Hot Diggity!
Hey, even hoary old women like to avail themselves of the latest electronic gadgets sometimes. I'd seen how neat my younger son's little device was, a memory stick, just a wee thing that could be downloaded with scads and scads of data. He's had his for years, and it's been through wars, so to speak. When he's attending a conference, going to make a presentation all he has to do is download the works onto his neat little memory stick, slip it into a match-stick size pocket and away he goes.
It's had some rough treatment, and has survived. You know that old characterization of scientists as having brains sufficiently large to understand concepts beyond mere mortals, yet they forget the most mundane things? That's our son, the stereotypical scientist. Forgot his memory stick once in the pocket of one of his trousers and it went handily through the wash, then the dryer. And none the worse for wear.
Thought I'd get one for our daughter. In her profession that kind of neat little device would be a great assist. She could download detailed plans she's worked on throughout the course of the day onto one of those, and haul the minuscule memory bank back with her home, where she teleworks half a business week in her own home office. It would just make things a little easier, neater.
So I did pick one up for her, on sale, at Office Depot. A 1GB USB pen drive. It'll be a nice little surprise for her. I like nice little surprises. Although it often seems to me that nothing I do really does surprise her. I do like the thought of easing her life, a trifle here, a trifle there. It's a lot easier, it seems, to surprise her daughter, but then ten-year-old girls are easy to please; a hoodie here, a Teddy Bear there.
Then I bethought myself into similar ownership of a memory stick. A nifty little idea, rather than burn CDs, to transfer data from one place to another. They're getting a whole lot less expensive to acquire now that they're no longer the latest-and-greatest in computer electronics. My husband enjoys looking through all the advertising trash that normally accompanies our two daily newspapers.
He brought a sale of electronics at The Source to my attention, and pointed out a really smoking deal, at less than half of what I'd paid for the similar item for our daughter. Regularly $50, a 1GB USB pen drive for $19.99. On the way to do our grocery shopping I'd drop by and have a look, he suggested. So that's what we did; he waited in the car while I went into the store.
Not very busy for a Friday afternoon, despite the signage throughout the store advertising hot deals. Three bright-looking young men all behind the sales counter, and a single customer opposite the counter. I'd quietly wait my turn, I told myself, and waited while the customer was being looked after, and I was, it seemed, studiously ignored by the other two sales people.
Finally, I approached one, asked if he was free to give me assistance and he allowed that he was. I wanted, I said to him, to see about getting a memory stick. What make? he asked. What? I responded. Do you have a Sony? he asked. What capacity you looking for? How many photographs you plan to download? Pictures? I want to download text to my computer.
He looked puzzled. One of the other young men nudged him and said something quietly and the light dawned. I'm using questionable terminology, I said, and he agreed, and I explained again what I was looking for. He turned around, brought a few items down from a board and I explained I was looking for something with about a 254MB capacity, nothing too capacious, nor too costly.
He mentioned nothing about a sale, and I just waited. He brought over for my inspection a neat looking little memory stick, 254MB. How much? $39.95. How about the advertised items, the ones on sale? He looked puzzled. I brought the segment of the advert I'd torn off which illustrated the item and he peered at it, then finally said there were none in stock. What? I said, this advertisement just arrived this morning with our papers!
Well, he said patiently, it's been on sale for over a month and they sold out quickly. None left. You interested in this one, he asked, pushing the 254MB toward me. I was, but then I pointed out to him that I would be paying twice as much for a fraction of the capacity and it didn't seem like a very good deal to me. His nice young face looked at me blankly. I repeated my concern that a newly-advertised item was unavailable, and he shrugged his shoulders.
Sorry, Ma'am, we just don't have any. I repeated my disbelief. Finally, one of the other young men, obviously more senior and experienced joined us and said they could check to see if there were any left at any of the other outlets, have it delivered to their store, and make it available to me. But, he cautioned, it would have to be prepaid. And just why would that be a problem, I laughed?
The deed was done, the sale rung up, I proferred the cash, was given the receipt, and we were jolly all around. They would let me know when it arrived, so I could pick it up. Delightful. Surveying my receipt, I asked the young man where on the receipt it indicated that I was not yet in possession of the item. Oops, he said, and offered to write just that on it.
Contrast that (and I did, I certainly did) with the treatment I received at the kindly young hands of the young men who work for the competitors at Office Depot. When I first went there to look at their memory sticks I specifically asked to see the lower volume, lowest priced examples. There was no hesitation in explaining things to me on the part of the sales representative. He didn't at all mind being helpful, and that was, in fact, the experience we've had over the years with the Office Depot staff.
Moreover, he recommended that I await the receipt of their usual Wednesday sales flyer tucked into our newspapers as, he said, they would be certain to have a few of them on sale and then I could spend a modest sum and end up with a superior product. And that is exactly what I did, when I bought the nice bright little item for our daughter. My experience, a scant week later with the competition did not endear them to me, and I know which store I'll return to in future.
