so
we went to Home Depot
by bus
*yippie*
and got everything we needed to build ourselves a custom work-table
*cheers*
&i am not one to review things
especially name-branded things
for free
of my own volition
but we had a really great experience/day
yesterday
despite the job
(we requested two consecutive days off
and we got them
but then my backup got sick
[par for the course]
and she's leaving next week
so this was literally my last chance to get two consecutive days off
cause she's leaving
and i will not express my feelings about the situation
at this time)
and so i had to go into the job [end note]
cause i'ma fucking manager!
*booooooooooooooooo*
nevertheless
we (the bodybuddy/lifemate&i)
hopped on the bus around the time that we needed to catch it
in order to arrive at Home Depot right at opening
lol
seriously tho
anyway
at the beginning of every new year
the bodybuddy/lifemate excitedly
(he's literally poring over our W-2s
rn
after exclaiming to me earlier
that mine had finally arrived)
makes this really
(boring-)
interesting slideshow about our previous fiscal year
and presents it to me
like i'm the fucking CEO of some-fucking company
cause i am
lol
seriously tho
anyway
we are at a certain point in our personal financial growth/situation
when it is also a good time to start another business
when considering
the timeline of your average business
requiring about two years before being profitable
etc., etc., &c.
and taxes
lol
and so
we went to Home Depot
to buy all the stuff we need to build a work-table
upon which i can begin designing the clothes
for my future as a designer of things that are wearable
it's like i said, we arrived as early as we could, and so, the very first points awarded to this review were given before we even arrived. when we saw online that the place opened at 5AM(!) we were thrilled. any business that opens before SIX is a winner, in our book, lol.
we arrived at five, sharp, and the first thing we needed to do was figure out if we could even accomplish what we were hoping we could accomplished based off what we could learn from reading the Home Depot website, and here's a shortlist of what we needed to be able to do there, which, like i said, we were led to believe was possible:
- buy lumber
- have lumber cut into various lengths
- have cut-up lumber delivered
- we are not contractors, just regular folks
we asked one of the first employees (genz) we saw about what we were trying to do, and he directed us to the "PRO" Customer Service area at the front of the store. there, another employee (genx) said that we needed to talk to regular Customer Service at the other end of the store, cause we are not contractors (hence the "PRO"). once we arrived at the regular Customer Service area another employee (genx) confirmed that everything we wanted to accomplish IS possible, and that we could return right to her once we had all of our lumber cut up.
we were thrilled, and any anxiety i had about this particular errand-run started to dissipate, but then, we found another employee (genz) who could do the cutting up of the lumber, and he confirmed for us what i had already learned after reading the sign stating the rules, which were as follows:
- No Project Cutting
- No Cuts Under 12 Inches
we easily found all of the pieces of lumber that we had imagined for our design, and we easily helped ourselves to everything as we loaded up a trolley-cart thingy, and we loaded up the number of pieces that we needed according to their "No Cut Under 12 Inches" rule, which meant that we needed to buy more pieces cause each piece could essentially only be cut once lest there only be four inches leftover! but seriously, i had no problem with the policy. i am a student of sculpture, and wood-cutting tools ought not be tested, and for such a public-facing business, there's no need to risk some kid getting whacked in the nut-sack by a flung piece of wood, in front of a customer, lol.
once we were done fishing for our wood, we found yet another employee (genz), and we explained all the various lengths that we needed. he was a very competent-seeming kid, except that he didn't put on any safety goggles, and he did the thing that we knew he could not do, and he cut two lengths out of one piece and left a shorter-than-twelve-inch piece. i gasped a little gasp and looked at the bodybuddy/lifemate, he just, i inhale, yea, the bodybuddy/lifemate smirks.
needless to say, we bought too many pieces, now have twice as many lengths of a specific length than we need, but whatever. we were trying to be good customers and follow the rules. we did not ask the kid to break the rules, just fyi. we explained the measurements we needed and assumed that he knew the rules, etc.
*sigh*
once done with the lumber portion of all of this, we headed straight back to the Customer Service area at the front of the store, and we were ushered in by yet another employee (genz) who was adorable and helpful. we paid and set up our delivery, and then grabbed a regular-wagon and started shopping for all of the other stuff.
during this "other stuff" journey, we encountered two young women employees (genz) who were very helpful, albeit stand-offish, when i grabbed the last four casters in the size/shape/style that we needed, but i needed five. i asked the two young women employees if they had more, and one of them scanned the product in my hand, but her device was going too slow, so the other one scanned the product and voila! there was another box of the item at the top of the shelving above the stocked product. i was thrilled, and they looked at me like i looked so happy, as if that was weird, lol. but i was that happy.
along the way another adorable employee (genz) recommended a power drill and bits, and then later, when we were asking yet another employee (genx) where we could find regular (not construction) sand paper, she only thought she knew where it was, but then the adorable employee who recommended the power drill was standing right behind us and shouted, "Aisle 10."
we arrived at 5AM
and by 7:30AM
we had found our lumber
had it cut up
bought it and set up delivery
shopped for everything else we needed
and checked out for a second time
this time at regular check out
and $640.01 (both receipts totaled) later
we were back on the bus with the stuff we bought that wasn't lumber
and we were very happy people
because one of the things that we have done
since the beginning of our life
together
is
make plans &execute them
we've done it a lot
and for a lot of various reasons
toward a lot of various ends
with a lot of various means
and
speaking for the both of us here
i can confidently say that this
making plans &executing them
is one of our favorite things to do
together
it is our Number One pastime
tote foesh
*big sigh*
and a few hours after arriving home
we were stuffing ourselves with a fresh pot of 불고기 전골
*drool*
 |
| Home Depot Day |
[end note] here's the crazy part
when the bodybuddy/lifemate presented his financial presentation this year for last year, we realized that we have finally reached Max Q, which, in the financial freedom lingo that the two of us use, together, with each other, Max Q, for financial freedom, is the point at which you are probably working two (nearly) full-time jobs. you are still tied to your job, cause the financial footing is not firm; it's a bit wobbly, still, and so, job security is nice, but also, you might be starting a business, and that business, as it starts to require more of your time, will essentially force you into this state of perpetual jobbing/working ... Max Q.
and then, arrives the sweet release of freedom, when you quit your dreadful job for either your own business or retirement, when the train has left the station, and you are literally orbiting the planet, earning returns at a rate faster than you can spend, lol.
this is where i am, right now.
facing my Max Q.
my only hope is that i can survive the weight of my own ambition.