It’s an Island dammit!

I’ll gift you some Terns and Murres while I vent about a recent online purchase. 🙂

I bought it ironically. Honest! It’s a peace medal issued by the White House Gift Shop commemorating the HUGE summit between Trump and Kim Jong-Un. I thought it was hysterically funny that this existed. It seemed like something I’d be glad I had years from now when all this mess is just history.

At the time I ordered it the price was slashed from $24.95 to $19.95. The website now says that the medal is sold out and the price is $100.

My purchase was weeks ago, but I recently received a notice that it had been sent. The shipping company, let’s call them DOWNS, kept me updated with the medal’s progress on its way to my little corner of the Bay of Fundy.

Early last week I was informed that my package had arrived in Saint John. Then things started to get weird.

First they told me it was delayed because it had been scanned incorrectly. OK. Then they said they were waiting for the receiver (I assume that’s me) to agree to pay the delivery fee. Typical of DOWNS, this is why I don’t use them voluntarily – something is fully paid, crosses the border, and there’s suddenly a magic new charge.

The next message said that the “receiver” has moved and they’re considering a “return to sender”. I haven’t gone anywhere, but they’d know that if they’d actually contacted me.

They hadn’t – so I called them. I calmly explained that I was still here and, yes, as annoying as it was I would pay the new $15 charge when it arrived. The woman said she’d have the Dispatch Office call me.

I received that call a few hours later. The woman confirmed my address and said that it probably wouldn’t be delivered that afternoon (it was 3 pm) but it definitely would the next day. I paused and then said “I live on an Island in the Bay of Fundy. Look at a map – your driver will have to come through Maine.” Oh”, she replied, “they aren’t allowed to do that”.

I said they should give it to Canada Post. She said that Canada Post won’t collect money for DOWNS. “Well”, I grumped, “you have a problem then”.

I refused to pay them by credit card over the phone so she suggested I drive, to Saint John, to pick it up. I explained, tersely, that I wasn’t going to jump through hoops because DOWNS couldn’t do their job. We agreed they would return the package to the White House Gift Shop.

The thing that bothers me most about all of this is that the package containing a small, idiotic peace medal apparently weighs 2 pounds. Now I will never know why. 🙂