Raised Garden, Cellar Access, and Countertop Swivel K-cup Holder...and more!

For those that read my blog, sorry that I haven't blog about any projects lately.  But I have been busy.  Recently painted trim on our house, replaced a roof, fixed a water line/outdoor spigot, constructed a new cellar access, made a raised garden, created some bookmarks, and made a countertop swivel K-cup holder.  Below are some photos of my recent projects.



Verizon, U Suck!.....Update! but not as much as U did.

Final Update!...I hope...Verizon Issue Resolved!

My below issue has been resolved by a Mr. Johnson who works in Verizon's executive office.  I have Consumerist.com to thank for drawing Mr. Johnson's attention to my issue.  Mr. Johnson's demeanor and attention to my issue was great.  He was nothing like the many other representatives that I had to deal with for the last 6 months.  He was understanding, calm, and most importantly he listened.  He even reimbursed me for my voice/phone call overage for the month after I explained that the main reason I was over was because of lengthy calls to Verizon and FedEX trying to resolve this issue.  He seemed sincere when I explained that Verizon should rethink their policy for returning defective cell phones.  I explained that I feel 30 days is a better return policy, but that if it had to be 14 days...Verizon should at least make it 14 days after activation, not 14 days after purchase.  I explained that when a cell phone is given as a gift and is wrapped in a box...one may not know there's a problem with the phone til the phone is activated.  He agreed and said he would definitely look into it.  He also apologized and said that Verizon should have called me directly and communicated better in regards to the billing mishap, instead of sending monthly bills that weren't very clear.  Even though this issue has been resolved, and Mr. Johnson was terrific, I still remain a bit unsatisfied with Verizon and will likely end my service with them once my contract expires.  Though it was nice to finally truly be heard.  Thank you Consumerist.com and Mr. Johnson!

“Is YOUR $449.95 mistake worth not having me as a customer?, which yields your company about $210 a month on average”

November of 2011 I got a new job that increased my pay considerably.  As a result I treated myself to a smartphone (Droid X2).  Previously I had a regular cellphone (Alias).  The following month (December 2011) I purchased a smartphone for my wife (Commando).  Her birthday was on 12/10 so for the majority of the 14 days Verizon says you have to return a faulty phone for a new replacement the phone was neatly tucked in a box that I wrapped in birthday paper.  Seems to me the Verizon policy should be 14 days from day of activation…I’m sure I’m not the only one who buys cellphones as gifts, especially in the month of December.  From December 10^th to about December 14^th my wife and I noticed that her new Commando smartphone would not ring after it went into keypad lock mode, even if the volume was up and the vibrate feature off.  Several calls to Verizon end with us returning the NEW Commando smartphone only to receive a CERTIFIED PREOWNED Droid X3 as a replacement.  The fact I bought a brand new smartphone that was faulty and Verizon replaces it with a used smartphone really ticks me off, but left with no other options I agreed to take the used smartphone.  So when my wife and I received the USED Droid X3 replacement via FedEX we place her faulty Commando smartphone in the package as Verizon told us to do and sent it back.  At some point in January 2012 before my 1/17 billing cycle my wife received a confirmation text message stating the faulty Commando smartphone was received by Verizon.  This is where the story should end, right?  Unfortunately it does not.  Instead I receive a January bill stating I owe a $449.95 equipment charge.  Thinking things just crossed paths in the mail, etc.   I called Verizon and to my surprise they told me that they never received the smartphone we sent back.  I kindly explained that we received a text from Verizon that it was received.  To which the Verizon rep responded, “Yes, I see that we did send you text confirming receipt”.   So I’m like “OK, then what seems to be the issue?”  The call ended with me agree to pay just my bill and not the equipment charge and the Verizon rep agree to look into the equipment charge and get back to me.  February 2012 comes and I receive another bill and again the $449.95 equipment charge is on the bill.  I call Verizon again and again agreed to pay the bill and not the equipment charge and the Verizon rep promised to call me back about the equipment charge.  This time the Verizon rep called back and left a voicemail telling me that the $449.95 equipment charge has been removed.  In March I receive a bill showing I have a credit of $108.53.  Then in April I receive a bill reinstating the $449.95 equipment charge.  Frustrated I waited till May to call Verizon yet again.  Only to have a Verizon rep inform me that they have record of me receiving two replacement smartphones and only one being return.  The Verizon rep claimed that we were sent a Droid X3 and a Droid X2 as a replacement for the faulty Commando smartphone.  Now I’m pissed beyond belief, and told them that there is no way in hell Verizon would send TWO replacement phones to replace ONE faulty one and that if Verizon doesn’t take the $449.95 equipment charge off my bill for good, I will terminate my contract.  The Verizon rep informed me, “that is fine; it will cost you $300 to terminate the contract.”  I said, “Like hell”.  So my question to Verizon is, “Is YOUR $449.95 mistake worth not having me as a customer which yields your company about $210+ a month on average?”

