Besides the fact that the internet is for porn.
So, to put it mildly, Mom and Dad gave us an obscene amount of Amazon gift certificates for xmas. That, coupled with Pam and Tony giving me the majority of things that I would have used the gift certificate for (they had already given us our xmas presents as well), meant that I suddenly had an obscene amount of money and no preconceived ideas of what to spend it on.
So we decided to buy a bookshelf. Because that's what you do when you have a lot of books, and ran out of shelf space for them about 100 titles ago.
Yup.
...
...
So...
We don't have a bookshelf. Because that's what happens when you buy furniture off the internet.
To be fair, Amazon is not at fault for any reason, other than by choosing to contract with what might possibly be the worst delivery company in the world. Amazon has already refunded our (Mom and Dad's) money onto the gift certificate. So they've made good, at least.
A week or so after I ordered the bookshelf, Amazon sent me an email saying it had dispatched, and was going to be delivered by HDNL (Home Delivery Network). Thursday, a couple of days after the email, I received a letter from HDNL through the post (yes, a delivery company mailed me something via Royal Mail. I don't get it either). This letter informed me that the bookcase would be delivered on Friday between 7am and 10am and required a signature, so Adam and I made plans to ensure that we would be available then.
At 3:45pm I rang HDNL to ask why my package hadn't been delivered. I was informed that the warehouse had placed a hold on my delivery because--and I really wish I were joking--it was mistakenly sent to a warehouse for 2-man delivery teams. Because it (might/probably) weighs under 35 kilos, it should have gone to a 1-man delivery warehouse.
Yes, they put a hold on my bookcase because they had more people to deliver it than necessary.
I was then told to call a different number, one that wasn't free, put in a bogus confirmation number, and then explain my problem to those people. I was so confused and angry that I did not press the issue unduly before hanging up (I did not, however, call the not-free number to the sister company).
Monday afternoon I called HDNL again asking about my package. This time, however, I was informed that the order had been cancelled. Not by me, not by Amazon, but by HDNL, a third party contracted to deliver my package, which they did not do. Instead, they broke it. And cancelled my order. Because they broke it.
HDNL apologized. Like that helped. Or seemed particularly sincere.
So I called Amazon. I demanded my money back and the order cancelled. I also asked that Amazon remove HDNL from their list of shippers. Sadly, that last request will most likely go unfulfilled.
This is not the first time I've had problems with HDNL. When we were living in Titanic, they "attempted delivery" one afternoon about 4:45 (I was home all day, waiting for the delivery, as non-Royal Mail couriers couldn't get into the building to leave notes), but somehow, 12 minutes after this "attempted delivery" the package was returned to the depot in Leeds. For those with a sketchy knowledge of Yorkshire geography, Leeds is, in non-rush hour traffic, about half an hour away.
So we've still got too many books and not enough shelf space. And I've still got a lot of money on the gift certificate. This isn't the end of the world by any stretch, but a bookcase would have been nice. It might even have tied the room together.
