Container Stories

I was hoping to set up the balcony garden using as many second-hand materials as possible. Aside from the containers I've mentioned already, I also received 2 plastic milk crates, an old shipping crate purchased from Craigslist for storing tools, and had some handy few gardening tools donated. But I needed a bigger planter... after all, I have the space, and a lot of plants to put into the "ground".

I contacted a fellow from Craigslist via email to inquire about an old wood planter he posted on the site. Turns out it was too small for my needs, but he insisted that he could make me one to my specs out of found wood. After negotiating on price, $90 for a 4' L x 2' W x 2' H cedar planter, he was off to build my masterpiece.

A few weeks later, after hearing no word from him, I emailed him to see what was going on. He was sick, but he would get to building the planter as soon as he could. A few days later he sends me an email, stating that he bought the wood, but it was really expensive ($75) so he wanted to renegotiate the price.

Huh? I thought that he was going to FIND the wood, not BUY it. Grrr. So being the pushover I am, I said fine, how about $120. He agreed, and was to deliver the following weekend.

My phone rings on Friday: the 4' x 1' x 2' planter is ready to be delivered that night. Great, but... HUH? I clearly stated 2' wide, NOT 1'. Well, I ended up paying him the money and taking the very tall and awkward looking planter. Before he left, he suggested that next time he could build me a planter out of found wood and it would be much cheaper. And that's when I realized I was living in an episode of the Twilight Zone.

In the end, we broke the planter in half and built 2 planters, each with 1' height. Overall, the twins turned out well, and we supported an independed seller of a locally-made product, though I know there's a lesson to be learned in this story somewhere.