One plumber suggested cutting away some concrete in order to get better access to the area and assess the condition of the catch; he estimated that the repair job would be no more than $1000.  The moment my mother heard the words "cut the concrete," she had decided to get a second opinion.  Another plumber who assessed the situation said that the catch was fine and that he could do everything in about three hours at a cost of $450.  This sounded a tad high to me as I thought the hourly fee for plumbers was in the range of $60-80 with a minimum charge of $60-150, not to mention that my mother is on a fixed income.

On Monday (August 28), I decided to drive out to her house and assess the situation myself (about 25 minutes to get there).  I'm no plumber, however, I used to install auto, house and business alarms with my dad (sometimes outside during the cold of winter -- I don't recommend it), and I believed that my skills in running and connecting wires would carry over well to running and connecting pipes.  There was a small access opening to the space under the tub through a closet; I was just able to get one of my hands in to feel around and manipulate stuff.  The space directly underneath the tub did not consist of concrete, it was dirt.  Using a small spade and a a weed remover, I was able to dig out enough dirt in order to uncover the catch pipe (about 20 minutes).  As I could not get my head into the opening to look directly at the pipe -- I did mention that it was a tight work area, yes? -- I used a mirror and a flashlight to view the catch.  It was fully intact and it looked fine.  I estimated that a plumber, who knew what he or she was doing, would be able to hook everything up in about 10-30 minutes.  It was at this point that I determined that the first plumber needed to work on his decision making (this sounds better than classifying someone as incompetent) and that the second plumber was attempting to rip off my mother (I believe that this is also a pleasant way of describing the second plumber considering the alternatives).

I thought that perhaps I could do the job myself, however, I had no clue as to which parts to purchase.  I knew that if I were to go to the Home Depot, I could likely find someone who could help me get the right parts and direct me in the proper installation procedures (though, in my experience, service at the Home Depot can sometimes be hard to find and of questionable value).  I did not consider going to the Home Depot, however, I told my mom to hang in there for twelve more hours and see if I could come up with another solution for her (i.e., me performing the repair); else to go with the lesser of the two evils as she did need to get the bath and shower working.

OurHouse.com to the rescue
In the morning, I cruised the Internet in search of online instruction for installing bath tub draining system.  My key word searches were not turning up any sites of assistance.  I checked the Home Depot, CornerHardware.com and OurHouse.com for directions on installing bath tub drain plumbing -- no luck.  I then decided to look at product pictures and see if I could figure out how to install everything based on the parts displayed.  I first went to CornerHardware; the site was too slow for me, so I moved on to OurHouse.com.  I was unable to find what I needed when using their category descriptors and following their associated links.  Then, it dawned on me that Amazon sells hardware (is this starting to sound like "and the Papa bear's bed was too hard, and the momma bear's bed was too soft, and the...").  I cruised the Amazon site and sure enough found "tub drain" packages for sale.

Alas, their product photos were too small for me to analyze in order to form enough certainty that I could indeed do the job right.  Even the "enlarged" product images were thumbnail sized; in addition, the product information listed was either zilch or minimal.  In many instances, the size of the pipes were not listed -- this is kind of key when doing plumbing (though 1 1/2 inch pipe is likely the most common size).  I was very surprised.  At least for tub drains, Amazon needs to significantly improve its product display and descriptions.  (Jeff, keep reading as I believe you will find the rest of this entry helpful.)

I returned to OurHouse.com with the key words "tub drain" in hand.  After entering in these key words into the OurHouse search field, several tub drain packages appeared; and I will not go into the detail about the them.  Importantly, I was able to enlarge each image of the tub drain set of products to a large enough size (about five inches by seven inches) and I was able to pretty much figure out how to install the system (or at least, so I thought).  One particular tub drain package, priced at $21.99, appeared to be best for my mother's tub situation and very easy to install.  Before making the purchase, I called OurHouse's toll free customer care telephone number in order to ask some very specific questions about installation (in order to confirm that I had indeed figured out how to install everything based on the product image) and delivery (i.e., when a "next day" shipped order would arrive).

It is a small world
Dan answered the phone.  He was able to answer all of my questions about delivery.  He assured me that as long as the order was placed by 12 noon Central Standard Time, the tub drain products that I would be ordering would be out the door today and would arrive tomorrow, the "next day" with a shipping charge of $21.99 (note that the next day shipping fee varies by weight).  He was less able to answer all of my product specific questions.  He said that he could put me in touch with the product manufacturer and he gave me its toll free number (I believe that he would have also called and asked my questions for me, however, in my case, it was better that I speak directly with the manufacturer, PlumbPak -- the manufacturer's service people were ok on the phone, but in the end, they were able to answer all of my questions and as a result, I then had enough confidence that I could fix the tub drain problem myself).

