Well, hell! RAH (Romance Author Husband) and I have lived in our house for 3 years. Our previous house had no formal living room by choice. We moved to get more space, and unfortunately the house that most met our needs had a formal living room. We shopped for furniture for months, but saw nothing we liked. Everything was too big or heavy or dark or contemporary. Just not right for that room that’s right across the entry from my French country dining room. So we decided to wait and really think about using the space as a reading room or a music room. In the end, we decided to use it as a living room after all, but I have not had time to shop for furniture. And RAH hates it. But we knew the space needed to be something other than a convenient place to put the Christmas tree.

Finally, RAH found something in a flyer we both liked on Thursday. Yeah, quick agreement. We could walk in, buy it and walk out. I could be back at the computer in an hour, tops. Right? Um, no.

2:25 pm: We visit the store in question and saw the furniture. We definitely liked it, but when we asked about it, we were told it had been discontinued. WHAT!!? You put a massive ad in the paper to sell discontinued pieces? They wanted to sell us the floor samples, but they looked like well-used floor samples, so we passed. The sofa was a creme color–exactly what we’d been looking for, but the dirt from MANY customers showed.

3:10: Trek next door…I won’t even call that formal living room furniture. It was bulky and sturdy and good for a family room, but not what we needed. Definitely nothing in a creme color. Onto the next store.

3:30: At store number 3, they had something we liked. No, I should say something I liked. RAH didn’t. Too fussy. And double what the grouping in store #1 would have cost us. We talk and look around, but ultimately decide we don’t want to pay more and settle for something we don’t love.

4:15: We drive to the other side of town and hit store number 4. RAH is highly irritated by now. He HATES to shop for anything, but especially furniture. This store looks promising. We find a grouping we like. The bonus is that the accents and tables are cherry, which coordinates with another piece I want to bring in the room. The price is right. The day is looking up. Until our salesman tells us it’s been discontinued. The only creme-colored sofa in the place and they no longer carry it. Again, they’d sell us the floor sample. We tell him we’ve been there and done that, so no thanks.

4:40: On to store number 5. The final one of the day, RAH assures me. I sigh, knowing he will keep that promise. We walk in the store, and I see a few things I like. He sees something he likes, but we realize we’d both be settling, so we walk on. On the far end of the store, we both spot this gorgeous creme-colored sofa with brocade pillows and a matching chair. It’s perfect. We love it. A little more than RAH wanted to spend, but I remind him I’ve been waiting 3 years for this. Our sales person comes over… You guessed it–discontinued, but they’ll sell us the floor model.

So I’ve deduced 2 things: There’s a conspiracy to prevent me from having a creme-colored sofa, so I will have to have have one made to order, damn it. And why is it, when I’m buying furniture, the sales people have that same vibe as car salesmen? It makes the whole experience unpleanant, like I need to take a shower afterward. Just not my idea of a good time.

Has anyone had great luck lately at finding exactly what they want when shopping? I need my faith in the shopping gods restored!