Re-telling Retail

It was the sort of mini-crisis that tends to strike at the wrong moment. The end of the week had me locked indoors, fully occupied with the finalisation of a complex proposal document. I left my apartment only on Sunday, to go to the Cathedral in the morning and later, to watch the charity fund-raising runners.

My nice, chunky leather wallet

On Monday I started tidying the place up and sorting out my packing for my trip to visit the family in Hong Kong. 

Such an activity seems to be full of "senior moments" as I panic to locate my travel insurance or my passport or, as yesterday, to find my wallet.

Now, it's not the first time I have lost a wallet, but they tend to reappear in an hour or two. This very wallet disappeared in Mauritius only to reappear a day later, but not before I had rung the alarm bells and stopped my credit and debit cards. Very annoying.

In an uncharacteristic display of common sense, I usually carry a spare card separately, so on such an occasion there will be no real crisis, just the embarrassment of having made a big fuss over what turned out to be no problem at all. 

A choice of men's leather wallets on Amazon

This time was different. I didn't find it and I still haven't found it. Apart from the loss of bank cards and personal documents, there was something of an additional problem: I needed something to put stuff in! I couldn't visit my daughter in Hong Kong and carry my HK Dollars around in the plastic envelope from the foreign exchange bureau. The alternative option of using an old wallet that I found at the back of a drawer was not practical, as that one was literally falling apart.

Fortunately, even at 9.30 in the evening, retailing has changed.

I logged on to Amazon and picked the twin-brother of the nice, chunky wallet that I have mislaid, selecting the dark brown "distressed" finish instead of tan, just in case the missing wallet reappeared.

I paid £3.95 for "1-day delivery" more in hope than confidence and went to bed, lying awake and mentally retracing my steps over the last 5 days. I calculated that I had definitely pulled the wallet out of my pocket last Wednesday, when I was shopping in the market, and I vowed to retrace my steps in the morning. But before I left the house to head down-town at 8am this morning, I booted up the computer and found an email from Amazon. I followed the link to "my orders" on the website.

It had already arrived in Lincoln

Amazing! My wallet reached Birmingham by midnight and was in Lincoln before seven in the morning. 

I hurried off to the market, but alas, my lost wallet had not been handed in. I drew out some cash with the debit card of my second current account, then headed back uphill to get on with my sorting, cleaning and packing

When I returned to the house, I found another email, this time with an update advising me that my new wallet was scheduled for delivery, later the same afternoon .

Retailing has changed dramatically. 

When I look at my credit card record, I realise that I don't use shops much any longer. I buy my clothes on-line, avoiding the embarrassing hunt for anything in my size - from footwear to shirts. 

I do my bulk  supermarket shopping every couple of months; I buy fresh produce from the market, and milk etc. from the corner shop. All my computer needs - ink, paper, labels and so forth, come off the internet and I even upgraded my phone on-line (which was another next-day delivery.) 

But I must procrastinate no longer, and even though I know I'll find the missing item within minutes of blocking my credit and debit card, I know it's the sensible thing to do. I just don't like feeling so incompetent - and knowing all of this is almost certainly age-related. 

Sad, very sad.

I still haven't found my wallet, but my new wallet was delivered, as promised, at 4.30pm.