Category Archives: Deals and Steals

Such a deal!

Dealing with a Craig’s List Scammer

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I kept this clown on the hook for nearly 45 minutes by pretending I didn’t understand his instructions.

I use Craig’s List extensively when I need to get rid of things. I’ve found that if something has any value at all and you put it on Craig’s List for free, you can get rid of it quickly — often the same day.

Yesterday, I placed an ad to get rid of the dozen or so wooden pallets I’d collected over the years. I used to build things with them, but I’ve since found alternative building materials. I’d like to get rid of these and I’d prefer not to burn them (although I will if they’re not gone by next week).

Pallets, All Different Sizes (Malaga)

I have about a dozen pallets in all different sizes that I no longer need. Come and take them away. Bring a truck and a friend to help you move them. Text me for the address and availability. I cannot hold any pallets so please do not text until you are ready to come.

Pallets for Sale
Here are two of the pallets that have to go this spring. I saved the rotor blades to use as a decoration but they’re so damn heavy I can’t work with them alone. For the right price, they could be yours!

I included photos of a bunch of pallets, including the one my old rotor blades are lying across. I used that as the primary image, figuring it would get people’s attention. (And maybe someone would be interested in buying those old blades.)

Scammer 2
This is my entire conversation with the second scammer. He caught on when either I didn’t ask any questions or he couldn’t send the code.

The scam texts began within 15 minutes. There were two scammers on this one, but the second one gave up pretty quick. The first one, however, really thought he had a live one on the line and was very persistent. He kept at it until he finally figured it out — after about 40 minutes of texting back and forth with me.

Sample Link
Here’s an example of a “verification” text I got from a scammer last month. I’ve since blocked that source number. Do not try to open that link.

Let me start by explaining the scam. The scammer poses as a buyer who really wants the merchandise but needs to “verify” me. He does this by sending me a code that looks like it’s coming from Google. It comes from a different phone number and has two parts: a six digit number and a shortened link. Although they usually ask for the code — which is right there — what they seem to really want is for you to click the link. I can only assume it does something nefarious, like install malware on your device. I’m not dumb enough to click links from strangers (and you shouldn’t be, either).

Apparently, last month after dealing with a few of these, I blocked the number that sends the link. This makes it impossible for the scammers to send me that text message. The first guy, as you’ll read below, tried hard to get another phone number from me to send that code to. I played him as long as I could. The first guy gave up right away, as you can see in the screen shot above.

For your reading pleasure, here’s the complete exchange between Scammer #1 and me. I have not masked his phone number because it’s likely spoofed or from a burn phone anyway. I wouldn’t call it if I were you. Note that every time he sends a question mark by itself (?), it’s because I’m taking too long to reply.

5035062063:
I want to buy ”Pallets, all different sizes ” Is it available?

Maria Langer:
They’re free. Come get them.

5035062063:
Ok, right now I will send a verification code. The code proves that you are real person and your post is real.Now I send the code?

Maria Langer:
Sure. Go ahead.

5035062063:
Opps.Your number is not accepted this code.Do you have another cell phone number?

Maria Langer:
Nope.

5035062063:
Please try to give me another cell phone number.

Maria Langer:
Nope.

5035062063:
You can use your anyone cell phone number for this verification.
??
Please try to give me another cell phone number.Because I want to try again.

Maria Langer:
I don’t have another number.

5035062063:
So give me another cell phone number of those who around you.

Maria Langer:
There’s nobody around me. We are social distancing here.

5035062063:
So contact someone then send me their number.

Maria Langer:
Why would I do that?

5035062063:
Because The verification code is very important for our safety.

Maria Langer:
I won’t hurt you. In fact, I’ll stay inside while you pick them up.

5035062063:
Its ok, Now try to send give me a cell phone number
You can use anyone cell phone number for this verification.

Maria Langer:
I told you I don’t have another cell phone number.

5035062063:
You can use your family members phone number.

Maria Langer:
You mean like my sister’s?

5035062063:
Yeah, Anyone.

Maria Langer:
But my sister lives in Kansas. How will that help me here? [Note: My sister does not live in Kansas.]

5035062063:
I will send a code to her number. Then send me back the code. Its very simple.
?

Maria Langer:
But she’s at work. I don’t wanna bother her.

5035062063:
You can use your friends phone number.

