Up came two or three places which carried the stuff, all for a few pounds less than I had paid at Tunbridge Wells and one of which was Waitrose. Click and collect from their store at Epsom was clearly the way forward.
Trundle through the system, much slower than usual, through to the point where one's card supplier is processing the payment. Freeze one. Deepest apologies but please try again.
Trundle through the system, somewhat faster this time, through to the point where one's card supplier is processing the payment. Freeze two, not quite the same as the first. But the same deepest apologies but please try again.
Getting a bit irritated at this point, so try Paypal. With the same result.
Take a break and then, deciding that I really do want the stuff, I try doing it by phone. Half way through this transaction, I realise that I am trying to buy Riesling rather than Gewürztraminer. I had been wondering why the year was different, but that had not been enough to bring the mistake out into the open, the two labels being very nearly identical and with the Riesling bit somehow being a lot less distinctive than the Rolly Gassmann bit. Abort transaction to await developments.
The first of which was an email, more or less immediately, from Paypal saying that a transaction with Waitrose was in progress.
The following morning there were no signs of life on my bank account, but I did have no less than two emails from Waitrose telling me that my order was wending it way through to Epsom. Please stand by with the two long reference numbers and your photo id.
But shortly before I set off, a third email arrived from Waitrose telling me that something had gone wrong with the payment and perhaps I would like to phone them up. Which I did. On this occasion, despite two phone calls and three attempts, the payment was declined by my credit card provider and was reduced to using my debit card, from the same provider as it happens. While the man from Waitrose had to make two calls to Epsom, one to block the collection and another to unblock it.
Take a break and then tackle my card provider. Try telling them what has happened but they have their set patter about how they are taking care of your money sir and they are not really interested in my story. Nevertheless, they do know what they are doing and the second person that I speaks to announces that all is well and my card is cleared for action again. Which does indeed seem to be the case as I subsequently used it with Abebooks without generating any unpleasant emails.
And now I could set off to Epsom clutching my long reference numbers, my photo id (otherwise my older person's bus pass) and the carrying contraption noticed at reference 2, as I find carrying the sort of box involved here for a mile or so quite hard work otherwise.
The man at customer services types in one of my long reference numbers to his machine and I settle down to wait. About ten minutes later he is back with a very large box and I proffer my photo id. The lady colleague (or perhaps partner) looks at it very dubiously, then remembers that she has already had at least two phone calls about me and decides to let it go. (As it happens, I did have my passport on me, just in case).
Off to Wetherspoon's to celebrate my purchase with a spot of their Villa Maria. After which I discover that the large box is too large for my contraption's rope and some sort of jury rig is needed. But a lot better than carrying the box in the ordinary way and I get home OK - to discover that inside the very large Waitrose box we have a rather smaller box from Berry Bros., the off-license in St. James's with whom I do occasional business.
Later that evening we decided that we liked the 2013 Riesling well enough and the 2016 Gewürztraminer can wait, Berry Bros. or not. And we remembered that one can pay a good deal more for a really good Riesling. See, for example, reference 3.
All of which shows that even the best kept computer systems can behave badly sometimes.
PS: as it happened, Paypal sent me my monthly (or whatever) statement this morning. No further trace of the Waitrose transaction there.
Reference 1: http://psmv4.blogspot.com/2018/12/trolley-hunt-2.html.
Reference 2: https://psmv2.blogspot.com/2015/10/removal-day.html.
Reference 3: https://psmv3.blogspot.com/2018/08/premier-league.html.
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