Just before Dan and I ended our conversation, I mentioned that I maintain an online diary of my shopping experiences and I asked him for his permission in referring to him by name in describing our interaction.  He said that was fine.  Somehow, we ended up getting into a conversation where I learned that Dan, as a youth, first lived in the same town where I first lived, and later lived in the same city where I too lived later in my youth.  He also played in the exact same little league that I did (oh, about twenty years later).  In addition, he is going to be a junior this year at Northwestern University, which is where I was a visiting professor in their Marketing Department in 1999 (when he was a freshman); that is where I got to know Mohan Sawhney a bit as my office door was across the suite and about ten baby steps away from his office door.

I mentioned to Dan that the Arts and Sciences College was named by a Weinberg (i.e., the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences) at the start of his freshman year, and that special hats were given to all Arts and Sciences freshman and employees to mark the occasion.  I also told him that I first became aware of these hats, during the winter of 1999 as I was strolling up Chicago Avenue on my way to Kellogg, when I saw a faculty member wearing a hat emblazoned "Weinberg."  I went to the Arts and Science administrative offices in search of a Weinberg hat; they checked the basement and a few other places and were unable to turn one up for me; I even posted signs in freshman dorms in hopes that someone would contact me and sell one to me (though they were freebies to everyone) -- I did get a call from one student and we were all set to make the exchange, however, he never came by my office :-(.  I did ask Dan were he ever able to track one down to let me know and I'd buy it; my preference is for the purple hat with the white lettering in case anyone is interested :-).

Going ahead with the order
After explaining the situation to my mother, she approved the purchase.  I placed my order at around 11:45 CST, so theoretically the order would ship today (August 29) and arrive tomorrow (August 30).  After placing the order, OurHouse.com brings up a webpage where one can send in any message if desired.  I decided to send in the following email message:

" Dear OurHouse (and Dan),

I put in for next day delivery at around 11:45am CST (i.e., before 12 noon CST).  I really need the items tomorrow (Wednesday) -- my mother's tub drain is totally history and she needs to take a bath/shower :-).  If this order is not going to ship today (Tuesday), then let me know and cancel the order.  My home phone is (number withheld). 

By the way, Dan was a tremendous help over the telephone today.  It turns out that it is a small world.  Dan grew up for a little while in the same city where I live and I was a visiting professor at Northwestern (in Kellogg's Marketing Department) last year -- which is where he is currently a student.

Sincerely,

Bruce D. Weinberg "

I received an order conformation from Ourhouse about fifteen minutes after placing my order, and about two hours after placing my order, I received an email from Dan that read:

" Bruce- 

I just called the warehouse, and your order will be shipped today. You should expect delivery tomorrow. 

I'll keep my eyes open for some Weinberg gear for you. 

Go BoSox! 

Dan 
Customer Happiness 
www.OurHouse.com "

Definitely in the direction of a Brucie, however, I am going to reserve my final evaluation until I receive my order.  By the way, Amazon had some lower priced tub drain packages, however, I ruled them out because of the limited information on their product offerings and the fact that their "next day" service -- with a lower shipping fee than that of OurHouse.com -- would not result in my getting my order tomorrow.

For a nightcap -- yes, sometimes I like to unwind at the end of the day -- I sent in a $100+ order with Homeruns.  The only item that Amy wanted which was not available was a block of parmesan cheese -- they only carry shredded parmesan cheese.  I really think that Homeruns should carry blocks of fine parmesan cheese -- hey, one never knows who just might be listening :-).
 

Luis Castillo RBI Watch (Through August 29, 2000)

Number of Hits......Batting Average......Number of RBI......Runs Scored
......148.......................349............................10........................81

Luis went 1-4 and scored a run as the Marlins  topped the St. Louis Cardinals, 3-1.  Luis leadoff the first inning by grounding out to the shortstop; in the second inning, with a man on second and two outs (the previous two players also came to the plate with the same man on second and both struck out), he grounded out to the second baseman.  In the fifth inning with one out and no one on, Luis singled (and later scored).  In the seventh inning with one out and the bases empty, Luis struck out swinging.  (These data are obtained from ESPN.com.)