Maria Langer:
But my friends aren’t here.
Why can’t you just use my number? It works fine! You’re using it now.

5035062063:
No problem call him,

Maria Langer:
Call who?

5035062063:
Call your friend and send me number

Maria Langer:
What number? Do you know my friend?

5035062063:
No. I just use for verification,

Maria Langer:
I don’t understand. You sent a verification code to my friend? How do you know his number? I thought you were going to send it to my sister?

5035062063:
OK give me any number

Maria Langer:
But you have my number.

5035062063:
Your number is not working. So give me your friend or sisters number.
Your number is not working. So give me your friend or sisters number.

Maria Langer:
My number works fine. We’ve been texting on it this whole time!

5035062063:
But not working for code

Maria Langer:
Maybe the code is broken.
?
Did you try again?
Oh, come on! Let’s keep playing! My twitter friends are really enjoying this! 🤣

5035062063:
fuck off

Maria Langer:
lol! Wasted 45 minutes of your day. Sucker!!!

I should mention here that while this was going on, I was working in my yard. I did some weeding and hedge trimming and spread some weed and feed on my lawn. He waited while I did these things, responding almost immediately each time I texted him back — like he was waiting for me. So it didn’t take up much of my time but did take up 45 minutes of his.

As Bugs Bunny would say, “What a maroon.” (Google it.)

When Retailers’ Coronavirus Policies Do More Harm than Good

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My take on two examples of virus protection theater.

I went to two retail stores yesterday and saw both good and bad. The good was mostly on the part of customers; the bad (or dumb, at least) was mostly on the part of the retailers. I’ll try to keep this brief.

At Fred Meyer Supermarket

I do my grocery shopping early in the day when the supermarket is least crowded here. My local Fred Meyer has a “vulnerable person” shopping hour most mornings from opening at 7 AM to 8 AM. I don’t consider myself in that category — too young and not “at greater risk” — so I try to get there just after 8 AM.

I should mention here that I would use Fred Meyer’s curbside pickup service, but ordering my groceries and then waiting 2 to 3 days to pick them up just doesn’t work for me — especially since I invariably remember other things I need and can’t add them to my checked out (but not paid for) cart.

Yesterday I came prepared with disposable gloves and a homemade face mask. I was thrilled to see about half the other early shoppers also wearing masks and/or gloves. I was disappointed to see that the only store employee wearing a mask was the woman making sushi.

But the thing that bugged me? The fact that even after handling all of my groceries and the groceries and possibly cash and coupons from previous customers, the cashier refused to pack my reusable shopping bags. Apparently, this is a store policy. It’s okay for her to use her germy hands to pack my groceries in a dozen flimsy plastic store bags, but not okay for her to use the same germy hands to pack my bag because it might have — get this — germs on it.

Oh, and get this: she was wearing gloves.

And no, she wasn’t putting on a fresh pair of gloves between customers. Or after handling money.

And when I pointed all this out to her, trying to be as friendly as possible about it, she got very defensive. “Store policy,” she told me. “It protects me.” To which I wanted to reply “bullshit,” but kept my mouth shut. She’s on the front lines, after all. I hope she doesn’t really think that one pair of gloves that she wears all day long are protecting her.

So on my way out I stopped at the service desk to make two points:

  • First was a request that every employee in the store who handles food or money wear a mask. I think that suggestion was well received.
  • Second, was the point that the customer bag thing made no sense for the reasons I outlined above. “Store policy,” I was told. 🙄

Hey, Fred Meyer? How about giving this some real thought instead of engaging in virus protection theater?

At Home Depot

Last week, I ordered an odd tool from the Home Depot website. To save on the cost of shipping, I had it delivered to the store for pickup. I assumed — incorrectly, apparently — that it would be put on a truck to the store and get there within a few days. So when I went to pick up a lumber order, I was surprised that it wasn’t already there.

About that pickup last week. I went to the special orders desk where I waited on line behind another customer. Large empty bins had been set up in front of the counter so customers couldn’t get right up to it. I waited at least six feet behind the person there. When it was my turn, I stepped right up. I then waited at least 20 minutes for the two women there to get my order up on one of the three computers. This required them to laugh a lot about how slow the computers were, restart the computers one by one, use the intercom to call a lumber department guy, and use the phone to call someone who apparently knew how to use the computers they had been put in front of. Yes, my lumber order was ready but no, that tool had not arrived. That meant a second trip to the store. Okay.

