel to 60 and Mom was again able to watch television in her room in high definition.

While I am unplugging the television, I find that her printer is also connected to the outlet behind the dresser and her USB cable for connecting the printer to the laptop is not nearly long enough to reach the laptop where she currently has her laptop setup so it can connect to the big screen. My mind starts to churn again for a possible solution.

Later in the week, we go to the local mall and start bee-bopping through the mall. Mom decides that she wants to be connected to the internet again so she can make good use of her laptop computer. We cruise the mall and find Mom's phone carrier and ask about getting her connected. For $19.99 a month, Mom can have wireless access to the internet from the convenience of her home. She is sold. The only issue is that hardware is not going to arrive until after Yvonne and I are home. The salesman and I both assure Mom that it is not very difficult to hook up. Again Mom is happy that she has more technology at home.

While we are walking through the mall, I see a computer store that I can peruse to get some ideas to make Mom's life easier with her new technological advances. Since Mom likes to sit in her recliner across the room from her television and do pretty much everything - watch television, make phone calls and take a nap, to name a few of her favorite activities - I figured that her recliner would be a pretty good place for Mom to use her computer as well. I decide that Mom needs a wireless keyboard and mouse so she can use them from the comfort of her recliner and that we can get a longer USB cable to connect to her printer so she can print stuff and not have to worry about trying to move her printer to where her laptop is or vice-versa. She was again giddy with this idea. One final stop at her regular store to get her a laptop desk to put her keyboard and mouse on to use from the comfort of her recliner and life is grand.

Before I left I had to give Mom a tutorial on how to access all of her old and new toys so she could use them. After a couple of times through the list of what to do to access her VCR, DVD, WII, and computer, she was a natural.

On a side note, Mom and I need to have the rubber match game for bowling, as we are tied at 2 games a piece in the best of 5. Mom beat me one game 221 to 183. I need to be on my A-game to beat her.

More on my adventures with my WII at a later time.

Make someones day and perform a random act of kindness. It could be as simple, or complicated, as bringing them up to the 21st century.