Update!

My above story of events about my bad Verizon experience gets posted to Consumerist.com, link below:

http://consumerist.com/2012/05/verizon-wants-me-to-pay-300-etf-because-of-its-450-error.html

Consumerist.com also gave me a contact name and email for someone at Verizon that claims he want to resolve the matter.  I sent the Verizon contact a email yesterday and as of today, no word back, not to mention the fact that I had two reps that promised to call me back this week and have yet to do so.  The one rep (Colleen in Loyalty Department) promised to call me back at 9am yesterday and never did, I called and spoke to a different rep who took a message to give to Colleen in the loyalty department stating that I never received her call back as promised and that I would like her to call me back asap as she promised.  The rep that took the message suggested she may have meant 9am in her time zone and not mine.....REALLY! grrr!  Then to top it off my wife called and said that FedEX MAY be willing to cover it since they didn't get us to sign for the Mysterious phone as FedEx policy states needs to happen for such deliveries.  As my wife was on the phone with FedEx the FedEx rep shared her story about how she had many unpleasant experiences with Verizon as well.  Hopefully I will hear something soon about this issue of mine being resolved, but so far I'm not holding my breath.  At this point in the game, I feel Verizon ought to go above and beyond and do something special for me as an apology, otherwise I feel I have no choice other than to cancel my contract and take Verizon to Small Claims.

Update!
My wife filed a compliant with the Better Business Bureau and I filed a compliant with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Update!
Received a phone call from yet another Verizon rep yesterday (5/17) and she gave me an entire different story.  She claims that Verizon refunded the $449.95 twice in error and then added one of the $449.95 charges back on.  It amazes me how many different stories I have been told about my 6 month billing nightmare!  So far I have been told:

1. We never returned the defective phone, even though my wife received text confirming receipt.
2. Was told we were sent two phones to replace one defective one.  Which I have a real hard time believing, however FedEx seems to confirm this.  Why in the hell would Verizon do something so stupid to begin with?  We requested to be sent a Droid 3 to replace the defective Commando Smartphone.  I have a hard time understanding why Verizon would be like, "Hey, lets send them an extra smartphone just for the hell of it!"
3. FedEX is responsible for the "Mystery Lost Droid X2 Smartphone" because they didn't get required signature at delivery.  Which ironically FedEX is willing to cover the $449.95 and even faxed us a letter to give to Verizon.  However Verizon seems to think I should get a refund check from FedEX and then send it to them (Verizon).  I think I wasted enough of my time on this ordeal and FedEx and Verizon should work out the details.  I posted FedEX's letter below.

4.  And now I'm being told that Verizon refunded the $449.95 twice in error and then added one $449.95 back on.  Really!  WTF!  Why can't Verizon get their shit together?  Besides, how is it my fault IF (and this is a big IF) they refunded the $449.95 twice?  Call me crazy, but I just pay what my bill tells me is due each month (except wrongful charges).  So if they had to add the $449.95 back on, why wouldn't they call me to inform me? Why wouldn't they send a new bill?...rather than waiting til May and tacking it on to my May bill.

*Also, Mr. Pica at Verizon has yet respond to my two emails to him.  Consumerist.com provided me with Mr. Pica's email stating that he "was very interested in resolving this matter".  Apparently he's not too interested, because he has yet to respond.  It has been at least 5 days Mr. Pica...What's the deal?