Meanwhile, my business with The Source was concluded. We enjoyed a positively amicable parting.
It's had some rough treatment, and has survived. You know that old characterization of scientists as having brains sufficiently large to understand concepts beyond mere mortals, yet they forget the most mundane things? That's our son, the stereotypical scientist. Forgot his memory stick once in the pocket of one of his trousers and it went handily through the wash, then the dryer. And none the worse for wear.
Thought I'd get one for our daughter. In her profession that kind of neat little device would be a great assist. She could download detailed plans she's worked on throughout the course of the day onto one of those, and haul the minuscule memory bank back with her home, where she teleworks half a business week in her own home office. It would just make things a little easier, neater.
So I did pick one up for her, on sale, at Office Depot. A 1GB USB pen drive. It'll be a nice little surprise for her. I like nice little surprises. Although it often seems to me that nothing I do really does surprise her. I do like the thought of easing her life, a trifle here, a trifle there. It's a lot easier, it seems, to surprise her daughter, but then ten-year-old girls are easy to please; a hoodie here, a Teddy Bear there.
Then I bethought myself into similar ownership of a memory stick. A nifty little idea, rather than burn CDs, to transfer data from one place to another. They're getting a whole lot less expensive to acquire now that they're no longer the latest-and-greatest in computer electronics. My husband enjoys looking through all the advertising trash that normally accompanies our two daily newspapers.
He brought a sale of electronics at The Source to my attention, and pointed out a really smoking deal, at less than half of what I'd paid for the similar item for our daughter. Regularly $50, a 1GB USB pen drive for $19.99. On the way to do our grocery shopping I'd drop by and have a look, he suggested. So that's what we did; he waited in the car while I went into the store.
Not very busy for a Friday afternoon, despite the signage throughout the store advertising hot deals. Three bright-looking young men all behind the sales counter, and a single customer opposite the counter. I'd quietly wait my turn, I told myself, and waited while the customer was being looked after, and I was, it seemed, studiously ignored by the other two sales people.
Finally, I approached one, asked if he was free to give me assistance and he allowed that he was. I wanted, I said to him, to see about getting a memory stick. What make? he asked. What? I responded. Do you have a Sony? he asked. What capacity you looking for? How many photographs you plan to download? Pictures? I want to download text to my computer.
He looked puzzled. One of the other young men nudged him and said something quietly and the light dawned. I'm using questionable terminology, I said, and he agreed, and I explained again what I was looking for. He turned around, brought a few items down from a board and I explained I was looking for something with about a 254MB capacity, nothing too capacious, nor too costly.
He mentioned nothing about a sale, and I just waited. He brought over for my inspection a neat looking little memory stick, 254MB. How much? $39.95. How about the advertised items, the ones on sale? He looked puzzled. I brought the segment of the advert I'd torn off which illustrated the item and he peered at it, then finally said there were none in stock. What? I said, this advertisement just arrived this morning with our papers!
Well, he said patiently, it's been on sale for over a month and they sold out quickly. None left. You interested in this one, he asked, pushing the 254MB toward me. I was, but then I pointed out to him that I would be paying twice as much for a fraction of the capacity and it didn't seem like a very good deal to me. His nice young face looked at me blankly. I repeated my concern that a newly-advertised item was unavailable, and he shrugged his shoulders.
Sorry, Ma'am, we just don't have any. I repeated my disbelief. Finally, one of the other young men, obviously more senior and experienced joined us and said they could check to see if there were any left at any of the other outlets, have it delivered to their store, and make it available to me. But, he cautioned, it would have to be prepaid. And just why would that be a problem, I laughed?
The deed was done, the sale rung up, I proferred the cash, was given the receipt, and we were jolly all around. They would let me know when it arrived, so I could pick it up. Delightful. Surveying my receipt, I asked the young man where on the receipt it indicated that I was not yet in possession of the item. Oops, he said, and offered to write just that on it.
Contrast that (and I did, I certainly did) with the treatment I received at the kindly young hands of the young men who work for the competitors at Office Depot. When I first went there to look at their memory sticks I specifically asked to see the lower volume, lowest priced examples. There was no hesitation in explaining things to me on the part of the sales representative. He didn't at all mind being helpful, and that was, in fact, the experience we've had over the years with the Office Depot staff.
Moreover, he recommended that I await the receipt of their usual Wednesday sales flyer tucked into our newspapers as, he said, they would be certain to have a few of them on sale and then I could spend a modest sum and end up with a superior product. And that is exactly what I did, when I bought the nice bright little item for our daughter. My experience, a scant week later with the competition did not endear them to me, and I know which store I'll return to in future.
Meanwhile, my business with The Source was concluded. We enjoyed a positively amicable parting.
posted by Pieface @ 1:11 PM
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