door-to-door

I live in an almost new apartment building, less than two years old. In the first year, lots of kids in the building came around selling stuff for school fundraisers.  My policy is to buy from every kid who asks me. I will buy raffle tickets for things I don't want and things I would like to win. I will buy at least one box of cookies -- more if it is Girl Scout cookies because I used to hump those as a kid and I buy them for the memories -- I also hustled GS cookies for my kid.

A time or two, since moving here, I have even just given a few dollars to a kid looking to go on a class trip to D.C. or something like that. I totally want every kid to go on such a school trip. Wouldn't it be awful to miss out because your folks were tapped out?

The door-to-door sales campaigns have died out.  I don't think any building children have knocked on my door to sell something this school year, thus far.

But last year about this time, a brother and a sister were selling fifteen dollar boxes of cookies. They looked like really crappy cookies. And it was irritating that the school fundraisers had chosen such large bundles.  Fifteen bucks would buy me three or four boxes of Girl Scout cookies and most of those are good cookies. Mostly, I give cookies away, esp. cheap crap manufactured ones.

That fifteen dollar box of cookies looked like baked sawdust dusted in crystalize sugar crumbs.

Still, I bought a box. I didn't have cash. The kids balked at taking my check and I said "Well, that's all I have, a check or nothing. Or you can come back."

They decided to take my check. They cashed it.

And I never got the cookies.

I didn't take their names or apartment numbers.  I don't remember who they are.

Another time, a girl was selling raffle tickets. As I counted out my money, after agreeing to buy two, she began to write her name on the tickets I was about to pay for.  I pointed out that the point was to write down my name so I had a chance to win. I got the distinct impression that she thought the point was to buy herself as many chances to win as possible. She did let me write my name but something felt wrong.

So. Do I buy this year when the holiday hustle picks up? Someone will be selling gift wrap, for sure.