I was in JC Penneys last week in their curtain department and had already done my on-line shopping ahead of time so I was aware of the prices. I wanted to see the curtain panels in person before buying on-line. The price was higher in the store and when I discussed that with the saleswoman she said she would honor the on-line price. I then also told her that I had received an email that morning for an extra 20% off anything on-line that was only good between 7am-11am. I was in the store at 10:20am and she said she would also honor that!!! It doesn't hurt to ask...the only risk is to be told "no" and have to go home and place the order on-line. Instant gratification is SO sweet!

I'm actually surprised this doesn't happen more often. I have only been burnt one time ordering anything, and it was before the inet stores were mainstream and it was a mail order made through advertising in legitimate gardening mags. I paid up front, and it was to a legitimate "name" I knew professionally and the check was cashed immediately. And the business number was always on an answering machine and the calls never returned, the merchandise never came, and the money never returned. I pursued it through some government agencies I knew that particular business to be governed by. Yep, the business had new owners, they had quality problems and were inexperienced, and they just got in way over their heads. They had no business cashing checks for new orders, however when they knew darned good and well they would not be filling them. It was through the mail, across state lines, and if I had pursued it any further, would have been nasty for them, I'm sure. The funny thing is, one of the fairly prominent gardening mags several years later actually listed them as a source for certain kinds of material. LOL. So, I no longer bought that magazine, because those articles could not have been written by anyone current in that industry. I have ordered material of all sorts from many places in the world over the inet. It's a wonderful alternative to being locked into the few box stores I won't shop at who are dominating many rural areas. Yes, I am careful from whom I order, and often make sure they've had references from friends first or are companies I already know and trust. It's also a great equalizer for home based businesses, in that they can compete against the 'giants' on equal footing since they don't have to maintain a billion dollars worth of store fronts and overhead. One of these days, down the line, I think they'll be more highly regulated, and until that time, one just has to be careful.

Harry & David's have these delicious Royal Riviera pears. For $29.95 you get 9 of the biggest, juiciest pears. I can't even describe how incredibly sweet they are. They're beautiful, too with a reddish blush on them. I hope we get some again this year. They are huge so nine pears goes a long way. They have free shipping right now, too. At least in the catalog. Hey, they're grown and shipped from the US, too! And, if you prefer, they'll ship direct to the giftee (is that a word?). No, I don't work for them--lol!

Yes Lucillle that is a consideration. That's a 20 mile round trip and probably a special trip at that so you need to factor in driving expense too. A friend of mine used one of the high-end stores in the area to deliver her groceries. They'd put things away, in refrigerator, freezer and cupboards so there was no carrying at all. She loved it. She hated going to the store at all so it was worth it to her. But they stopped delivering to her area. She was one unhappy gal when that happened! There was also a company called Simon Delivers who delivered things in the area. I thought about using them but never did. They were bought out by Coborn's and they're a very good store so I wouldn't hesitate to use them if the need should arise but at this point I still prefer to pick out my own stuff.