Black Friday

So I get up at 4 am this morning. First time in my life I've actually ventured farther than my couch on Black Friday. In the past, my wife has done the Wal-Mart, Target, Mt. Shasta Mall, get there early for the great deal thing. Not me. No way. Uhn uh.

But....

(And there's always a big but isn't there?)

I have been looking for a laptop computer for sometime now. My wife keeps telling me I need a new computer, should get a laptop with docking station. So I find an HP Pavilions with the AMD 64, Duo-thingie with 2G of RAM and a 120G HDD. Fast. It's usually 12-hundred bucks but Best Buy@ has it on sale, two days only, for $899. Such a deal. Only caveat, I have to be in line at the store at 4 am.

So there I was, 4:10, 3/4's the way around the building, chatting with an overweight gamer and a hot, high maintenance blond, waiting for BB to open. 5 am, doors open and we move from our cold, outside line to a warmer inside line. "Computer buyers head back to appliances and get in line!" Okay...wind my way for an hour in the computer line. Get to the table, show them what I want. No problem, take this piece of paper and get in that short line. Guy takes me to a longer line while trying to sell me $100 worth of additional warranties. No thanks, just give me my computer. Wait for another 1/2 hour in line to go to another line to pay for the said computer. Guy picks up a Lexmark Scanner/Copier/Printer.

"What's that?"

"It's free."

"What if I don't need another one?" (I'd just replaced my old Lexmark with an HP two months ago when the old printer went teats up!)

"I don't care...their free."

Okay...pay for computer, take free printer to another line which is down a hall. "Go to the door next to the ladies room, give them your paperwork and you'll get your computer."

No prob. Out the door with a new printer and a new laptop.

3 hours from the time I left home to the time I got back. Wife thought I maybe had gotten into an accident or maybe had to "kill someone". Nope. BB did it right. Yeah I waited 3 hours in lines (and my back is killing me!) but I got the computer I wanted at the price I wanted and I didn't have to mingle with the unwashed masses who fight and scrabble for the last $4.99 DVD of "Pirates of the Caribbean" at Wal-Mart!

And yeah...the laptop is way sweet. Got the media package. A geek stick. Much faster than my 6-year-old Compaq. Spent my bonus money. Life is....not bad right now.

Eric