You-Read-It-Here-First

[jabailo]

One of the funniest classic David Letterman filmed bits is "Just Bulbs..." He starts off looking for a lamp and discovers that there are stores in Lower Manhattan called "Just Lamps". Amazed as the specificity of these retail businesses, he jokingly asks whether they sell light bulbs...the proprietor placidly responds, "No, you should look for those at a place called Just Bulbs". Cut to store with sign saying "Just Bulbs".

Today, I went to Home Depot in search of insulation for my portable air conditioner. These are units that sit inside your apartment or home and have a 6 inch exhaust hose to do the heat exchange. So, you have to open a window or door 6" wide to put the hose out. With my unit, they gave me piece of foam rubber to act as a stopgap to fill the open crack in the window, but it wasn't long enough for a sliding door -- which is where I want to put the hose. I bought a sample of the material to Home Depot, and the Helper Guy looked at it dubiously and said that I probably wanted to go down to a place called Foam Rubber City. How hard not to break a smile...then I asked whether they had something that could do the job just as well and thankfully he pointed me to roll of mylar coated bubble wrap (essentially) that will do quite nicely.

Similar experience a few weeks ago, when bolt holding my bicycle seat to the post broke. It was a 8mm x 50mm bolt. Several places had the 8mm width but the length was unusually. At McLendon Hardware, they had 8mm x 40mm, but when I asked about 50mm long, the girl said that these "could not fit in the boxes in the rack". I see...good reason, I guess.

However, along my search, someone pointed me to "High Tension Bolt and Nut" located just a few miles from me in downtown Kent. Being near a Boeing plant, it shouldn't have surprised me, and the store was so big and well stocked that I felt obligated to buy two of the bolts...highest quality...for 88 cents a piece. (Perhaps I set off some financial detectors at the G.A.O. What? He paid 88 cents for those bolts? They normally bill them for $500 apiece!!).

So, despite globalism and Amazon, its good to see that in the world of bricks and mortar, there is some detail, some focus, some specificity left...local stores that do one thing. And do it well.

[jabailo]

On inspection of the Foam Rubber City site (http://www.foamrubbercity.com/closed_cell_foam.htm ) turns out they sell exactly the product I was looking for!

What seems like comedy to my super-connected mind, is just ordinary good advice...