Friday, July 11, 2008

6a.m. wake up call

I went to bed after 1a.m. because I was having the hardest time falling asleep. I knew I'd probably get a 6 o'clock wake up call from The Guy. Yesterday when we chatted on the phone we talked about getting our iPhones. He said he'd call me back last night and let me know. I just kind of laughed it off.

At 6:08a.m. this morning, I hear zzzzzz coming from my phone vibrating, then the Law and Order theme song starts to play. The Guy is calling and telling me he is on his way to the AT&T store by his house. He asked if I was going to come over with him. I said sure. I said I was going to get an iPhone, I just needed the umph to get me there. That was it. So I get dressed, tell my mom who is laying in bed that I'm going to buy an iPhone. My mom questions me and I said dad approved it. Dad was asleep and did say last night I could. In my defense I mentioned it SEVERAL times- in front of both parents, and I mentioned the higher price tag per month. My dad and I worked on a compromise on that portion of the plan.

I throw some clothes on and get in the car. The Guy texts me telling me how there is always a fat man in a fold up chair at the front of the line or that he was bored. He calls me when I'm making the transition to the 10 from the 15 freeway and asks for me to go check Victoria Gardens out. So I set out on and do some hands-on investigative journalism. I even captured a couple pictures with my camera cell phone. The store was definitely closed and there were probably 50 people in line. The Guy said we were number 58 at the store by his house. The AT&T store at Victoria Gardens had maybe 30 people in line. I exaggerated and told The Guy close to 60 people because I figured by the time he drove over here the line would be longer, and the store by his house has good customer service.

I get to the AT&T store by his house at 7:10a.m. He is standing in line just beyond the building. It didn't look too bad. He was standing talking to a latina girl, her brother, and mom about the iPhone, getting one, and other things. We chat about how this is like Black Friday or how we thought there wouldn't be soooo many people, things like that. This girl was buying the phone for her and her boyfriend's anniversary.

The people were pretty upbeat in line. The only idiot was the 2nd person in line who kept walking around saying for "$100 or obo he would sell a spot in line next to him." Everyone yelled and told him how stupid he was. The line started moving 10 minutes before the store opened. The manager at the store passed out bottled water and they began moving the line into the store. At 8a.m. they began selling the phones. The first person in line took 45 minutes for some unknown reason, but the 2nd guy in line and those following took 5-10 minutes. There was an employee walking through the line with a Blackberry asking what color and size of iPhone we were getting. The Guy said we were getting "2 16gig blacks" and I laughed at him and I said I'm glad that he is making all of these important decisions for me. He said he wasn't- there were only 16gig blacks left, unless I wanted 8gigs. I didn't hear him. We found out we went to the best store in the area because at the 2 Victoria Gardens locations combined (Apple and AT&T there were 50 phones to go around. There were close to 70 phones at the store we went to. The other stores in the area didn't get that many.

The Guy and I got in the store about 9a.m. He kept calling work and saying he was on his way to San Bernardino to help out there. Then he got a call from his mom and coworker asking him to go to LA, so he said he was in the car, would have to turn around, etc. He did talk to his brother on the phone about that time and told him the truth. He said to keep it a secret.

I get out of the AT&T store about 9:30. The Guy gets out about 9:15. He had an iPhone, so the process was short and simple. Mine, being a family plan, my name not being the primary name on the account, the checker constantly forgetting my phone number, and things like that took longer. It was ok, though. I was upbeat and everyone was in a good mood. The people were all very friendly. We got there just in time- they cut the line off about 10 people after us because that was all the iPhones they had left.

I get home at 10:15 and The Guy instant messages me as soon as AIM signs on. He tells me how he is having a hard time activating his phone. I connect my phone and the same thing happens. Finally after 10 minutes or so it activates. The Guy said he was at home because he couldn't resist the urge to try out his phone, despite him needing to go into work. I'm not sure he actually made it. His friend Jeff called asking him to pick him up, so I'm kind of doubting it. I just got my new toy up and able to synchronize with my computer, so I'm happy.

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