A Picture’s Worth A Thousand Words
There’s something that happens multiple times each day in an Ace Hardware store. Something that has happened for years and keeps on happening. Something that is preventable. This something is the event where husbands send their wives to the store to get something they need for their project.
Guys, if you’re doing this just to get your wife out of your way for a bit, we get it. Keep on sending her in to get a standard faucet stem or a regular paint brush or a normal bolt. We won’t tell. But, if you’re actually sending her to get something you actually need, you’ve got to give her more information.
When anyone comes in and asks our helpful folks for assistance with their project, we’re going to have some questions to make sure we get the right item for you. What length? What diameter? Clear or white? Angled or straight? Flexible or rigid? Don’t let this confuse you or keep you from asking, we’ll also ask questions about what the project is, and we can give you advice and likely get you the right part based on that.
There’s one thing you can do that will save you time, help our helpful folks and make your wife happy: Take a picture! Before you send your wife in, grab her hand-held computing device with built-in camera (by the way, did you know you can make phone calls on these! Yes – really!) and take a few quick shots of what you’re working on so she can show us. That’s the easiest way to get the idea across, and get her back to your project with the right things.
I’ve never quite understood this anyway. Wives don’t send husbands to stores. Here’s one reason why. My friend’s wife once sent him to the store to get chocolate chips for a desert she was in the middle of baking. He went to the candy aisle of one store. No chocolate chips. Odd, but oh well. He drove to another store. Went to the candy aisle. No chocolate chips. Odd. Drove to the third store. You guessed it, candy aisle, no chocolate chips. Well this time he asked for help. There they were, chocolate chips in the baking aisle. The baking aisle? What’s this? He comes home and is just amazed that grocery stores have aisles with flour and sugar and stuff in them for baking. He never knew this. Needless to say, he’s never heard the end of this.
This, of course, illustrates the fact that guys aren’t good at asking for help. Maybe that’s another reason we guys send our wives in for help. Maybe we’re just a bit too proud, or too stubborn to ask for help. Here at Ace Hardware, that is why we have the helpful hardware folks! Hey, a lot of us are guys too, we get it. We’re not likely to ask for help when we shop, so we’ll be more than glad to help you out, but give you all the credit for getting what you need yourself!
So, take those pictures, keep sending your wife in, keep working on your projects, we’ll keep helping you out!