She's Not Giving In

With the holiday shopping season fast approaching, consider this post a friendly reminder that if you are trying to get your shopping done as quickly as possible there are certain people you never want to get stuck behind in line: the parent with six kids bouncing around the store, the person trying to do a return with no receipt or the person who isn't sure that what they are buying is the right thing and as such they want the clerk's opinion before they make a final decision. (Note that you can always spot this person because they will be holding two similar items with one in each hand as they literally weigh the pros and cons before your eyes.) If you see any of these people, find another register. I don't care if another line is longer, I can almost guarantee that you will still make it out of the store faster. The other day I had to add another person to the 'avoid at all costs' list: any one over the age of 70 at customer service desk of your local a Best Buy.

I was simply there to recycle some electronics. Best Buy has a program where they'll take just about any electronics off your hand, which can help if you live in a town where you are not allowed to simply throw your old computer to the curb. Really, all I was trying to do was bring two computer towers to the customer service desk, drop them on the counter and peel off towards an exit. However, there was a lady in front of me who had a problem and refused to help resolve the issue by listen to the poor guy working the counter. Her complaint was that while she wasn't totally sure what she was buying, she was damn sure that she was getting hosed in this deal. She kept insisting that the item was listed for a lower price online (how she figured out the Internet remains a mystery), while the poor kid behind the counter was trying to explain to her that the item was cheaper on the Internet because it was a different model and didn't have the same features. For some reason it was not getting through to this woman, who kept insisting that she wanted the item in her hand and she wanted it for the lower price. Her heels were dug in. Now, I didn't see who emerge from this battle of wills because, fortunately for me, another person came along and took the computers out of my hands. All I know is that this woman didn't appear to be going anywhere anytime soon. This is why I don't work in customer service.

-I was really bummed out to hear that Portland Trailblazers' center Greg Oden will be undergoing a second micro-fracture surgery and will miss the remainder of the season. That means Oden will have only played 82 games (equivalent of one full NBA season) in four years. While I don't have any ties to Portland or Oregon, I do like the team because they are one of those cities which only has the one pro franchise and as such they really get behind the Blazers. They are loyal fans who deserve a good team. The other thing I do want to say is that I don't want people coming out of the woodwork and saying how they would have totally taken Kevin Durant over Oden in that same draft. That is completely the hindsight talking, because almost no one would have reversed that pick. At the time Oden had only faced minor wrist issues, while those same draft experts questions whether Durant would be able to survive a full NBA season given his thin stature. The fact that Oden hasn't been able to stay healthy while Durant has evolved into a Top-5 NBA player is just an unfortunate result of a system that really is a gamble. Though, given the way it turned out, I am really happy the Celtics didn't win the draft lottery even though they had the best odds.