The Home Depot sold me a new angle grinder for under $30 (plus tax) and so this morning I put Lexi and Samantha in their crates for a couple of hours and drove across the toll bridge to the marina, ready to finish wire-brushing the first side of the mast.
You can imagine my displeasure when I opened the box and found no wrench to put the wire brush onto the grinder. I can't count the number of times I've bought things at home centers that didn't have all their parts.
So of course I was mildly steaming when I drove back across the bridge, and a half hour later arrived at The Home Depot, tool and receipt in hand. I explained (politely) that there was no wrench in the box. The lady at "returns" told me to go find a box with a wrench. But after opening the half-dozen boxes on the shelf, I found them all devoid of wrenches.
Amazing, and a bit disconcerting. I rechecked the boxes but still had no luck. So I went back to the returns counter.
A fellow was there with the lady, and he examined the box. At first, he was as dismayed as I. She called for help from the tools section, and he proceeded to open every plastic bag in the grinder box.
You probably have guessed the result. He found a wrench, inserted conveniently in the end of the handle that screws into the side of the grinder. I hadn't opened that bag since I hadn't found a wrench in the box and as yet had no need for the handle.
This is a lesson I'll probably never learn, akin to closing the refrigerator door completely, of which I am found guilty on a regular basis. I'm not certain what the lesson actually is. I just know I feel stupid.