Christophe's Laptop Computer Odyssey

Imagine

1. Being in a strange land.
2. Without your only connection to what’s familiar (aka laptop computer)
3. Then, imagine this:

A Frenchman (Christophe) and a Pakistani (me) going to buy a laptop computer (Toshiba/Compaq, we don’t care) in the United States (there)

• In the entire market, there are only about three computers to choose from because everyone is waiting for Windows Vista before rolling out their latest models.
• Christophe sees one, likes it, wants it.
• (Seriously, this was a good deal… a Gateway with 2 GB RAM, 160 GB hard drive and a dual core processor – Intel something something 5500 – for only $899)
• Best Buy’s check out counter computer doesn’t like European credit cards. (Zis countree is ridiculous!)
• Christophe is impatient: ‘e must ‘ave eet now! (‘is ozzer laptop is dead, you see.)
• Best Buy gives credit! But only if you have a U.S. drivers license and a debit card.
• Christophe has both! (I 'ave both!)
• Choice of two Best Buy credit cards – one comes with oodles of free things and money thrown at us. The other one has nothing.
• One of the cards is interest free. The other one would require an interest payment of $160 as soon as the sale was made.
• Guess which one wasn’t interest free. Sneaky little charming salesman fellow wasn’t going to tell us that.
• Best Buy also forgot to tell us that Christophe also needs a social security number.
• Christophe has none! (I 'ave none!)
• Disaster!
• Wal-Mart, in the next plaza, has an ATM!
• ATM – Our last hope (as opposed to our new hope)
• ATM!
• European credit card accepted! (Zis countree is still ridiculous!)
• Cash in hand!
• Bank account empty! Credit limit reached!
• Back to Best Buy!
• Laptop! Sneaky little charming salesman fellow makes a big sale!
• Done! (I 'ave a full service warrantee! I can break eet if I want!)

That took about 90 minutes longer than it should have - damn you Best Buy - but hey, good story.

Someday I will tell you about the time Christophe and I went to the Columbus Museum of Art and he took a picture of the most hideous painting in the entire exhibit (a 15 foot by 10 foot painting of some hip-hop artist dancing with purple and yellow wallpaper in the background) to send to France. (Zis is art in America.)

It appears that someday was now.