Post by tequilaroses on Jul 16, 2005 9:20:44 GMT -5
Is anybody else here a Harry Potter fan?
I reserved the 6th book (Harry Potter and the Halfblood Prince), so decided to go to the midnight madness at Media Play.
Media Play was beyond crowded. Their parking lot was COMPLETELY full - so I had to park in the mall parking lot near JC Penneys (our Media Play is on the perimeter of the mall - along with many other stores/restaurants).
When I entered the store I received #396! It was already quarter to midnight, so I was one of the last to get a number (I had arrived late because I was at the movies seeing "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory").
Then, since I had lost my copy of the reservation slip, I had to stand in a special line to obtain the yellow copy of it - we had to show proof of identification. Well, apparently I wasn't alone, because lots of people lost/forgot their res. slips.
Then after that fiasco, it was waiting time. They had cases of the books set-up in the center of the store with several employees handing them out. They started calling numbers at midnight, without any micophone, podium, or anything else - so it was virtually impossible to decipher what they were saying with the crowd of people. When the crowd lighted enough so that I could hear the numbers being called, they were only on #150.
Finally, my number was called. Now it was time to get into line to actually pay for the book. There was one line to do this - and it literally snaked through the store. The last time I saw a line like that was when I was on vacation at Universal Studios. It was beyond ridiculous. Part of me thought for a second to put the book down and leave the store - come back tomorrow or something. Then I thought, no, I had come this far - it would be stupid to leave at this point.
So I waited. Some people were reading in line - I couldn't do that. I found a neat Harry Potter bookmark with beads on the tassel, so I had that in addition to the book - and I had one of the cases from the books. The staff was giving them away as they were emptying them out - they were flattened, so it was easier to carry. The cases are kind of neat - they're white and they have "Harry Potter and the Halfblood Prince" written all over them in green. On one side it says "Do Not Open Until July 16, 2005). I'll use it as a storage box.
As the line moved on, it divided into about 10 cashier lines - which was a relief. I still stood in line for about another half hour though. I had no watch with me, so I had no clue as to the time (I meant to take it, but forgot).
The good news is, between my $5 deposit, a $5 bonus certificate that I received for reserving the book, and my $10 rewards program certificate - I only paid for the bookmark! I basically got the book for free (they were selling them for $19.99). Awesome!
When I got into my car, it was only 1:15 am. I say "only", because I honestly thought it was much later judging from the length of time it seemed like I waited.
So I drove home, got ready for bed, went up to my room so I could sit in front of my fan, and read. I had this ambition to read past page 100 - I made it to page 40 before my eyes were crossing on me. I thought, there was no point continuing, since I wasn't grasping anything by then.
Now this moring I have had no time to read - and won't until later. I'm leaving shortly for my hair appointment. Then my mother and I are having lunch, and then we're seeing "Wedding Crashers"! Wooohooo!
I don't think I'll be attending the midnight madness when the 7th book comes out. When the 5th book came out, I wasn't even aware of a midnight selling, so I went to the store on Saturday and bought the book without any line or crowds. That was the way to go.
I reserved the 6th book (Harry Potter and the Halfblood Prince), so decided to go to the midnight madness at Media Play.
Media Play was beyond crowded. Their parking lot was COMPLETELY full - so I had to park in the mall parking lot near JC Penneys (our Media Play is on the perimeter of the mall - along with many other stores/restaurants).
When I entered the store I received #396! It was already quarter to midnight, so I was one of the last to get a number (I had arrived late because I was at the movies seeing "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory").
Then, since I had lost my copy of the reservation slip, I had to stand in a special line to obtain the yellow copy of it - we had to show proof of identification. Well, apparently I wasn't alone, because lots of people lost/forgot their res. slips.
Then after that fiasco, it was waiting time. They had cases of the books set-up in the center of the store with several employees handing them out. They started calling numbers at midnight, without any micophone, podium, or anything else - so it was virtually impossible to decipher what they were saying with the crowd of people. When the crowd lighted enough so that I could hear the numbers being called, they were only on #150.
Finally, my number was called. Now it was time to get into line to actually pay for the book. There was one line to do this - and it literally snaked through the store. The last time I saw a line like that was when I was on vacation at Universal Studios. It was beyond ridiculous. Part of me thought for a second to put the book down and leave the store - come back tomorrow or something. Then I thought, no, I had come this far - it would be stupid to leave at this point.
So I waited. Some people were reading in line - I couldn't do that. I found a neat Harry Potter bookmark with beads on the tassel, so I had that in addition to the book - and I had one of the cases from the books. The staff was giving them away as they were emptying them out - they were flattened, so it was easier to carry. The cases are kind of neat - they're white and they have "Harry Potter and the Halfblood Prince" written all over them in green. On one side it says "Do Not Open Until July 16, 2005). I'll use it as a storage box.
As the line moved on, it divided into about 10 cashier lines - which was a relief. I still stood in line for about another half hour though. I had no watch with me, so I had no clue as to the time (I meant to take it, but forgot).
The good news is, between my $5 deposit, a $5 bonus certificate that I received for reserving the book, and my $10 rewards program certificate - I only paid for the bookmark! I basically got the book for free (they were selling them for $19.99). Awesome!
When I got into my car, it was only 1:15 am. I say "only", because I honestly thought it was much later judging from the length of time it seemed like I waited.
So I drove home, got ready for bed, went up to my room so I could sit in front of my fan, and read. I had this ambition to read past page 100 - I made it to page 40 before my eyes were crossing on me. I thought, there was no point continuing, since I wasn't grasping anything by then.
Now this moring I have had no time to read - and won't until later. I'm leaving shortly for my hair appointment. Then my mother and I are having lunch, and then we're seeing "Wedding Crashers"! Wooohooo!
I don't think I'll be attending the midnight madness when the 7th book comes out. When the 5th book came out, I wasn't even aware of a midnight selling, so I went to the store on Saturday and bought the book without any line or crowds. That was the way to go.
Do I have to choose just one???!!!
