posted on February 3, 2009 08:09:52 AM new
I had a buyer purchase yarn from me recently, only 7 feedbacks. Well, I get an email yesterday saying that she makes slippers with the yarn, and she would like to make me a pair and send them to me, so she wanted my shoe size. I wrote back and said how much I appreciated her kindness, but she really didn't need to do that, and shipping from the US to Canada would be higher.
Well, she wrote again and sent a picture "to tempt" me, saying she really wanted to do it. At that stage I felt I really needed to accept. No one has done anything like that before. As far as I remember, correspondance with her was very limited, but it really made my day, I thought is was so kind.
posted on February 3, 2009 09:00:57 AM new
Thanks for the post. I've been feeling pretty down about ebay bidders lately and this tells me there are still wonderful bidders out there.
posted on February 3, 2009 10:07:09 AM new
It's unfortunate, but in the 21st century "heartwarming" is sometimes just a step or two away from "stalker."
I have had a few customers come on with excessive chumminess who later turned out to have big emotional problems and wanted to use me as a foil in their psychodrama.
This is of course not to say that everyone who wants to do something for you is going to cook your pet rabbit.
But you should be aware that they exist, and take sensible precautions. Some people lash out in anger if they think you might be rejecting their overtures. They can hurt your auctions. I have had death threats.
posted on February 3, 2009 12:53:29 PM new
I wouldn't be paranoid about her generous offer. She's probably just someone who may need a little appreciation and kindness in return. In fact, she may become a good customer.
posted on February 3, 2009 07:46:26 PM new
amber, I too think that was a nice thing for her to do.
I think that your own personality must have shone through in your communications to her which is why she offered.
Maybe she has knit the same pattern so many times she can have them done in a few hours and she gets enjoyment from knitting them.
I knit and I have patterns that I always enjoy but....NO...I won't knit one for you!
I think we have been pushed into paranoia and maybe now is the time to just not be quite so suspicious when we are on the receiving end of a 'random act of kindness'.
posted on February 4, 2009 07:15:59 AM new
I agree otteropp, I saw no ulterior motive at all. She said she loves making them, and makes lots of them. I prefer to give people the benefit of the doubt, and not see a demon behind every bush. If she is lonely and wants to write to me, I don't have a problem with that, I have 4 "regulars" that I write to on a personal basis, and all have become great buyers except one who is in a very poor financial state.
posted on February 4, 2009 07:26:27 AM new
Knitting may be all she has to do. Maybe she's elderly and has no family. No one here knows. My grandmother would sit and knit for hours at a time. She made things for everyone, including the neighbors, mail carrier and milk delivery person. She wasn't creepy or stalking anyone. She just enjoyed making things. She approached sewing and upholstery work the same way. I see nothing in this woman's offer that would worry me!
Cheryl
http://www.youravon.com/cherylblevins
Now you can buy Avon from me from anywhere in the world.
[ edited by cblev65252 on Feb 4, 2009 07:27 AM ]
posted on February 4, 2009 07:41:10 AM new
Before his death, one of my father's remaining pleasures in life was being useful. As he said, his eyes weren't that good any more, so reading gave him headaches. His hearing wasn't that good any more, so listening to music wasn't as enjoyable as it had been. However, his hands still worked, and he was proud to be "handy."
I don't know the woman in question, but let's not forget that "sometimes, a cigar is just a cigar."
My father's wish was to have his cremated remains used as fertilizer in my sister's garden. Useful to the end.
posted on February 4, 2009 08:04:46 AM new
It was nice to hear stories of other relatives kindnesses. My mother was the same, she loved to bake, and made marvelous cakes and cookies, but after my Dad died, no-one was there to eat much of it. She still kept baking, and everyone who visited the house, tradesman, hairdresser, friends, always went off with their cakes or cookies. Even when the milkman or rent collector came, they were offered a piece of cake. She didn't do it for anything in return, but people appreciated it so much, they did so much for her in return because she was crippled with arthritis, and did it until she was almost 90. The day nurse would wheel her to the kitchen table and get out her things, and off she would go with her baking.
