This blog is about my experience trying to get a Nintendo Wii.

They SOLD OUT!

Everywhere!

Unless you’ve been living under a rock (that’d be sweet, you should call me if you are–if you have a phone. I imagine those living under rocks probably still use rotary phones.) or are over the age of 60, you’ve no doubt heard that the “next-gen” of gaming systems are officially released now, with the Xbox 420, the Playstation 3, and the Nintendo Wii all officially for sale.

The thing is, I missed out! Last year around this time the Xbox 360 was the first console released, and I never realized the demand of the things. I told myself then that I’d be waiting in line for the Playstation 3, so that I could buy two–one for myself, and one to put up on eBay for more than double what it’s worth so that I can both turn a profit and essentially pay for the one that I kept.

Well, I found out they were released two days after the fact! I was frusterated. I thought that I could get in on the Nintendo Wii action, because those were in less demand but still were able to be sold online for a little profit. The only difference was that I don’t usually like Nintendo–they are a little too cartoonish for my liking, and there isn’t really many games that are available on it that I liked. But Katy really wants one so I thought I’d give it a shot, maybe as a Christmas gift or something.

But the more I learned about the Nintendo Wii, the more I really ended up kind of wanting one. They’ll be releasing more “mature” content for it, and the controllers really do look innovative.

Anyway, if you’ve been to any stores recently, you’ve probably seen the “sold out” signs posted around the electronics area. They’re nearly impossible to find (hint: Walmart will be refilling their shelves with Wii’s tonight at midnight.)

I’m getting off track. This is why I get frusterated writing blogs! Bottom line of this entry: this year was the first year I stood in line at the ass-crack of dawn trying to get a gaming system.

That’s right, I’m officially one of “those people.” Your good friend Adam hung out with the kids, the soccor moms, and the creepy 40 year old guys who live with their parents.

I was on “the forums,” as we geeks refer to the internet messaging boards, and got some tips about when the next shipments were supposed to hit stores. I was on the phone with a few stores throughout the week trying to ask the managers when they expect to get some in. Surprisingly, everyone was pretty nice about it. I can only imagine how many calls they got asking the same thing.

So, after some research, I determined that Toys R’ Us was the best deal. They opened at 9 on Sunday morning, so I thought I’d get there around 6. I knew they’d have at least 23 so if the line was long, I’d go wait by Circuit City, who didn’t open until 10 and would probably have more (I didn’t know how many, but they confirmed they’d be getting some in the day before.)

Well, I went to both of those stores around 5:30am, and the lines were already pretty much around the building. CRAZY. So I went for plan C, and headed to Target.

I got there around 6:00, and they opened at 8:00. It was ass cold, so I bundled up and brought some magazines. I didn’t read any, I just stood in line behind the 11 people that were there and shook my legs, trying to keep warm.

At about 7:45 the store manger came outside and handed out tickets for those waiting in line (at least, the ones that got there early enough. They only had so many.) People were happy, because now that they claimed their prize they could wait in their cars until the doors opened!

Did I get a ticket? Well, I’ll just say the person in front of me got one, and the person directly behind me did not.

…

I have to get to work now, goodbye!

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