**The Verizon rep I spoke to on 5/17 was suppose to do two things for me.  First she was to resolve the $449.95 issue and second she was to remove all the calls to Verizon's "Loyalty/Retention Department and FedEX from my bill.  I requested these calls be removed because my plan is only for 700 voice minutes and I'm currently at 801 voice minutes because of being on hold, etc.  Turns out that calling Verizon's "Loyalty/Retention Department" eats away your minutes, however calling 611 does not.  But I was told I can't call 611 for the "Loyalty/Retention Department".

Verizon you make me SICK!

Why can’t PA Legislators be more like Larry the Cable Guy?

Update!
House passes it for the 2nd time, why can't it just be a law already!  It's been at least 3 years and it is a common sense law:  http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2013/11/bill_takes_shine_off_pa_lotter.html

Original Post:
For the last couple of years I have listened to PA legislators complain about PA being broke.  Their solutions are to increase taxes, blame others, and pass bills that don’t really do much of anything.  I would love for PA legislators to take some advice from Larry the Cable Guy’s famous quote and to “Git R Done!”

There is one legislator I approach back in December 2010 that is trying to do just that.  I approached State Representative C. Adam Harris (34^th District – Mifflin/Juniata/Snyder Counties) about the need for a change in the law to make it possible for PA Department of Revenue to intercept PA lottery winnings from those who are delinquent in back taxes and have non-filed returns.  I explained to Rep. Harris that it seems silly to me that PA Department of Revenue checks for back child support, but yet fails to check their own records for monies and returns due prior to cutting a check to a PA lottery winner.  PA Lottery is part of the PA Department of Revenue so verifying winners don’t have delinquencies seems like a “no brainer” to me.  State Rep. Harris agreed and drafted a bill, HB520, which passed the House in April 2011 and seems to be currently dying in the Senate.

First and foremost I have to give credit State Representative C. Adam Harris, for being approachable, good listener, and for researching and drafting HB520.  But unfortunately he alone cannot make this commonsense bill into law.  So why can’t those in government work together and “Git R Done!”?  This bill has nothing to do with Democrats vs. Republicans.  This bill is straight forward and just makes plain simple sense.  It’s not like PA couldn’t use the money.  Just in the year 2010 there were 90 lottery winners with prizes greater than $2,500 identified that owed back taxes.  So why wouldn’t both Democrats and Republicans want to pass HB520?  Git R’ Done!

Some other things to “Git Done!” would be to change the law so that PA Department of Revenue collection agents can take credit card payments.  I can pay other bills this way, why not PA Revenue bills?  One of the rules of business is to make it easy for your customers to pay you.  Again this is commonsense, Git R Done!

Also, why does PA Department of Revenue continue to give a 1% discount to businesses that pay their sales/use tax on time?  Shouldn’t they be doing this any ways?  Isn’t avoiding penalty and interest charges enough of an incentive not to pay late.  Besides I don’t get a discount for paying my personal income tax on time.  Git R Done!

There are a lot of little things like I mentioned above that can be done and should be done before coming to the taxpayer with an open hand and once again asking for more money.  So my question to those in legislature is why you people can’t seem to “Git R Done!”

*My above letter was also published by Lewistown Sentinel:
http://lewistownsentinel.com/page/content.detail/id/533740/Why-can-t-legislators-be-like-Larry-the-Cable-Guy-.html?nav=5059

                                                                                                                -Timothy Kuhn

                                                                                                                  McAlisterville, PA

                                                                                                                  www.tkuhn.com

                                                                                                                  www.tkuhnblog.blogspot.com

Candy Dispenser Project

My inspiration for this weekend’s project came to me on Friday while I was at work.  Like most “good” offices, mine has an area that everyone goes to for a “treat” (usually something sweet) throughout the day.  However I noticed our “treat manager” (Janelle) would often put the treats away at end of day likely out of fear that the treats could attract rodents and bugs after hours.  So I decided this weekend’s project with my daughters would be to make candy dispensers.

I have made many different variations of candy dispensers since I began woodworking as a hobby.  The version below is probably my second favorite version.  My favorite version requires 4” x 4” lumber for the body of the dispenser, which I did not have.  So I decided to make a version that used 1 ½” x 3” lumber.  The reason I like the 4” x 4” version a little better is because it includes a slide with a hole through it and a spout which places the candy directly into your hand.  But since I had no 4” x 4” lumber and didn’t feel like gluing wood together the night before, I decided to make the version that uses 1 ½” x 3” lumber.

