What took two hours out of my life, involved my getting lost in a snow drift in the middle of nowhere, and is ultimately only the size of a postage stamp? This:
When I registered my Cybershot, I got a $20 coupon for the SonyStyle store. The coupon was about to expire, and I noticed that I could get a spare Memory Stick for less than any of the stores. So I paid on the website, and expected the thing to turn up.
Wednesday evening I came home to a Purolator delivery note. Catherine was in the house when they tried to deliver, but the courier didn’t make enough effort to actually check. When I called them to reschedule, I was dealt with someone who knew exactly how much of a mess of my day they could make by being wilfully stupid and obtuse, and used this knowledge to its fullest.
So in the end, I trogged out to the depot. This is hardly in a central location; Silver Star Boulevard is remote. It didn’t help that the street sign was missing if you were heading north from Finch Avenue East, as I was. So I ended up half-stuck in a snowdrift just south of McNicoll, plaintively calling Catherine from my mobile for directions. Sidewalks run out just north of Finch on Midland, you see. Also, Purolator’s customer service line shuts down before their depots do, so you’re stuck if you call between 8–9pm.
When I finally got to the depot, there was a huge line. It took about 20 minutes to finally get my package. This was a pretty sizeable box; it could easily have held a good-sized telephone directory. In it was about ten of those air pillow packaging things, and my tiny Memory Stick. It was, of course, ensconsed in one of those ridiculous PVC blister packs that weigh at least 5× the product inside.
I’m regretting that I scarfed a Harvey’s indigestiburger at Union station before setting out. Silver Star Boulevard’s one saving attribute is that it’s right in the Agincourt Chinese Restaurant Zone. I’m sure I could have had all the food I’d have wanted for about 2/3 the price of the processed muck I had.
Next time I’ll check before ordering if a company plans to use Purolator. If they do — see ya later! It’s not worth wasting 2½ hours of my life on again.
