A Good Night's Rest

The average American spends a third of their lives sleeping...that means 194, 821 hours! For the last year and a half, I have been falling behind on my sleep quota. It has been a very long time since I have had consistent, restful sleep.

When Greg and I got married we purchased a really good mattress and it served us well for about 12 years. The last year on that mattress was a bit iffy but we couldn't afford to replace it quite yet. When we found out we were moving to Ransomville, I told Greg there was no way we were moving that mattress one more time, 7 times was plenty!

Just prior to moving we bought a new mattress at Sam's Club. It was the nicest one they carried, well, at least the most expensive, and it was one we could afford. Yes, we tried it out, it was not a rash decision. We didn't use it until we moved and the first 2 months were quite nice. After that the back and hip pains started. I just thought I was getting old. I was/am. Then it was restless nights, waking up tired after "sleeping" for 8 hours. There were days I needed toothpicks to keep my eyes open! It had a layer of that much-touted memory foam on top but after just 3 months, there were deep pits on both sides of the bed. It was the kind of mattress that shouldn't be flipped but at one point we actually flipped it over and slept on the wrong side. It was a lot like sleeping on the box spring, but with an egg crate foam topper it was actually tolerable. Are you getting the idea for how bad it was??

I have muttered many unkind things to that mattress over the last year. I considered sleeping on the sofa many times. To say I was annoyed and ticked off is an understatement! Often during my sleepless episodes I would craft a mental letter to the Serta company spouting my discontent with their POJ (short for "Piece Of Junk!). What is a girl to do after owning a mattress for almost 2 years? We could not afford to buy another one but it was clearly reaching the point that we couldn't afford not to replace it!!

Last month I went onto the Serta website to get the customer service information so I could actually send one these letters I had mentally crafted. While browsing the site I read over their warranty information. I discovered our mattress had a 10 year warranty and perhaps our POJ qualified for a replacement. My heart skipped a beat! I immediately phoned Serta and the customer service rep asked me a few questions about the mattress... did I have a receipt, where was it purchased? We have to keep all household receipts for pastoral tax purposes so I was able to find the 2007 receipt, yeah!! She advised me to take the mattress back to Sam's Club and exchange it. What?? Obviously, the one bad part about buying a mattress at Sam's is that you have to haul it yourself. I was in a bit of disbelief so I called Sam's Club to verify. There was no way I was going to haul it down there only to be told sorry, Charlie! Sure enough, she told me to bring it in! Not only that, but because I had my original receipt I had the choice of replacing it or getting my money back. Thank you Lord!! It took a few days to find the time and a truck, but we hauled it back and right as rain, she gave me every penny back in cash. Good riddance!

We didn't dare look for a new mattress until we were sure we could get our money back for the POJ. After securing the cash, we headed to JC Penney where they were having a mattress sale. We tried out every model on the floor, at least 3 times! The lesson we learned was that we need a firm mattress, so after about an hour of debating we chose a Sealy Posturpedic firm pillowtop. Even with the sale, it was more money than the POJ but still much less than paying for an entire mattress. We told the salesman we had a truck with us to take it home. Imagine how disappointed we were to hear it would be 2 weeks before we could get it! I suppose it just makes this whole saga even more comical! Except that I am not laughing.

We went home and spent the next 2 weeks camping out in our own home. Greg on a cot and me on an air mattress. Yes, it made for a romantic anniversary! Yesterday, a big white truck pulled up in our drive way and unloaded our brand new mattress. The heavens were singing, I tell you! Well, at least I was. Greg is out of town for Annual Conference so I had the bed all to myself the first night. Ahhh, it was delightful. I am hoping to catch up on some of those lost zzz's really soon.

Now I wish I had called sooner but that is the lesson learned. Don't suffer through life with a POJ!