For the 1 ½” x 3” body of the candy dispenser I took some scrap 2” x 4” (1 ½” x 3 ½” planed) lumber I had laying around and ripped them down to the proper 3” width.  I then cut the length to 3”.  This left me with 1 ½” x 3” x 3” pieces for the body of the candy dispenser.  Next I made multiple passes, adjusting my table saw fence along the way to cut the 1 ¼” groove into the center of the body of the candy dispenser.  A dado blade on a table saw or a groove router bit on a router could be used to cut the groove as well, however I didn’t feel like taking the time to setup either one.

After the body of the candy dispenser was complete, I cut used some ¾” thick lumber to cut the ¾” x  4” x 4” top and bottom of the candy dispenser.  I then drilled a 1 ½” hole in the center of the top 4” x 4” piece using a spade bit.  Next I took some 1” thick lumber and made the 1” x 1 ¼” x 8” slide.  After I had the slide cut, I again made multiple passes on my table saw, adjusting the fence along the way to make the 1 ¼” groove.
Once I had all the parts cut, I used my router to make a nice edge on the 4” x 4” top and bottom.  I then sanded the parts before assembling everything.  I recruited my oldest daughter to help spread the glue to glue it all together.  I also used my finishing nailer to lightly nail the pieces together to prevent movement while the glue dried.

We then went inside the house to finish the project by screwing the lids of canning jars to the top of the candy dispenser.  A special thanks to Kelly at Rosewood Markets for supplying me with some canning jars.  Once the lids were attached, I filled the jar with candy and screwed it onto the dispenser.  This dispenser works well to dispense candy such as M&M’s (Regular and/or Peanut), Reese’s Pieces, jelly beans, gum balls, runts, and Sweetheart candies, etc.  I’m still not sure if it is the dispenser or the candy that my daughters thoroughly enjoyed.

Photo Update:  Below is a picture of the candy dispenser I did for my place of work (Penn State Hershey Medical Center).

Birdhouse x 2 Project

This weekend I had several ideas for projects to work on with my little helpers (daughters Ryley and Farryn).  Unfortunately most of my project ideas weren’t possible this weekend because my lumber stash is getting a bit low and I wasn’t able to replenish it yet.   So with that said I did a little “googling” to locate “kid approved” woodworking projects.  As I did this my sidekick Ryley spoke up and said, “Let’s make that daddy, I want to make a birdhouse.”  I said, “Ok, but we will have to make two, one for each of you to decorate.”  So with that it was decided, we would be making birdhouses this weekend.

I was able locate a lot of different woodworking plans online, but I wanted a plan that included a way to view the bird’s eggs.  I just thought it would be great to have some sort of hinged lid so my girls can take a peek at the bird’s eggs.  So I decided in the end to make my own blueprints using a free open source software program called Google Sketch up.  I definitely recommend Google Sketch up.  It is a great CAD program to use for designing and remodeling.  Google Sketch up takes a bit to get use to, but once you learn and understand how to use the tools, it is actually fairly easy and fun to use.  There are a lot of great video tutorials to help you to master the tools.  I especially fell in love with the push/pull tool, a real time saver.  Be sure to take a moment to look at the Google Sketch up screen shot of my birdhouse blueprint above.

Now that we had our woodworking plans for our birdhouse it was time to begin building.  We began by ripping the boards to proper width.  After that we cut the boards to proper length.  About half way through the project I realized that we were going to be short a board to use for the side of the second birdhouse.  No worries I just did some quick adjustments to our plans and informed the girls that the smaller birdhouse is Farryn’s because she is the little sister, and the big birdhouse is Ryley’s because she is the big sister.

After all the pieces were cut, I grabbed my 1 ¾” hole drill bit and drilled the holes for the birdhouses, and yes the 1 ¾” hole drill bit is the same one I purchased a few weeks ago for the K-cup Holder project (see previous post).  The girls enjoyed looking through the holes, pretending as if we were playing a game of peek-a-boo.

Next, I used my air nailer to assemble the birdhouses.  Then I used my router with a 1/4 inch round over bit to make the hole smoother for the bird to enter/exit the birdhouse.  We then sanded the birdhouses before heading inside for much needed baths.

