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11-25-2005, 12:30 AM
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#1
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Montana Master
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Fort Myers
Posts: 5,933
M.O.C. #4282
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Tired... but happy... with new laptop
I left from home at 2:15 this morning driving my Park Avenue and drove 45 miles through a winter storm (not too bad... except for rutted, two track highways... visibility poor in spots) from Alden to Gaylord to get to the Walmart there so I could get a shot at the HP laptop they were offering as a "Loss Leader" for $378. They started their sales at 5:00 AM.
I checked last week after discovering on the internet that this item was going to be available. Gaylord had 23 alloted, Traverse City had 30, and Houghton Lake had 35. Those were the only three stores the clerk had numbers for last week Wed. I am closer to Traverse City, but Gaylord is a Super WalMart, so they are open 24 hrs, meaning you can wait inside. It is running between 8¼ and 18¼ with heavy snow... the wind has died down for the most part. But at my age I am partial to waiting in line INSIDE.
I got there at 3:10 and I was #4 in line. They lined us up at the register to prevent fights. Good Plan. We sat and drank coffee and ate day old doughnuts. The line ended up being around 70 to 80 people. I later talked to #15 and he got there at 3:45. We all put our coats over our box in our carts and headed to the door. Did not want to walk around in there past angry people who didn't get one. How you like to be #24 and be told "Sorry", after getting up at 4 AM or so on what would normally be your day off?
I have to return my current laptop to my school when I retire (soon) and I needed another PC laptop to replace it for FTing. Good timing. Cheryl still needs one. They only allowed one per customer. We'll get one later for her.
My family though I was nuts when I told them what I planned to do. They probably would have been number 70, and wondered what happened...
Cheryl told me I had to have it wrapped to put under the Tree for Christmas. I got out of that one because Walmart has a 15 day store warranty (HP has more), so I told her this morning when I came home, that, as sad as I was about this, I was going to have to set it up and check it out... "just in case". She said, "No Problem. When your done today, just put it back ing the box and I'll wrap it. I took her into work this morning to open the resturaunt, so I have until 3:00 PM to figure a way to extend that, somehow. She thinks she's so smart.... That's what I get for marrying someone smarter than me.
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11-25-2005, 12:42 AM
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#2
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Montana Master
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Clearwater
Posts: 10,917
M.O.C. #420
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Quote:
quote:My family though I was nuts when I told them what I planned to do.
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So do I, I would have sent Lorraine.
Put a brick in the empty box and wrap it. Tell Cheryl you felt guilty and wrapped the computer yourself and put it under the tree and won't open it until Christmas. From now until Christmas you can play with it while she sleeps or is at work.
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11-25-2005, 02:45 AM
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#3
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Montana Master
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Fort Myers
Posts: 5,933
M.O.C. #4282
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11-25-2005, 08:06 AM
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#4
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Montana Master
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Wetumpka
Posts: 4,936
M.O.C. #1105
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You guys are devious! I'm gonna tell!
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11-25-2005, 08:29 AM
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#5
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Montana Master
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Oceanside
Posts: 20,028
M.O.C. #20
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How about a ribbon on the top, the backside of the monitor so it wouldn' interfere with operating the system between now and Christmas. And maybe put the ad in a box and put that under the tree. Don't forget to act surprised when you open the box.
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11-25-2005, 10:28 AM
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#6
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Montana Master
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: San Antonio
Posts: 1,740
M.O.C. #1757
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What we have to go through these days. Merry Christmas.
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11-25-2005, 12:06 PM
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#7
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Montana Master
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Down the Road
Posts: 5,627
M.O.C. #889
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This is the first time and LAST time I stood outside a store to purchase something. I wanted to get the laptop that Circuit City was having. A Toshiba with free printer and wireless router for $199.99 The ad said MINIMUM of 16 per store, I was number 18 in line stood there from 230-5am when they opened. This store only had 14 of them and was offering no rainchecks or subs on the item. And the crowds of people seem just plain unhappy, never heard so much complaining as I did today. As Glenn said on another thread, I am not going near those stores today for nothing. Will just have to remind myself that next year. =)
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11-25-2005, 03:01 PM
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#8
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Montana Master
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Fort Myers
Posts: 5,933
M.O.C. #4282
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Sorry to hear about that, Dave. Worse time of the day to have one of the best deals slip through your hands. That's when I have to go home and read, "Attitude is Everything". Sometimes twice. Your situation may have called for a double read.
I guess here in TC, people started lining up at KMart at midnight. I went thru their ad (of course, focused on electronics/tools) and I really don't know why that store was a couple hours out of the ordinary this year... did not have reports of any other store having a line that early around here. They didn't seem to have any big "loss leader" item, but maybe I missed it.
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11-26-2005, 01:51 AM
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#9
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Montana Master
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Topeka
Posts: 1,121
M.O.C. #2215
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Dave ... if you watched the news last night, you probably already know how lucky you were to be shopping at a store in the middle of the night with civilized folks. We saw film clips of fights and stampeding customers trying to get into Walmarts in a couple of other states to buy what I believe was the advertised laptop computer like you purchased ... one woman even had to be treated by paramedics! One of the stores featured was in Michigan.
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11-26-2005, 06:50 AM
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#10
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Montana Master
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Fort Myers
Posts: 5,933
M.O.C. #4282
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Everyone in Gaylord was pretty civilized... tired, but civilized. No fights or tempers flaring. However, I really didn't sitck around too long. But for the two hours I was there it was fine.
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11-28-2005, 02:49 AM
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#11
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Montana Master
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location:
Posts: 2,232
M.O.C. #2975
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Dsprik, if you still need another laptop, Dell has good sales on laptops. We have two of them. So far they work pretty good. One has had to have some work but Dell came out and did it. Three times to be exact. Seems to be OK now, if not they said they would replace it.
Dell's customer service is not good but no customer service is good these days. Just have to keep after them and they will come through. We have the accident warranty on one of ours and the extended in home service on both. Also both have the CD burners and the wireless.
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11-28-2005, 03:08 PM
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#12
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Montana Master
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Fort Myers
Posts: 5,933
M.O.C. #4282
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Thanks, Dusty. We will probably wait a couple months or so before getting another laptop. Cheryl still has a Mac desktop that she uses, but we will not take that with us FTing, and she will need a laptop at that point (or just before).
I have gotten the Dell recommendation from another friend also.
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