Okay... I'll be the first to admit.  I go to "Home Improvement" stores because I'm incompetent.  I need direction.  I need someone to tell me, "you need this", "buy this to fix that".   But unfortunately, the people that work at these stores seem to be even more incompetent than me. 

It's like the blind leading the blind. Or more appropriately, the deaf, mute & blind, leading someone who just needs glasses for reading.  Nobody can seem to answer the simplest of questions I have about their products.  I read online, "product available at your local store".  Then I get there and they tell me, "it's only available by special order". 

So get this...If I order it myself online, like I should have originally done, there's free shipping and installation.  If they special order it to the store, there's no set up or delivery included.  PLUS they charge you more because they had to "special order" it.  HUH?????? 

We're talking about a basic appliance; a dish washer in this case.  Then there was the door.  My wife and I decided to get fancy.  We want a new front door and storm door.  So naturally we go to the home improvement store to buy it, so we don't have to wait around on delivery.  We can just buy it, put it in the back of the truck and roll. 

Not so fast. 

The door we found that we wanted....They don't have...Period.  They've got the display door.  But every one of the "team members" that work for the store are in agreement that they don't actually carry that door. 

According to them, I was the 19th person in a week that tried to buy the door.  And I suppose the 19th person to walk away angry and disappointed.  The orange smocked workers couldn't seem to really explain why they don't carry the door and what the door is actually doing in their store.  Or even who to talk to about getting the door.  

It's not even available by "special order", despite the fact that there's a huge sign on the display door that says "IN STOCK".  The storm door we wanted was in stock, but only in 32" or 36"...Instead of the 32"-34"-36" choices that were listed on the display. 

As luck would have it, our house was built in 1902 and a 34" would be required.  So again, we get the "special order" line....So we decide to hold off on the storm door and just inquire more about the first door we wanted.  So we asked the workers if they could call someone about getting the door in for us and nobody knew who to call themselves? 

I asked them if in fact I should just call the store where the workers wear the blue smocks instead.  They didn't really seem to care.  You know why?  Because they don't.    They make a minimal wage and couldn't care less about the products.  They just don't wanna get their cable and lights turned off.  

When pressed about why they couldn't help us spend $1,000 at their store...They got irritated and seemed put out that we actually wanted to buy anything.    These are people that are supposed to be helping you build things and plan for do-it-yourself home projects.  Wow.  When it comes to that, I think I'll buy some old Bob Vila books instead.  I'll also stick to buying things on the internet, local economy be damned.

More From KLUB Tejano 106.9