At the neighborhood hardware, where you can’t just browse…

Waiting. Someone shuffles to the front.

“I could help you?”

“Yeah, I need a roll of painter’s tape.”

“What kind of tape?”

“Painter’s tape….” Seeing the look of confusion, I continue: “the blue tape, for masking off while painting.”

“What’s it used for?”

Straight face. I say, patiently, “…for masking off while painting.”

“You mean masking tape?”

“No, painter’s tape. It’s blue. Specifically for painting.”

She goes in the back, rummages around and triumphantly raises a roll of tape which is… unfortunately grey. And duct tape.

“No, that’s duct tape. Painter’s tape. Look for a blue tape.”

Some more rummaging around, and she cautiously shows me a roll of… blue painter’s tape. “Yes! That’s it! Do you have any that is wider?”

She looks at the tape, looks at me. “You mean thicker?”

“Yes, ok, thicker.” No, I don’t want thick tape, I want wider tape, but this has gotten way too complicated.

Rummages around. “No…”

“OK, I’ll take that then.”

She smiles, tells me it’s only $15 instead of $25, not knowing that I probably would have paid $25 just to get the tape without all the drama and been happy. And I show her the label says… wait for it… “Painter’s Tape”.

New Rule: If I can’t browse the wares, I won’t peruse your lairs.

Observation: This is why the government of Trinidad and Tobago charges an online purchase tax of 7%. Because of these valuable interactions.