That second trip to the store came yesterday. I immediately noticed a change in the front entrance. They’d put cones and tape out to funnel all customers into a narrow channel. We’d have to get our carts elsewhere; fortunately, I didn’t need one. A woman at the end of the funnel asked me if I needed to go to the service desk. When I said yes, she escorted me away from the mouth of the funnel and into a holding area with a chain across it to prevent me from wandering out. “I have to make sure there’s less than four people at the counter,” she told me.

Okay.

She went into the front of the store and yelled in. Someone yelled back. She came out and opened the hook on the chain to let me out of my pen. I walked into the store. There were no customers at the counter.

Okay.

It was the same woman at the desk who’d laughed about the slow computers the previous week. I gave her my name. I had to do it twice. (Langer, which I said and spelled, is apparently difficult for some people. Six whole letters, after all.) She finally found my order. It was in a padded UPS envelope.

I gawked. “They sent it UPS?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t they just send it to me?”

“You asked for store pickup, didn’t you?”

This blew my mind. Home Depot was shipping to its own stores by UPS without charging me anything for the shipment when they could just as easily send it to me to save me time and save their staff the bother of dealing with me and my (potential) germs.

I signed the keypad with a gloved hand, then tucked the envelope under my arm and headed back the way I’d come, to the door just 15 feet away.

“You can’t go out this way!” two women shouted almost in unison. “You have to go around to the main exit.”

“But the door is right here,” I said. “This is the way I came in.”

A third woman joined in. She was apparently the manager. I don’t remember exactly what she said, but she wasn’t going to let me exit through that door. Instead, she expected me to walk through the entire front of the store, past unmasked customers and staff, through the checkout area with more people in it, to go out a different door.

And have I mentioned that there were no customers at all near the entrance door I wanted to use? The door just 15 feet away?

An argument ensued with me pointing out the stupidity of what they were asking me to do. Honestly, I should have gone through anyway. What would they have done? Tackled me to the ground? But I walked where they told me to, holding my breath for most of the way, and left the store, likely for the last time.

Fortunately, we have a Lowes in town and I had a good experience with a lumber pickup from them two weeks ago. (I just ordered 100 edging stones from Lowes for pickup later this week. I know there won’t be any bullshit.)

So after spending at least $30,000 in my local Home Depot since 2013 — building supplies, appliances, cabinets, countertops, gardening supplies — I’m making the switch to Lowes. I have zero tolerance for stupidity and this was the apex of stupidity.

Virus Protection Theater

Making up stupid rules about shopping bags and special entrances is nothing more than virus protection theater. I equate it to the TSA not allowing more than 3.4 ounces of liquid in a container through security. The rule looks good and might sound good with their explanations, but when you think about the reality of it, it’s downright idiotic and can do more harm than good.

If you’re a retailer looking for ways to protect your employees and customers, it’s pretty simple:

  • Provide cloth masks for your employees. (Leave the N95s for hospital staff and emergency medical workers.) Encourage, though the use of signs, your customers to wear cloth masks, too.
  • Encourage, and where necessary, enforce a 6-foot rule for spacing between employees and customers. Reminder signs and floor markings where people line up should be enough.
  • Prevent crowds in your store by, if necessary, limiting the number of people who enter. (I can only assume that’s what Home Depot’s fancy funnel was all about and I have to wonder who’s going to keep track of how many people are inside.)

That’s a good start. Don’t make stupid rules — don’t engage in virus protection theater.

My New Telescope

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I finally replace my old telescope.

Dobsonian
My old telescope looked a lot like this modern knockoff. Meade no longer makes them.

Years and years ago, not long after moving into my Arizona home with my future wasband, I bought an 8″ Dobsonian telescope. We’d seen Jupiter and Saturn through the big telescopes at Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, AZ and were hooked. The Dobsonian was an affordable, easy to use, and relatively powerful scope, although with hindsight I came to realize it was not the right choice. It had no tracking capabilities, making it a challenge to watch an object for more than a few seconds and making any attempt at photography an utter failure.

The Old Telescope in Washington

I moved the telescope to my new home in Washington when I left Arizona during my crazy divorce. I optimistically set it up in my living room near the door to my big open deck right after the house (and deck) were finished. I think I used it once up there. Too much light pollution from nearby Wenatchee.

