When Patience Is Lost

I'm writing this as there have been several threads in multiple forums about this topic lately. I know one is currently trending here, and this isn't intended to be a direct response to that thread, but rather, a new topic for pensive minds.

While I wasn't alive then, I would imagine that sixty years ago when my Grandmother was a child, had someone said "One day, you'll be able to get on an electronic thingy, and send money without writing a check and mailing it, and get something delivered to your house from the other side of the country in a couple of days time," they would have been laughed at. Today, with the magic of the internet and electronic currency, this is common practice. 

There was a time when ordering something meant: looking through a catalogue (that was published only a few times a year); finding the item you wanted; writing down the correct information on an order form; placing the form in an envelope; writing a check; placing the check in the envelope; sealing the envelope; writing the destination address and return address; placing a stamp on the envelope; walking to your mailbox to place the envelope in the mailbox; waiting for the mailman to pick up the mail; travel time of the form and payment to the distributor; someone at the distributor opening your order form and processing the order and payment (depending on the company, your order might not be sent until payment has cleared the bank); waiting on your order to be delivered. This process could take anywhere from a couple of weeks, to over a month.

Lets hope there wasn't a shipping error, the postman could read your handwriting and the letter made it to the distributor to begin with, the bank of the distributor didn't mess up processing the check, or any one of the hundreds of negative scenarios that could have played out.

Today, it's a matter of clicking "Add To Basket," signing in, clicking a few buttons, and without ever leaving your seat, and without anyone opening an envelope and sending a check to the bank, you have a box on its way within (in many cases) a few hours time.

So what if USPS, UPS, or FedEx delay the shipping? You put in marginal effort to order the product. Technology isn't perfect, and neither are people. I agree though that USPS, as a whole, is in a serious bind with the quality of their service. 

My point is we want to shave like our grandfathers, but have none of the patience. We have become so accustomed to having everything right when we want it, instant gratification, that any delay becomes a serious pain point. Netflix, YouTube, delivery pizza, Über, all of these services rely on providing near-instant gratification. But that's not the rule, nor should it be.

If we want to profess the majesty of old-style shaving, we should be content with old-style living. We should be progressive individuals who are constantly looking to better our lives, but more understanding of the complexities our world holds. 

To those of you currently waiting on a package, do me a favor: stop waiting. Drink a glass of iced tea and sit on the porch; go for a walk in the park with your wife; write in a journal; go build something in the woodshed; plant a garden; play catch with your sons and have a tea party with your daughters. Stop worrying about "waiting" for something, and instead go "live" for something. Enjoy it, remember it, savor it.

Life is too short to worry about a package and shipping. Besides, there will come a time when all the soap in the world is useless to you.

Live happy.

Well said!

Well said. I've read a few things recently where people are waiting impatiently on things. It's not like we don't already have a ton of stuff to use in the meantime. Once said item has arrived and been used the fun is gone anyway.


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Waiting patiently and filling in the time is character building.

I like the surprise when I get in from work and my wife says " a parcel arrived for you", especially if I haven't had the best of days at work. The original poster is spot on, sometimes we get wrapped up in how things are supposed to be done at warp speed we forget the really important stuff. It can't always be about consume, consume, consume.

It's not like any of us don't have enough product on hand as it is. Waiting an extra few days or weeks, isn't going to prevent us from shaving.

The only time I get antsy for a product is if I have it shipped to a border holding parcel service and I choose not to drive down and get it for a month....but that is by choice. It gives me something to look forward to when crossing the USA/CAD border, besides the friendly service, waiting in line and questions they ask.

All evidence has been buried. All tapes have been erased.

I remember sending a razor to you Bruce a few years back and you had me send it to your work place. The postal system is definitely different in Canada. It took awhile to get there. Postage costs more too.

Clayton

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I agree with the sentiment... I have a ton of shaving "stuff" and am inquisitive by nature so always eager to try new things.

When impulse strikes, I place the order and actually enjoy it to a degree if there is an inadvertent delay or I otherwise forget. When the package does arrive, it is a subtle surprise.

I have also seen some other comments re: lack of response from Artisans in particular and I feel many forget that most are either doing it as a side business or if not, running lean with reduced infrastructure and consequently people more heavily weight their expectation to have things NOW to the point of frustration.

I personally love the dialogue I have had with various Artisans. I enjoy learning more about their business, how and why they support the community and am willing to wait a while to have the access.

Extremely well said!

Where does forum participation fit into this old style living?


Andrew

Very well said indeed.

To share a story of "impatience", I once had a customer order something from my site late on a Saturday evening. He sent me a harshly worded email bright and early Monday morning wondering why his order hadn't shipped yet, and that he expected it to arrive by Monday because we were in the same state. He wanted to cancel the order if it wasn't going to ship that day. Monday was literally the first day it could ship anyway.
If he had ordered it Saturday morning instead of night, he likely would have received it by Monday morning (If he chose Priority Shipping... which, he did not).

I don't know where this impatience came from regarding shipping times.