The Wii

On a brighter note.....





Are you still looking for and hoping to get a Nintendo Wii before Santa arrives?




The Wii issue is resolved for me. Believe it or not, I was able to get a complete set for a reasonable price. If you are hoping to buy and own a Wii sometime between now and Christmas day and you don't want to overpay, here's some information that might help you:

1. Tell everyone you know that you are in the market to buy a Wii. Spread the word. You'll never know where your lead will come from.


2. Call every store in your area that you can think of that might sell the system and ask them when they will get their next shipment. Target, Toys R Us, Best Buy, Fry's, Circuit City, are just a few names but don't stop with these. If you get someone on the line that seems helpful, schmooze them. If you can, leave a contact number with them so that they can call you when they get news of a new shipment.


3. When you find a place that will get a shipment, make a commitment to be at the store at least two hours before the opening. Don't fool around. Get there! Take some coffee, tea, or water, and the newspaper and dress warmly. You might consider taking a light-weight folding chair with you as well.


4. Be sure to understand what payment methods are available. Cash? Check? or Credit card? Do they take American Express?


5. Know what you want in a system and how much you are willing to spend. Be prepared for a curve ball. For example: You showed up just to buy the basic console. What if they tell you they are only selling the system as a bundle? Are you prepared to buy the entire bundle? What comes with that bundle?
6. If you go to a store and miss the opportunity to to buy one because you were too far back in line. Don't leave. Wait until the systems are sold and loiter around. Sometimes they have extra systems that they don't pass out cards for. And there is the chance that one of the buyers is willing to sell his/her system for a profit. A true profieer. Be sure to cut yourself a good deal!

Here's my story on the Wii. After calling around to every place I could think of, I got word from a Toys R Us that their Sunday shipment did not come in and that they were expecting it Monday night. They would unpack it on Monday and set it up for sale Tuesday morning. Reluctantly, and skeptically, I got up Tuesday morning and leisurely left the house. My goal was to be at the store at 7:00 am. The store opened at 9:00 am. I rolled up about 7:10 and noticed a line of about 20 people already formed. Still questioning whether they had systems at all, I casually strolled over to the line allowing one lady to beat me into position. You can all guess the conclusion..... At 7:30 the store representative comes out with 20 reservation cards. The cards run out three people in front of me. I was number 23. I deliberated for a moment and wondered if I should wait another hour and a half to see if there are any extras but decided to avoid the wait and I headed home. From there I get on the phone and call every store I could think of. I finally got a nibble when a young lady at Best Buy agreed to take my number and call me when she heard news of the next shipment. I still haven't heard from her. And that was two weeks ago.

Advance forward to last week. I'm laying in bed on a Saturday morning and the telephone rings. It's a friend. The voice on the other end says: "Don't think I'm crazy, but are you still looking to buy a Wii? Because if you are, I'm the 5 Th person in line at Fry's and they are supposed to have a shipment in this morning. Hurry up and get here." I hung up the phone and off I went. I had to rearrange and miss a few things including a 9:00 am. soccer game but I jumped in my car... Stopped for gas (you're always on E when something like this happens.) and rushed down to Fry's. I was number 17 in line. Suffice to say, I waited - Got my system - and moved on. My friend who got there before me found herself in a little bit of a bind. She hoped to pay for hers with an American Express. Guess what? This Fry's didn't accept American Express. Fortunately, she had a check with her and was able to purchase the system after a somewhat extensive background check. I offered to pay for it and let her reimburse me later but the ball had already started rolling on the check issue. I'm thankful for her call and I offered to take them (she and her husband) out to dinner one night. Bueno... Score one for the team.

I could write a whole new post about the people waiting in line with me. Like the women in front of me with the really bad cold. Coughing and sneezing and sniffling the entire time. Or the guy 5 people behind me who waited 1.5 hours in line with us all only to find out that the line was just for the Wii people and regular customers could have entered through another entrance hours ago. Or perhaps the guy immediately behind me who I saw in the parking lot later and he offered to sell me his system for a $60 profit. Or the husband and wife team who tried to cut line and buy two systems and found out there was only one per houshold. If the wife had waited and stayed in her place in line they possibly could have purchased the two systems seperately. But when they tried to buy them together they were denied. I'll spare you the rest of the details but what a morning and what an adventure for me.

Good Luck if you are looking for a system. Look for my post later on the setup and play of the system.