posted on February 4, 2009 08:05:11 PM new
KOMO TV in Seattle picked up this story from Albuquerque today. Knitting is a recession-proof pastime and the yarn shop is doing really well and so is their website.
posted on February 4, 2009 08:28:29 PM new
I can't remember a time when it was cheaper to knit or crochet an item than it was to buy it ready-made in a store. I can vaguely remember when it was cheaper to home-sew outfits than buy ready-made. That's when most store outfits were made in American shops. My guess is that the recession-proof yarn industry has more to do with the low-cost-per-hour entertainment value than the savings of making it yourself.
posted on February 4, 2009 09:45:03 PM new
I've done nice things for buyers, and they've reciprocated. In 10 years, I've never had a stalker.
About feeling "useful": In our current transcribing of 1800s diaries of my husband's great-great-grandmother, she uses that word often. In her later years, from about 75 on, she wasn't able to do much (we're not sure what her main complaints were), but she bemoaned the fact almost daily that she didn't feel "useful" to the family she lived with.
My mother, in her 80s, felt the same way, and I imagine many of us will, someday.
_____________________
"Here in America we are descended in blood and in spirit from revolutionists and rebels - men and women who ***dared to dissent*** from accepted doctrine. As their heirs, ***may we never confuse honest dissent with disloyal subversion."*** --Eisenhower
posted on February 5, 2009 11:44:15 AM newMy guess is that the recession-proof yarn industry has more to do with the low-cost-per-hour entertainment value than the savings of making it yourself.
Pixiamom, that's true. It's the enjoyment from the creativity involved, the fun of finding so many different types of yarns worldwide and also having something to wear that's different from what others wear.
Years ago when I had more time I sold some of my knitting in my shop and the buyers liked purchasing something that was one of a kind as I got my patterns and yarn from different European countries that seemed to be ahead of North America in style. I started knitting again last summer and it's even more enjoyable now with all the sites online that feature a multitude of patterns and charts, many of them free. I love viewing projects from other knitters worldwide and am amazed at the talent.
posted on February 5, 2009 12:13:09 PM new
Unfortunately, it's not always "low cost" entertainment.
I don't believe that most people today are sewing or knitting or quilting to save money. By using color theory and design creatively, such activities as sewing, knitting, and quilting have become art forms requiring a lot of time, energy and money to develop.
Gone are the days when women used fabric from chicken feed bags to make clothing for their children. Now, computerized sewing machines cost thousands of dollars and classes to learn how to use the machine and related skills cost a few bucks too.
posted on February 5, 2009 01:52:30 PM new
Helen, I know a couple of ladies that have spent thousands on sewing machines and classes and still haven't used them to make anything. I doubt they ever will.
posted on February 5, 2009 05:29:40 PM new
i had a guy buy something from me many years ago. i can't remember what it was, but i had a quote in my emails from a song/band that I love to see live (Not the Grateful Dead).
he sent me bootlegs cds of concerts of the same band. i still have the cds, though the sound quality isn't that great.
the band is known for never performing the same song two nights in a row and they have hundreds of songs they pick and choose from on any given night. no song is ever performed the same way. it makes for a unique experience every night and many fans follow them across the country seeing numerous consecutive shows in a row.
my point is that in this scenario, much like yours- i don't consider this creepy b/c i am comfortable with the situation.
if i sold someone an old blender, i might think it was creepy that they were sending me mixed drinks. lol.
posted on February 6, 2009 12:43:02 AM new
When knitting becomes an obsession. (I found this Finnish animation on a Nordic design blog and it was nominated for an award).
posted on February 6, 2009 05:40:35 AM new
Good one, Kiara!
Reminds me of the first obsessive book collector that I encountered on Ebay. The fellow's wife sent me an email to let me know that she was unhappy with the condition of an Alice in Wonderland First Edition book that I had sold her husband. She detected the odor of smoke even though we don't smoke.
When I told her to just return the book and I would refund the cost of the book she wrote back to tell me that he wouldn't let go of the book!
I suppose obsessives make happy customers because she wrote back, "I can't pry the book away from him!"