After the girls much needed baths, we finished the birdhouses by attaching the flip-up roofs using hinges I had laying around from past projects.  The girls thoroughly enjoyed opening and closing the flip-up roofs, often pretending to be talking to a make-believe little birdie.  Next we will paint the birdhouses and then hang them outside.  I can’t wait to see their excitement when birds move into their birdhouses.  It will be a great moment to see.

Update!

Below are photos of the birdhouses after we painted them and hung them outside.

Making Grandma’s Interior Shutters and Daddy’s Cubicle Bulletin/Picture Board

Originally this weekend’s project was going to be to finish making my daughters Marble Racer.  However I lacked the required lumber to do so.  So we instead decided to make the interior shutters Grandma (my mom) has been asking for since last Christmas.

The dimensions required for each of Grandma’s shutters were 9 ¼” x 31”.  Four (4) shutters would be needed in order to cover Grandma’s window.  To make the shutters I purchased four (4) ¾” thick x 9 ¼” wide (10” original unplanned) pine boards.  I purchased 4’ pine boards even though I only needed 31” length.   I used the extra length to temporarily tack fast a guide strip of wood so I could run my router along the guide strip to make a long straight line V-shaped line.  The V-shaped lines gives the interior shutters a look and feel similar to raised panels, but without the woodworking headache.  Once the routing was done, I then cut the pine boards to the proper length of 31”.  Cutting the pine boards to the proper length of 31” after routing made it possible for me to cut off the nail/tack holes made from the temporary guide strip, thus no marks left on the finished project.

The four (4) shutters are now finished, at least my part is, Grandma has to paint them yet.  After she paints them, I will use both decorative and plain hinges to install them.  Check back at a later date for a picture of the finished project.

Another project we did this week was making a device for my cubicle at work (Hershey Medical Center, Technology Educator).  I wanted to make something that would make it possible for me to hang my framed degrees up.  For those of us that have cubicle walls, you can relate to the fact that hanging a framed degree/photo isn’t possible without messing up your employers cubicles.  So I came up with the below design.  It is two (2) pine boards 9 ¼” x 40” and one (1) pine board 2 ¼” x 40” (center board).  Nail the pine boards in the shape of an upside down “U” and slip over the cubicle wall.  Tada!  Now you and your cubicle neighbor have a solid board to hang framed degrees/photos from.  Stain or paint it to your liking.  You can also go to Michael’s or any craft supply store and purchase some cork board material to add to it as well, which is what I did.

Photo Update:  Below is a picture of the finished interior shutters.

Under-the-Counter K-cup Holder Project

If you have a household anything like mine, your Keurig coffee maker is one of your prize possessions.  Sure the coffee is great and always fresh, but finding the space to store all those K-cups can sure be a hassle.  I looked in stores and online and wasn’t able to find anything that suited me.  So I decided that making an Under-the-Counter K-cup Holder would be my next project, with the help of my two daughters of course.

The project started out well.  I say this because I realized I didn’t have a 1 ¾” inch drill bit, which I would need in order to make the holes to hold the K-cups.  This was a good thing; I love it when a project gives me an excuse to purchase new tools.

Once I had all my materials, I measured the underside of our kitchen cabinet in order to determine the appropriate size.  I then drew a grid on my board to mark where the holes would go for the K-cups.  I drew a line every 2 ½” inches both vertically and horizontally.  Placing the drill bit where the lines intersected in order to drill the 1 ¾” holes, leaving about a ½” between the drilled holes after the 1/4” round over router bit is applied.

For the most part the design is pretty simple, a board with holes in it and hinges, however it was also necessary to add a front/face board so the holder would fit flush and accommodate the magnets.

My daughters enjoyed watching me drill the multiple holes.  Ryley kept asking daddy, “Why are you making tires?”  I had to agree with her imagination, the scrap from the hole drill bit did look like tires to an automobile.  Needless to say, it was at this point my original project was interrupted in order to effectively use my scrap to make primitive car and truck toys using the scrap (tires).

After we finished working for the day, we locked up my shop and went into our house.  For the remainder of the day my daughters played with their new primitive toys.  Truly amazing, all the money spent on toys and they were content playing with scrap lumber primitive cars and trucks.

A few days later I would have paint out in order to imprint footprints on the stool we did two weeks ago (see previous post).  So before putting the paint away, we decided to paint the primitive cars and trucks.

