A couple of internet friends and I are busily engaged in becoming "ladies of a certain age with certain attitudes. " If Towanda the Magnificent and the character Dianne with her cane in the BBC series "Waiting for Death" or maybe it's "Waiting for God" mean nothing to you, cease reading at this point and go find something more productive to do.

Yesterday, the printer needed a new cartridge so I ran over to Office Max. Came home with the cartridgy only to discover that I had picked up a color cartridge instead of a black. Since it turned out that the printer actually needed both this was not a major issue and I turned around and went back over to Office Max.

After searching through all the printer cartridges for black, looking vainly around the store for help and then perusing the catalog so see which substitutes I could use, I finally found the appropriate black cartridge.

I went up to the only manned double sided check out desk a placed my purchase on the right left hand counter. The clerk, who had watched me approach while standing exactly in the middle between the two counters, told me that he was working on the right hand counter and would I please move around to the other side. Somewhat taken aback I complied. He proceeded to ring up my purchase and pointed out the card scanner, rather shakily situatied on an empty cardboard box. The screen was barely lit and very hard to see so it took me several attempts to run the card through. And of course it was set up so that card went through in a totally different direction and orientation than any other previous purchase. Which brings up another point. Why can't they standardize the card readers so you always push the same button to indicate a credit card purchase and run the card through the same way?

Never mind..

So after several tries I got the card to read, the the clerk asked me to approve the sale. Again I peered futiley at the very barely there images trying to find the yes or agree or ok point to touch with the electronic pen. The clerk pointed to the upper right corner and said I think it's here, so he obviously couldn't read it either. More mechanical whirrings and then he said you have to sign it so I scribbled in the general area he indicated, which recorded only half of the signature so that took several tries.

Finally the purchase was complete. I commented that the screen was very hard to read and he said "yes, it's broken. That one there (pointing behind him to the screen on the other counter) works perfectly. Have a nice daÿ,"and handed me my purchase.

I swear if I had had a cane, bodily damage would have been done!