Jinxed

DVD manufacturers, particularly those of multi-DVD sets, should standardize their packaging to one of the designs that isn't prone to breaking before it ever reaches the store. Or maybe they just need better quality control.

Though I'm a perfectionist, I do have some tolerance for flawed packaging; last year I resorted to a rubberband and paper sleeve rig to hold an errant dvd in place in its set. This year, however, the hinged middle piece holding 2 DVDs on either side of it had a completely broken hinge and missing teeth for one DVD.

Mom and Dad were driving up to storage so I decided to tag along to help and then head up to the mall with them so I could exchange the DVD set and look in Target for some bras on sale. This meant assuming pretzel form to sit behind the front seats of the pickup truck, but I figured I could manage for a short time.

Unloading the truck was a snap, but when we got back in after less than ten minutes, it wouldn't start. Mom walked to the office to see if someone would give us a jump since we knew that would be faster than AAA. While we waited for Mom, Dad and I both confessed that it'd crossed our minds that the truck might have trouble. (Sometimes it won't start if it hasn't been driven for a while, but it'd been fine just yesterday.) We'd jinxed ourselves.

Mom had been gone for a while and I commented that every time I've stopped to sign in at the office there have been at least 5 people in the office which was making me start to think they were a bunch of jerks if not one of them could spare under 10 minutes to drive over and give us a jump.

After 10 to 15 minutes, Mom came back somewhat disgusted. As soon as she'd asked if someone could give us a jump, everyone in the office made themselves look really busy. The boss had pointed to one guy to do it who was on the phone. When he got off, he filed something and then someone transferred another call to him. No one gave her a definitive answer. Or offered to let her call AAA, or to wait in the office (hello, it's cold out) while we waited for help. She ran into a worker outside who'd just pulled up in a van and asked him and he said he'd ask the boss.

So she came back and we called AAA who said someone would be there within 90 minutes. Dad left to wait for them at the entrance while Mom and I played tic-tac-toe on the steamy passenger window.

About 10 minutes later, a small van pulled up. It was the worker Mom had asked on her way out of the office. He'd just gotten off work and was nice enough to come back by to give us a jump.

Then we called AAA to cancel our order. Dad wanted to drive home and then take their car back out to the mall, but I told him that I hated the idea of backtracking all the way home without having accomplished anything I'd wanted to do on the outing. My stops would be quick and Mom had a return also, so Dad just dropped us off and drove around to pick us up again.

Best Buy's exchange policy is pretty simple. They stickered my DVD set at the door, so I could find another copy and then head to the return desk. Only problem was they didn't have another copy of season 1 of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. So I got in line for the return desk.

They had 2 people working, but 1 was stuck with an old guy the whole time I was waiting while people slowly filtered through the other person. After ~15 minutes, it was my turn. I explained that I wanted to exchange it because the case was broken but they didn't have any in stock. He opened it and looked at it, looked at my receipt, consulted with someone, and then came back.

Under state law, they can't refund open software (movies fall under this category apparently) due to piracy concerns. They have 6 on order, which should be in in a week or so (and still within my return window), so I have to go back when they have one in stock. As I walked out of the store, I realized I'd jinxed myself a second time today buy saying I wanted to accomplish something on our ill-fated outing. Of course, Target was also a wash. Not surprising though as ours is small and doesn't have the same variety and level of selection larger ones have.

Sigh.

Home without further incident now though, so that's something. Time for a pre-dinner cookie now methinks.


A year ago on TTaT: Snowprints