I need a stool so I can spit daddy!

About a month ago my 4 year old daughter Ryley informed me that we needed to make a stool so she and her little sister Farryn (2 yrs. old) can “spit” into the sink when they brush their teeth.  After many weekly reminders from my little princesses, I finally purchased a pine board this past weekend to make the much needed stool.

The process began with Ryley telling me that it had to be big enough so that she and Farryn could both stand on it at the same time.  So being that she was the “supervisor” of this project she told Farryn to stand on the pine board and then stood next to Farryn and pointed  down at her feet, “Right there Daddy, that’s where the line goes, that is how big it needs to be!”  Once my “supervisor” determined that the stool was to be 22 inches long, she then demonstrated how high she and Farryn could lift their legs so I would know how high to make the stool.  So we now know we needed a stool that is 22 inches long and 10 inches high.  Ryley then told me, “it needs a hole in the top, like Grandma’s, cause we have to be able to move it Daddy!”

Ryley then left to spend a much anticipated overnight visit with Nana, leaving Farryn and I to finish working on the stool together.  Farryn enjoyed picking up the small pieces of scrap and using them as building blocks.  She was very protective of her scrap wood I might add.  I was informed a few times, “that’s mine Daddy.”

After all the pieces were cut, we took a small break to go to the local store and get a tea and juice.  After our break we were ready to get back to work and finish the job.  All that was left to do was to sand the pieces and assemble them.  Farryn enjoyed using my sander, she would giggle as it would vibrate in her hand.  Once Farryn had all the sanding done, I used my air nailer and assembled everything.

Once Ryley returns home from Nana’s we will put a clear finish on it.  However I think I will have Ryley and Farryn put their foot prints on the top of it before putting on the final finish.  Especially since I know 22 inches is plenty of room for both girls to stand side by side on the stool.

Update:  Below is the finished stool project.  The girls really enjoyed putting the footprints on it.

Pennywise may not be that WISE after all!



Turns out it costs the government approximately 1.8 cents to make a penny and 9 cents to make a nickel.  No wonder the government is going broke.

Be sure to click on the below link for a very informative and entertaining video on why the penny needs to go away.

http://consumerist.com/2012/01/making-a-case-against-pennies-can-be-informative-and-funny.html

Another supporting video can be found here:

http://consumerist.com/2010/09/video-why-pennies-are-bacteria-ridden-disks-of-suck.html

Update!  Canada "gets it!"  Now if only the U.S. would eliminate the penny and redesign the nickel to be more like the current penny since nickels also cost more than what they are worth.
http://consumerist.com/2012/03/canada-decides-its-sick-of-the-penny-will-stop-making-them.html

My NOT so AMAZing AMAZON Experience!

I recently had a very bad customer service experience with Amazon.  They charged my credit card $135.02 rather than charging $100 to my Amazon Gift Card and the remaining balance of $35.02 to my credit card.  They claimed this was my fault for not knowing that my Kohl’s $25 ($27.99) Gift Card purchase would disallow the use of my $100 Amazon Gift Card to be used for ALL of my purchases in my “shopping cart” per Amazon’s policy that states you can’t purchase a gift card with a gift card.  Which is a silly policy in my opinion, but my point is it shouldn’t have disallowed the use of my $100 Amazon Gift Card to be applied since my other 6 items in my “shopping cart” cost $100+.  Below is the email I sent Amazon and below that is the last email Amazon sent me informing me that “I can certainly use my gift card funds on my next order.”  This was supposed to be a $100 Christmas gift to me from my wife, but per Amazon’s response it is I spend $100 first then get to use my $100 gift card.  Their above statement just infuriates me.  Do they seriously not get the point????  I don’t understand their logic!

Dear Amazon,

I have purchased numerous items in the past from you.  That will no longer be the case.  Seems silly to me that Amazon would rather force me to spend $100 (again, using the Amazon gift card that should have been charge the first time) and never get my repeat business for life than to do the right thing and refund my credit card for the $100 charge that should have been charge to the Amazon Gift Card.

