I’m Living A Lie

Yes, I write about fictional towns and people in my mystery novels, but it turns out that my life is fiction, too. At least according to the people at UPS.

A week ago I ordered a toothbar for my tractor’s loader bucket. They are steel “teeth” that bolt onto the bottom edge of the bucket and help when digging or clearing brush and a dozen other chores. Apparently something went wrong and they were shipped to our old address in Florida, which is still the billing address for my credit card, even though I gave the company our delivery address here in Alabama.

They were supposed to be delivered yesterday, and I tried to contact UPS to arrange to have them shipped here instead, even if I had to pay another shipping fee. But when I did, I got a response that I was asking for them to be sent to an invalid address. Huh?

I double-checked to be sure I had entered the correct address, and this time the response was that there is no Salem Road in Gordo, Alabama. I replied that there indeed is, but they would not accept my word for that, even when I pointed out that UPS delivers to us at that address quite often, including that very day. But what the hell do I know, right? Nothing I could do was going to change their minds.

Finally giving up in frustration, I contacted our neighbor and friend Jesse Bolton down there and asked him to pick up the package for me. It weighs 55 pounds and the original shipping cost was $87, so Jesse will hold onto it until we go down to Florida for Terry’s next appointment at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville.

And finally, here’s a chuckle to start your day from the collection of funny signs we see in our travels and that our readers share with us.

Today is your last chance to enter our latest Free Drawing. This week’s prize is an RV camping journal donated by Barbara House. Barbara makes several variations of these, and they all have pages where you can list the date, weather, where you traveled to and from that day, beginning and ending mileage, campground information including amenities at RV sites, a place for campground reviews, room to record activities, people met along the way, reminders of places to see and things to do the next time you’re in the area, and a page for notes for each day.

To enter, click on this Free Drawing link or the tab at the top of this page and enter your name (first and last) in the comments section at the bottom of that page (not this one). Only one entry per person per drawing please, and you must enter with your real name. To prevent spam or multiple entries, the names of cartoon or movie characters are not allowed. The winner will be drawn this evening. Note: Due to the high shipping cost of printed books and Amazon restrictions on e-books to foreign countries, only entries with US addresses and e-mail addresses are allowed.

Thought For The Day – Sometimes you have to let go of the picture you thought life would be like and learn to find joy in the life you are living.