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Crrrrrrrrrrrrrraptastic
Aug. 14th, 2006 05:51 pmSo, after my success at rearranging and reorganizing my stuff up here on the third floor, I thought it would be great to finally get a train table for the kids, since it's still their number one play item, and that way, the tracks would be confined to one area and not spread out all over the floor.
I measured the space we had available, and went online to try to find a table that would fit. It looked like the super-pricey Thomas name brand table was too big, but the "Imaginarium" version from Toys R Us, while lacking specific measurements, was smaller, based on the online reviews.
I took the kids to the Portsmouth Children's Museum for a couple of hours, then to lunch at their favorite Portsmouth place (Muddy River Smokehouse), and then we went to TRU to look at the tables and see if we could get one measured.
The guy who helped us (eventually) said it was 31" wide, which was fine; that would fit my space. In retrospect, I should have brought my own tape measure and done it myself, but I am dumb. So we bought it and took it home, and I spent 45 minutes rearranging stuff up here to make it fit where it would go, had it actually been 31" wide. Then I took the box out of the box (there was a shipping box covering the display-style box) and started building.
I was spoiled by the Ikea directions, which, though wordless, manage to convey the building in simple, direct pictures, and using minimal different types of hardware. This thing... not so much. I had to put the drawer together three times because I'd used the wrong screw, then put the wrong side on. Finally, I got the frame assembled, and then thought, hmm, maybe I should actually measure the damned thing before I go any further.
And it was 32.75" wide, and lo, the cursing did begin.
Interestingly, those dimensions are also printed on the display box, so if the TRU lackey had actually done what I asked and looked at the stupid box, instead of measuring the floor model (which seems to have been an older, different model entirely), I would have known it was too big by 0.75" and left it, unassembled, at the store :P
So, now we have a train table that's sitting in the middle of the third floor, totally in the way, mocking me by not fitting where I wanted to put it. We have no where else to put it, except perhaps to replace the coffee table in the living room, and... I don't think so. I called the library children's room, because the train table they have right now is an ancient piece of crap, so I may be donating it to them. If they don't want it, I'll try Stephen's school, or maybe the HUB family resource center; I'm sure they can always use this sort of thing. I am pissed that it doesn't fit, though. Partly because of the waste of time and energy (luckily it was inexpensive...), but mostly because I really wanted Stephen and Sophie to be able to play with it on a daily basis :(
Anyway, craptastic.
I measured the space we had available, and went online to try to find a table that would fit. It looked like the super-pricey Thomas name brand table was too big, but the "Imaginarium" version from Toys R Us, while lacking specific measurements, was smaller, based on the online reviews.
I took the kids to the Portsmouth Children's Museum for a couple of hours, then to lunch at their favorite Portsmouth place (Muddy River Smokehouse), and then we went to TRU to look at the tables and see if we could get one measured.
The guy who helped us (eventually) said it was 31" wide, which was fine; that would fit my space. In retrospect, I should have brought my own tape measure and done it myself, but I am dumb. So we bought it and took it home, and I spent 45 minutes rearranging stuff up here to make it fit where it would go, had it actually been 31" wide. Then I took the box out of the box (there was a shipping box covering the display-style box) and started building.
I was spoiled by the Ikea directions, which, though wordless, manage to convey the building in simple, direct pictures, and using minimal different types of hardware. This thing... not so much. I had to put the drawer together three times because I'd used the wrong screw, then put the wrong side on. Finally, I got the frame assembled, and then thought, hmm, maybe I should actually measure the damned thing before I go any further.
And it was 32.75" wide, and lo, the cursing did begin.
Interestingly, those dimensions are also printed on the display box, so if the TRU lackey had actually done what I asked and looked at the stupid box, instead of measuring the floor model (which seems to have been an older, different model entirely), I would have known it was too big by 0.75" and left it, unassembled, at the store :P
So, now we have a train table that's sitting in the middle of the third floor, totally in the way, mocking me by not fitting where I wanted to put it. We have no where else to put it, except perhaps to replace the coffee table in the living room, and... I don't think so. I called the library children's room, because the train table they have right now is an ancient piece of crap, so I may be donating it to them. If they don't want it, I'll try Stephen's school, or maybe the HUB family resource center; I'm sure they can always use this sort of thing. I am pissed that it doesn't fit, though. Partly because of the waste of time and energy (luckily it was inexpensive...), but mostly because I really wanted Stephen and Sophie to be able to play with it on a daily basis :(
Anyway, craptastic.