I would like to take a moment to point out that your response below doesn’t make sense.  You stated that Amazon charged my credit card ($135.02) instead of my Amazon Gift Card ($100) because my purchases included a purchase for a Kohl's $25 ($27.99 total) Gift Card and that gift cards cannot be charge to gift cards.  I'm not a mathematician, but it seems to me my total was $135.02 - $100.00 (Amazon Gift Card) = $35.02 balance to be charged to my credit card.  Why in H - E - double hockey sticks would ALL of my purchases be banned from using an Amazon Gift Card for payment only because ONE of the items in the cart doesn't qualify?  Also, why wouldn't the checkout process clearly inform me of such when this was happening, so I would at least know to create a separate cart for the Kohl's Gift Card.?

Listed below (in chronological order) are the facts pertaining to my "awful customer service experience.":

1.  Received four $25 paper Amazon Gift Certificates from my wife for Christmas (12/25/11)

2. On 12/26/11 created a shopping cart with 7 orders totaling $135.02....Note: 1 of the 7 items was a $25 Kohl's Gift Card ($27.99 total charge)

3. During checkout (12/26/11) I selected the Amazon Gift Card option as payment and enter all four paper Amazon Gift Certificate codes, which were successfully verified.

4. All my orders are delivered throughout the next 5 days.

5. Around (01/02/12 Morning time) I was balancing my checkbook and discovered that my credit card was charged $135.02 for ALL of my purchases.

6. Around 01/02/12 (Same day as above, Lunch time) spoke to first Amazon representative who told me that my purchases didn't "qualify" for Amazon Gift Card purchasing, but due to her accent (India?) I was unable to understand her explanation.

7. Around 01/02/12 (Same day as above, Evening) I spoke to another Amazon representative, Lisa or Jen (?), who seemed more concerned with "pointing the finger" than "finding a solution".  She kept telling me "didn't you look at the account ending in xxxx portion of your final invoice" and "why did you wait til now to call?"........Note:  I called as soon as I discovered the problem.

8.  Around 01/02/12 (Same day as above, Evening)  Spoke to Amazon representative Damian who I have to give "some" credit to.  He and I "worked together" to try to resolve.  He stated that "since my Amazon Gift Cards were paper and not digital, he was unable to reverse and recharge."  I then asked if I could use my current $100 Amazon credit to purchase a $100 digital Amazon Gift Card, thus allowing him to reverse the transaction and recharge correctly.  He tried, but was unable to do so.  He then fwd: me to the Gift Card Department and said they would call me within 48 hours.

9.  48 hours later no call from Gift Card people, so I called Amazon and they fwd. my message to Gift Card Department that I want a return call.

10. 72 hours later I receive the below email from the Gift Card Department..........Note:  I asked for a phone call!!!!!!!!!

11.  1/6/12 I respond to below email with all of the information here within.

*Note:  5 phone calls and several "customer service - rate our service" emails later......still not resolved.  I gave all low ratings obviously.

12.  1/7/12, Posted my bad experience to my new blog (TKuhnBlog), linked to my website http://www.tkuhn.com/, and sent to http://www.consumerist.com/ for all the world to have access and read about! 

So, Amazon I sure hope it was worth it to "force" me to purchase $100 of additional merchandise rather than fixing your mistake.......because it WILL be the last time you get $ from me............and you will get a lot of negative publicity as well.  So spend your last $100 from me wisely.

-Tim Kuhn

-----Original Message-----
From: Amazon.com Customer Service

Sent: Friday, January 06, 2012 12:26 AM
To: kuhn, timothy
Subject: Your Amazon.com Inquiry

Hello,

I'm writing to follow up on our conversation about the Gift card not being applied to your orders that wear placed on December 26, 2011.

I checked orders placed on December 26, 2011 and verified that your gift card funds were not applied; your visa was used instead.

I'm not able to change the payment method for your order at this point--it's already entered the shipping process and payment has been settled for the order.

I've checked your orders and see that you've placed order for a Kohl's Celebrate Gift Card. Since you had a Gift card in your shopping cart gift card was not applied to your orders.

If you do have gift cards in your shopping cart when you place your order, you cannot pay for that order with another gift card, gift card balance, or promotional balance on your account. Gift cards can only be used to pay for eligible items.

You can certainly use your gift card funds on your next order. If you need more information about using a gift card, please see the "How do I use my gift card?" section on this Help page:

http://www.amazon.com/help/giftcards

I hope this helps. We look forward to seeing you again soon.

Best regards,

Amazon.com