My German friend was able to contact Uwe this morning,
approximately 9 a.m. EDT. My friend lives locally, but is
going away for the holiday weekend and is thus unavailable this
Saturday. So, I FAXed to her a one page letter explaining the
situation, and listing Uwe's address and phone number. I
expected to set up a conference call between the three of us
tomorrow morning, but after reading my FAX she elected to
phone Uwe on her own.
UWE HAS RECEIVED THE ORDER. He acknowledged that fact,
and said that he has been extremely busy. He appears to be
swamped with orders. He told my friend that we will have to
wait.
I asked my friend if she mentioned the onslaught of
colder weather, and the concern that shipping would be
unacceptably risky in another month or so. She did not
discuss this with Uwe (the phone call was very short!). She
mentioned the e-mail group in the U.S. that sent him an
order, he responded that he received the letter, that he
was swamped with orders and very busy, and that we would
have to wait. That's all.
Sorry I couldn't get an "estimated time of response".
The situation seems pretty bad at this point. We haven't even
sent him any money to show a commitment. He needs to respond
to our inquiry, Don needs to collect the money, the order
needs to be sent, the plants then cross the Atlantic, and then
they are distributed. After Uwe responds, the remaining steps
will take at least three weeks by my guess. That's optimistic.
Ah well. There's always next year.
Perry