That was a wonderful experience for you. However I just wonder how many buyers never contact the business when they are concerned about the shipping charges. In my experiences when I've called a business regarding shipping they are more than happy to listen and see if they can lower the cost or even change the method of shipping for me.
No one wants to lose business in these times and a friendly call politely questioning what the shipping charges are has always resulted in a big plus for me and a plus for them with a return customer. This applies to anything I buy over the internet. I am so happy you took the time to call and speak with them before you wrote them off. It's all to easy to get discouraged and frustrated when most times all it takes is that phone call to help yourself and them.