Yesterday Michele and I finally took the HDTV plunge and bought a 57" Sony for our home. We asked the salesmen about next-day delivery and were pleased to learn that our local Best Buy had just instituted a program guaranteeing next-day delivery for an extra $15. We plunked down our money and signed the paperwork.
This morning we started by removing the old television from the room and by moving the component stand to the side to make from for the new cabinet. One thing led to another and we ended up rearranging the entire living room, and slightly modifying our bedroom by adding a chair displaced in the process. While we were on a roll it was decided that getting the surround speakers into their proper position would be a good thing. Michele had the great idea of using two existing wall plates and their accompanying wire chases to run the speaker wires into and out of the crawl space. After two quick trips into that nether region we had fully functioning surround sound. Hubba hubba!
As the day wore on we weren’t hearing from Best Buy. Supposedly we were to get a call indicating what two-hour time range we could expect delivery. So I called and was told they were running late. I should call back in an hour. When I called back I discovered that the store’s truck was broken down. Obviously I was very frustrated at this turn of events as it meant not getting our new set today.
I was able to tell the sales person in no uncertain terms how upset and unhappy I was about this situation. I was able to do this without attacking him personally. To his credit he was able to let me say my piece without trying to defend the store or get me to feel sorry for their situation.
In the end they agreed to return the one-day delivery up-charge, and $10 more as compensation for the delay. They also agreed to put me first on the list for tomorrow and to call shortly after 7 am with an estimated time of arrival.
On the whole I am pleased with the day; the new living room arrangement makes the room much bigger and more open. And we have our surround sound speakers in place. It felt good to work with Michele on our home and we are both pleased with the result. The disappointment at not getting the HDTV this afternoon is there, but we are anticipating an evening of wonderful movies and shows tomorrow.