To avoid last year's 1-800-Flowers.com debacle, on January 30th, I went to a local florist and ordered one dozen long-stemmed red roses ($80) to be delivered today by 5:00 p.m. I placed the order well in advance, so I should be good to go.

When I didn't receive the anticipated "Thank you, you are wonderful" call, I was somewhat concerned. Could this be happening again? Nah. When my lady friend called me at 7:30 p.m., I asked her if she received anything at work today. Nope. Wonderful. That's great.

I immediately placed firm but fair a call to the florist, who informed me that they attempted delivery between 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m., but "the place was closed." Wrong. Try again. "Just a minute, please…"

After some haggling, the florist agreed to issue a full credit, and make delivery tomorrow with a note of apology. Fair enough. This year, once again, I heard "It's the thought that counts."

Know what? I like md TheOl'Guy's approach.