My new socialist computer*
Following “Thanksgiving” dinner (the turkey won’t actually be served until Saturday in my house), I relaxed in the almost-freezing cold outside of Office Depot. I was there for a laptop. Technically, for two laptops. (I’m not so crazy, one was for my aunt.)
I had my eye on a shiny new Toshiba, and my aunt wanted a new HP. As the sixth person in line at 10 p.m. at night, I was not the only crazy shopper in the metro Detroit area. Actually, there were a lot of us bundled in warm blankets and still shivering on our lawn chairs in the middle of suburbia. By the time the tickets were being handed out, I had been in line in excess of seven hours, and tensions were high among me and other line-goings.
My aunt slept as I tried to keep my toes warn. The plan was she would join me an hour before opening, make her the seventh person in line. I worried if that was ethically right or not, but quieted my subconscious when I figured I could get both our laptops anyway. (There was a limit of one type of laptop per person. Since we were getting two different types of laptops, I could buy both.)
I notified everyone around me that my aunt would be joining me, and no one showed any visible problems with it. But, then the four men behind me began inviting all of their friends up to the front of the line. By an hour before opening, the four men had become six men and two women. The men were very aggressive, and sneaking in front of me in line. When I asked them to step back, they accused me of making the atmosphere unpleasant.
When tickets** for items began being passed out, a small riot ensued. Those behind the group, grumbled and moaned about line-cutters, even though some of the people had been there since about 2 a.m., just in the car or whatnot.
So, my question anyone who cares to answer- What does it mean to stand in line? Does going back to your car matter? Is it okay for my aunt to join me? Is it okay for the group of friends to invite more friends? What, exactly, does it mean to “cut”, and is “cutting” okay?
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*I wasn’t able to get the Toshiba I wanted due to … well, my computer wasn’t new. A small consideration, I realize, except it was missing vital things like some letter keys. So they exchanged it for a nice RED (shiny, pretty) Gateway. It’s perty and I’m very happy.
**The idea of jockeying for tickets is amazing to me. We stand in line for hours to have the ability to spend hundreds of dollars at a store. Please, please, please let us spend our money here! Most of the people in line with me had cars that were less than three years old. I guess we all care about our shiny new things.
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It’s so… red!