Another time, at the request of a friend, I brought it down to the driveway so we could watch a conjunction of Jupiter (or Saturn?) with the moon. The two objects didn’t clear the cliffs behind my house before my friends lost patience and left. I sent the telescope with them so they could experiment with it on their own.

A year or two passed. I realized quite realistically that I’d likely never use the telescope because of the combined problem of local light pollution, difficulty in moving the telescope elsewhere, and the original problem of lack of tracking. So I sold it on Craig’s list. The guy who bought it knew a lot more about it than I did and realized he was getting a good deal. I was just glad to get it out of the corner of my living room.

The New Telescope

Time went by. Light pollution in the Wenatchee area only got worse. I’m still trying to figure out why so many people need floodlights in their yards that shine upwards. (WTF?) Although my street is wonderfully dark with few homes, most of which don’t have floodlights, the ambient light is so bright that the only time my home ever gets dark is when it’s foggy out at night.

Jan's Telescope
Here’s Jan’s new (to him) 16 inch telescope. He needed some modifications done to his little observatory to get it in there. He uses it for astrophotography and can operate it from a laptop inside his house. Check out his photos here.

But I travelled every winter and spent a lot of time in places with truly dark night skies. I started getting interested in astronomy again.

I also had a friend with an observatory in his backyard. He was extremely knowledgeable about telescopes and, after I accompanied him to look at a 16″ scope to replace his 12″ scope, I asked him to help me find a telescope I could travel with. The main qualification: it had to have computerized tracking.

Jan got right to work and found a nice scope for a good price in the Palm Springs area. Trouble is, I was home in Washington and not prepared to drive all the way down there to see and possibly fetch it. So he held off until I returned to Arizona this winter. I missed his first message with an option and it sold before I followed up. But I was on it for his second lead and wound up buying it.

It’s a 2003 Meade LX200 GPS in excellent condition, with tons of eyepieces and a set of filters. After checking it out with its owner, we packed it in its original box and foam, which makes it much safer to transport. It came with everything I needed to use it. And although I’ve since seen them listed for over $1,400 used, I only paid $700 for this one. A good deal.

Working Out the Bugs

Jan very graciously helped me set it back up the first time and showed me how to use it. We immediately ran into difficulties. For some reason, it wouldn’t align properly. I wouldn’t pick up GPS data from the GPS. It wouldn’t find stars and it wouldn’t track them.

I honestly didn’t think the seller had knowingly ripped me off. He had wanted me to come the night before so he could demonstrate it with something to see. I’m a decent judge of people and he did not act as if he was trying to pull a fast one. He even texted me after I left, thanking me and telling me that he hoped I enjoyed it.

New Telescope
Here’s my telescope set up in Jan’s backyard one morning. You can see his observatory beyond it.

We worked on the problems over several consecutive evenings. I was staying at Jan’s house so it was easy. At one point, Jan was convinced that I needed a new AutoStar controller — the device that connects to the telescope and tells it what to do. Replacing the batteries in it didn’t seem to help. Then I asked Jan to use his computer to update the firmware in the controller. He had a PC; I only have Macs. He did that on the third day and that evening we got everything working nearly perfectly. We suspected that the controller had gotten “confused” by sitting idle so long, possibly with bad batteries.

I packed up the telescope and stored it and its box of parts and tripod in Jan’s garage. I was going to Tucson for about a week and had no reason to take it with me since I wouldn’t have time to set it up and use it.

Going Solo

Jan kept telling me to read the manual and I kept trying. It was all a mystery to me so it became an excellent sleep aid while I was in Tucson.

But things changed when I returned from my trip. I fetched the telescope from Jan’s garage and stowed it in my utility trailer. I spent about a week in downtown Wickenburg, where I was showing and selling my jewelry at a big annual Art Show. Then I went off into the desert where I found an excellent campsite for the next 10 days.

One of the things I’d bought for the telescope (and had shipped to Jan’s house) was a lightweight telescope cover. The beauty of living in a desert environment is that there’s usually very little moisture in the air. That means little or no morning dew. And little rain. So I could set up the telescope near my camper, use it at night, cover it up, and not have to worry about it getting damaged during a typical 24-hour period. So I set it up, using the manual — which now had my attention — and got it all ready to use.

