Streamlining Finances & Related

[ToomuchStuff]

Thread jack:

The biggest time saver lately is the turbo oven I bought for the counter top. It is so small I don't bother to preheat the oven.

Is this your first one? If so, give a review please, after using it a bit. If not, how long did you get out of the last one? (flaws verses dependability/aka why did you get rid of it) I remember seeing these on infomercials, years ago, and by that time in my life, any infomercial item, was a "bad purchase". As a single person, I think these would make sense to me and I am also planning at some future point, a kitchen remodel (DIY one) and wonder about using one during it.
Just hoping to find one at a garage sale.

back on thread....

There is a lot people buy online, that I just don't get. From shoes (how do you know they fit and feel comfortable?) to groceries (checking expiration dates to how it is handled on the way to you, etc), I am leery. Efficiency has been a part of my life for so long, from planning routes (and all the shopping I could get done between point a and b with no extra trips), that I have gotten in trouble at work. (inefficiency gives others something to do/correct, which I don't understand)
Streamlining is a way of life.

[Blackdog Lin]

Toomuchstuff: I can touch on internet shopping for you - you mentioned shoes. Well, Zappos is the bomb for those of us with hard-to-fit feet.

I have small feet with bunions, so need a woman's size 6W. And my feet hurt unless I have a good pair of supportive shoes. Even in the big-city shoe stores, if I'm in the market for say a pair of white sneakers, they MAY have 2 choices in my size, usually 1, and in my rural area, forgettaboutit. So the only way to get a perfect pair of shoes is to spend 2-3 days perusing Zappos, looking at styles and reading reviews, then adding possibilities to my favorites list, and then weeding it down to my first choice. And then ordering.

Zappos prices are not out of line with what retail stores charge for good name brands. Free shipping. They show up within 2 days. And then I wear the shoes in the house for 2-3 hours in clean conditions (I did this at work when I was still in the workforce, and it's easy enough to put grocery bags over the shoes for walking around - though you look really silly!). This tells me if there are any problems with the toe-fit or the support or if I just hate the style. And if they're not right, I send them back. And then I just have to go back online, tell them the shoes are coming back, print out a label FOR FREE SHIPPING BACK, they credit my account, and I decide on my second choice.

I have never had my first choice work, and once had to be on my 4th choice before I had the shoes I needed, but ZAPPOS DOESN'T CARE. They still offer me my free shipping both ways and the selection and customer service is too excellent.

So depending on the internet company you are using.....sometimes internet shopping is the only (no, best!) way to go.