Buy, But Don't Use

Why are almost all products I buy nearly impossible to open? I now have my own little tool set. Just for opening things. I'm not talking about one of those flexible kitchen grippers. I'm talking real tools. Want a new battery? Easy to buy. Impossible to use. First you have to open the package. That takes, at the very least, tin snips. New CD? My nail file handles that pretty easily. But a thief could carry a nail file into a store, so I anticipate the packaging getting sturdier soon. They tell me packaging is tougher in an effort to protect products on shelves from crooks. It might be a good idea for manufacturers to study how many people don't buy something just because they know opening it will take the better part of an evening.

I've broken nails and been cut more times than I can count. A couple bones came near the snapping point. Unscrew the top of an air freshener refill. Go ahead. I'll wait. No, I don't have that kind of time. Take my advice and toss the plug-in. Get a can of spray or a candle. You'll need an exacto knife to get the plastic cover off the candle. But it's still easier than a plug-in refill. Need milk? Get your pliers out. Those caps are screwed on tight. Contact cleaner? Tweezers and scissors will do just fine. They also work well on vitamin and aspirin bottles. Mini-screwdrivers have hundreds of uses and are an essential part of any woman's tool box. Let's face it, sometimes the only thing separating us from what we want is a hunk of thin cardboard. Tin snips are overkill in this situation. Mini screwdrivers punch right through and get you to that breath spray you not only want, but need.

I don't know about you, but I'm fed up. When I buy something, I check the packaging. If' only a great white shark could open it without aid, I leave the product on the shelf. We aren't all thieves. Most of us just want something we can take home, open, and use. Cost/benefit manufacturers. Cost/benefit. Surely you can come up with something better. Something that protects you from shoplifters, yet is simple enough for a normal female to open.

Don't get me started on stickers! I recently bought glasses with stickers on the bottoms. NASA could use that kind of adhesive. Pfaltzgraff has lost a customer. Simply because of sticker glue. Half the items I bought last year are still in the process of being opened. The other half have edges of stickers still attached to them.

From now on my motto is: If I can't get to it with my bare hands, I won't buy it. Period.