Telescope in the Desert
My telescope set up in the desert at my campsite southwest of Vulture Peak near Wickenburg, AZ.

I got it aligned by myself on the second try. The key, I realized, was to use the AutoAlign feature, which automatically figures out where it is, which way it’s pointed, and how it’s angled. All you do is fine-tune its view when it points to two different very bright stars. Once the alignment is done, you can use the AutoStar controller to point to any indexed object. I looked at Venus, the moon (which was a waning crescent at the time), Betelgeuse (which has been in the news a bit lately), the Pleiades, and the Great Nebula. In each instance, I had to adjust the view the controller suggested but, once that was done, the telescope tracked like a dream.

I also started experimenting with a WiFi device I’d bought for the telescope that let me control it with my iPhone using an app called Sky Safari. That made navigating a lot easier. It also gave me access to an “audio tour” of many night sky objects: a narrator’s voice tells you a little about the object you’re looking at enhancing the viewing experience.

I started playing with eyepieces that would change the magnification and field of view of the telescope. I had eight eyepieces, many of which looked as if they’d never been used. I discovered that stronger magnifications worked great on objects high in the sky but were too blurry for items near the horizon. Too much heat coming off the ground, making waves in the air.

I got to know a group of four people with a dog who hiked past my campsite every evening. One evening, they saw me messing with the telescope and I invited them to come back later to do some star gazing. They returned when it was fully dark and I showed them the same things I’d seen (except the moon, which was no longer in the night sky), along with some double stars and the Andromeda galaxy. This is something I never would have been able to do with the old Dobsonian because I’d have to keep re-finding the object every minute or so. They were suitably wowed.

Telescope at Dawn
Dawn was in the same direction as the glow from Phoenix, so I didn’t do much observing in that direction, but I did manage to catch sight of a waxing crescent moon, with Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn all lined up in the morning sky.

I learned that the moon, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn were in the early morning sky, just above the horizon at sunrise. I woke on a morning with an absolutely clear view to the southeast and managed to align the telescope before it got too light to see anything. I saw four moons around Jupiter and Saturn with its rings. Mars was a reddish blur.

During this time, I watched the weather carefully. When rain appeared in the forecast, I disassembled the telescope and put it away for the rest of my stay at that site.

Beyond the Basics

Accessory Box
Here’s the nearly finished setup for my telescope accessories. After shooting this photo I found yet another eyepiece and added it with the others. There are two layers of foam; I have to lift the top layer to get to items beneath it.

Because I didn’t like the idea of having two separate boxes for carrying around the eyepieces and other accessories needed to run the telescope, I invested $50 at Harbor Freight on a waterproof case with foam insert. I spent about an hour laying out all the accessories and cutting the foam to fit it all in. This freed up the fancy padded Meade box that the eyepieces lived in and made a more secure storage area for the spotting scope and other more delicate items. Now I have just three things to tote around: the telescope in its original padded box, the tripod (which I may make a bag for), and this new box.

I’d like to get a similar case for the telescope itself. Jan has a canvas one that fits the foam for his similar 8″ telescope, but I prefer a hard case with wheels. Still, I’m not interested in spending $400+ to buy one and to have the added weight to tote around. We’ll see what I find without looking too hard.

I also bought an external battery at Harbor Freight. Designed to jump start a car, it also has 12 volt receptacles and USB ports. The telescope came with a DC power cable so it could be used without batteries; the previous owner said he used to plug it into his car when he was using it away from home. I bought a cable that converts that to something that could be plugged into a wall so I could use it with any common power source. Otherwise, it needs 8 C batteries, which I’d hate to burn through.

The Verdict

Although I wish the telescope was smaller and lighter — the tripod weighs about 30 pounds and the telescope weighs about 40 pounds — I can’t complain about the optics, operation, or view. It’s the telescope I wish I’d bought back in the late 1990s when I first moved to Arizona and got to enjoy dark skies. It fits fine in the back seat area of my truck or in my little cargo trailer. I can easily imagine taking it on camping trips or on nighttime outings with friends.

As my winter travels wind to an end, I expect to set it up in at least two more places: the desert at Borrego Springs, where I can share views with my good friend Janet before we part ways until next winter, and possibly Death Valley National Park, where I might detour just to check out the night skies. Next year, it’ll be part of my travel gear again.