$13.80 Isn’t Worth a Mass

Heh.  I went all Henri on you.

So a couple of weeks ago, I was finally able to order my "Stop the War on Choice" tee, along with another shirt that read "Kiss Me, I’m Pro-Choice."  I was notified that they shipped last week.  A package arrived this week from Planned Parenthood – my father immediately started to freak out that I was pregnant until I showed him the tee; he then probably thought about what evil thing he had done to raise two pro-choice daughters.

(I honestly don’t know what would upset him more: Me getting knocked-up out of the holy sacrament of marriage like all my California cousins or me being pro-choice.  I think they equally tear at his heart.)

However, notice I said "tee," not "tees."  One tee had not been shipped, but the packaging label claimed two items had left the warehouse.  Next to one item, though, was the label O/S, which I suppose means out of stock.

No notification, no refund, nada.  I immediately e-mailed the Planned Parenthood store, wondering if I was on back-order, why I hadn’t been informed of the lack of supply, and if I was going to get a refund if there was no back-order.  I didn’t have high hopes of being able to contact them – I’d tried before and hadn’t gotten responses.  I thought I had to say goodbye to $13.80.  All for a good cause, sure, but if there’s one thing I’m anal about, it’s Internet orders.  They have to make sense and jive with my account or else I’m one unhappy sucker.

Surprise, though, they answered!  And refunded me!  This morning, after returning from some shopping errands (during which I passed by the local Planned Parenthood to donate money and saw that guy who’s always there on Saturdays, praying for my immortal soul), I came across a new package on my porch.  Another package from Planned Parenthood!  I thought maybe my tee had shipped, in which case I’d have to keep an eye on my account to make sure they did charge me.

Nope, inside was a 2005 Planned Parenthood calendar and a note apologizing for the shipping and charging confusion.  It was very nice of them to send me a calendar as an apology; I definitely wasn’t expecting one or insisting on it.  They were way nicer about the whole mess than, let’s say, THE GAP, but as soon as they explained what happened to me and refunded me my money, I had no beef with them at all – they were going to get the money anyway, either as payment for a tee or a donation from yours truly.  Besides, it wasn’t them, it was their warehouse.  Nothing that their warehouse did, though, could get me to stop supporting Planned Parenthood.  Wanting my account to make sense is one thing; abandoning a cause just because of a missing $13.80?  Nah, Planned Parenthood, don’t you worry one bit.  You do great work, and it always shows you really care about those who support you.  This just proves it to me even more.

And so I go back to helping Planned Parenthood to tell the Kansas attorney general (reg. required) to go fuck himself.