Last Saturday, a circular arrived from the local family-owned appliance store. It announced their "One & Only WINTER Clearance Event!" with "Our BIGGEST Savings of the Year!" Not only that, but I could also enter their Scratch 'n Match contest to see if I had won one of three prizes, the top one being a $10,000 kitchen makeover!!
Well, I don't need that. My kitchen is one of the most pulled-together rooms of my very un-pulled-together house. But I scratched the silver stuff off the number dot anyway.
Did not say "Sorry, You Have Not Won." There was a number there, all right.
But the winning numbers weren't on the circular. Oh. Guess you have to ask about it at the store.
And I needed to stop by there anyway. Because last week when I was about to launch into my big Christmas cookie baking campaign, my oven went haywire. I'd set it for 350, it'd stay there long enough to do one batch, but then the temperature would start to climb. 400, 500, 600 and on and on! Burnt cookies! Smoke alarms going off on every floor! General annoyance and frustration!
Well, I don't need that. My kitchen is one of the most pulled-together rooms of my very un-pulled-together house. But I scratched the silver stuff off the number dot anyway.
Did not say "Sorry, You Have Not Won." There was a number there, all right.
But the winning numbers weren't on the circular. Oh. Guess you have to ask about it at the store.
And I needed to stop by there anyway. Because last week when I was about to launch into my big Christmas cookie baking campaign, my oven went haywire. I'd set it for 350, it'd stay there long enough to do one batch, but then the temperature would start to climb. 400, 500, 600 and on and on! Burnt cookies! Smoke alarms going off on every floor! General annoyance and frustration!
If one of their guys couldn't fix my oven, maybe this One & Only WINTER Clearance Event! could give me a line on a replacement stove. And I guessed I'd best do it quickly, since according to the circular, "WINTER" ends on January 1st.
So I walked into the appliance dealer's this afternoon, again thinking how it'd be "just my luck" to win the kitchen makeover, when the room that really needs it is the bathroom.
But I was really there to look at stoves. And I did.
So I walked into the appliance dealer's this afternoon, again thinking how it'd be "just my luck" to win the kitchen makeover, when the room that really needs it is the bathroom.
But I was really there to look at stoves. And I did.
The only one that really fits my specifications is about $150 more than I'd like to spend right now. And the model with the feature that could really get me excited about spending the money (convention oven conversion at the flip of a switch--whoo-whoo!) runs an additional $100 more.
And neither of these appeared to be part of the One & Only WINTER Clearance Event!
Hmm. I think I'll bring the info on my existing cranky stove in and see if they can simply fix the overheating problem. Their repairmen should be familiar with the beast, since my previous owners bought it there and this shop has been out to fix things on it before.
I was headed out the door when I remembered to ask the salesman, "Oh, yeah. How does this contest work?" He took me back to the service desk, where they had the winning numbers posted.
And what the hell, if all my numbers didn't match for one of the prizes. A "3 Day/2 Night Vacation Getaway."
Oh. That's nice. I actually won something. Oh!
"Something" being hotel accommodations for two at any one of quite a wide range of destinations, as close as just up the road, so to speak, or as far away as Honolulu, Hawaii.
And neither of these appeared to be part of the One & Only WINTER Clearance Event!
Hmm. I think I'll bring the info on my existing cranky stove in and see if they can simply fix the overheating problem. Their repairmen should be familiar with the beast, since my previous owners bought it there and this shop has been out to fix things on it before.
I was headed out the door when I remembered to ask the salesman, "Oh, yeah. How does this contest work?" He took me back to the service desk, where they had the winning numbers posted.
And what the hell, if all my numbers didn't match for one of the prizes. A "3 Day/2 Night Vacation Getaway."
Oh. That's nice. I actually won something. Oh!
"Something" being hotel accommodations for two at any one of quite a wide range of destinations, as close as just up the road, so to speak, or as far away as Honolulu, Hawaii.
I was aware of not being as excited as I might be. Maybe I wanted to stay cool so I could understand all the fine print on the redemption certificate. Maybe I wanted to keep my expectations down as to the quality of the hotels in question.
Maybe I was feeling inadequate for not being married and having an automatic other half of the "for two" to take up the other side of the deal.
Yes, well. I do like travel. And I do have girlfriends who'd enjoy going off on a larking kind of trip like this. And a good handful of the listed destinations were within driving distance.
So this evening I got ahold of my friend Frieda*, and we're going to visit Colonial Williamsburg sometime next spring, about the time we both celebrate our birthdays.
But as I was driving away from the appliance dealers, I found myself thinking, "Well, dammit. If I had the luck to win one of the prizes, why couldn't it have been the $10,000 kitchen makeover? I could have done a lot of good in the way of new appliances and a decent floor and countertops and some new lighting with that kind of dough, even if the cabinets and my adorable faux finish paint job are just fine. Why couldn't my luck just pushed me a little way further over? Answer me that, hmm?"
But instead, I had to win a lousy free hotel accommodation certificate. Sheesh.
The other prize was one of three iPhones.
Well, I console myself, I don't want to switch over to AT&T anyway.
Yeah, but I could have sold the thing on eBay and made some cash!
Shut up, kid, and be grateful! You and Frieda* are going to go to Williamsburg in the spring and you're going to look at antique buildings and pretty gardens and you're going to enjoy it all very, very much!
So there. And stop being a sore winner!
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*Made-up name
2 comments:
If there were 100 raffle tickets and I bought 99 of them, the one I didn't buy would be the winner! LOL
Lucky you. I hope you enjoy your trip. It's a lovely town.
Thank you. I was back in the store yesterday, and asked how many free hotel stay vouchers were being awarded. Oh, up in the tens of thousands! It seems to be a promotion being offered to independent dealers nationwide to bring in more customers.
But winning one is a good incentive to go.
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