Okay, we didn't win a car. It's just, every time I get a really great deal on something, I hear Bob Barker's prize guy's voice in my head. We actually just bought a new microwave.
We had two microwaves. They both broke. One was an over-the-range microwave that broke a few months after we moved into our house. The timer and fan worked, but it just stopped heating one day. The other was the countertop microwave we already had that we used when the first one broke. A couple weeks ago, it started sparking when we put food in it, and sometimes when you opened the door, it let out smoke and smelled like weird burning electricity. In order to avoid blowing up our house, we stopped using it.
When our second microwave went out of commission, I started doing some research. And we found a new over-the-range microwave! For only $250! (which is a lot for a microwave, but really good for an over-the-range model. They're usually closer to $500.) Home Depot carried the one we wanted - for $228! And then, when I called to see if they had it in stock, I learned they were having a "Black Friday all month on appliances" deal, and it was only $199! I had to do some griping (the advertised price - 199 - was not how it was labelled - 249 - was not how it was ringing up - 228), and it took us probably 20 minutes to check out, but we got it for the price we wanted. Joel doesn't love when I argue over prices at the store, but man, can it pay off!
Moral of the story: You don't get what you want unless you ask for it. Also, you can [almost] always find a good deal if you look hard enough and are patient.
We now are the proud owners of a microwave that heats food and doesn't threaten to blow up, we didn't have to pay a fortune for it, and things are lovely.
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“Amazing! Amazing! This is just like magic!”
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
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I learned the importance of this lesson many years ago when in Washington, DC, with Eric. We both wanted to see the capital, so we got some tickets and started wandering around. We got lost from the group we were in, and were stopped by a security guard. This was AFTER 9/11, so you can imagine that security was pretty tight. We were being ushered out of the building by said guard when Eric said something like, "Could you show us around in here?" The guard stopped and thought a second and said, "Sure. Come on." He showed us a whole bunch of stuff that no one ever gets to see, including the crypt where they were going to bury Washington. He told us all kinds of stories about the building and I've never had a better education about the rotunda. When it was all over, Eric looked at me and said, "You'll never know if you don't ask." I've never forgotten that lesson.
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