Batteries, batteries...I've just discovered a brand-new form of procrastination...buying batteries online. A certain daughter was holding her digital camera, well, it was hanging by its leash from her wrist, and when she raised it to take a photo of another of her socially adroit friends, the camera didn't work...and, perplexed, she noted that the battery was missing! Searching the area was futile...and so she appealed to her mother to replace the battery, NOW, since, while she refuses to be in any photos of MINE, even of the most slyly candid type (I have two-hundred fifty "Show Me the Hand" photos to prove it), she cannot go a DAY without a dozen photos of herself taken in the time-honored "extend-the-arm, press-the-button" portraiture style.
And so I enter the wonderful procrastination world of, as Google Search knows too well, "buy Cannon Camera batteries". This after walking into a Kit's camera and finding out that their off-brand Quanteray model was...FIFTY DOLLARS. For the battery, not the camera. Not an Eveready; no, the only one who "takes a lickin'" here is the purchaser.
So, there's Duracell.com, that offers their name-brand battery for $36. with an online 10% off coupon, no tax, and no shipping. But then...I find Batteries.com. THEY have their own house-brand for...do I DARE? TWELVE DOLLARS, THIRTY-FIVE CENTS. The Google coupon for ushering me there says an additional 15% off PLUS free shipping! Do I DARE?
I discuss the ponderous matter with my husband, who, as you may know, has absolutely NOTHING else to do. "It's a BATTERY, for G'd's sake!" he says, exasperated. "It's nothing important! Either the thing works or it doesn't!" OK, there goes Duracell. Hello, Batteries.com. Oh look, they also have watch batteries! Wouldn't it be fun for once to REPLACE my watch battery instead of just buying a new watch (for the same price as a store battery?) I've got a drawer-full of cute little watches with names like "Mudd" (what my name is for choosing it) and "Sweet 16" which, in minutes, is about how long their batteries lasted. But how do I know which ones to buy? And how to change it? Aha. A neat little "tutorial" on how to change a watch battery. This has been quite a bonus for my procrastination.
I type in my credit card number, letting the screen say 'standard shipping, $3.95," wise that on the next page will be the place for my Google coupon. Next page: "Click to confirm." NOOOO! Where do I write in my coupon, and get my 15% and free shipping??? So I write them a "help" email to ask, and meanwhile, another day goes by wherein my daughter is self-portraitless.
And I have successfully wiled away the evening in Internet bliss. At least it charged MY batteries.
Great post...though I never thought of online battery shopping as exhilarating before. But if it gets you (and your various hardware) going, good for you!
ReplyDeleteohhhh, my -- you are the absolute Pinnacle of Pulchritudinous Procrastination, ma'am...online battery buying, what next? And yet, who else takes the time to blog about it? And now we, too, your adoring public, are privy to resources about which we would otherwise have been grossly ignorant, perish the thought, and we should be paying you a commission for saving us money on batteries (and we're not talking petty pennies, here -- can't believe those prices). Good job, Ms."D"Light! However, now let me tell you what was told to me by a professional watch repair person: don't try to change your watch battery yourself, especially on expensive models, because the intricate innards of said timepieces are EXTREMELY sensitive to various pressures and amateur fiddling could possibly result in permanent damage. Now comes the question: was he telling me this to justify the $10 he was charging me to change my watch battery? Dunno. Just thought I'd pass that along -- and now I shall await and "watch" for the denouement of your online sojourning ...
ReplyDeleteOh, my adoring public! How I love your comments! Little do you know...but I ended up NOT buying at batteries.com but bought a new camera and an expensive, fancy battery at Abe's of Maine! This internet shopping can surely be fun...and I'm not about to change my 25 kaput watch batteries, don't worry--but if I DID want to, and botched it, well, they're $7 watches! Cute, though! Like sj and doubletee!
ReplyDeleteAre you saying that I'm only worth $7? I'd have thought at least $10!
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