This Time, I Sing Amazon's Praises

Let's dispense with a few things, right off the bat.

One: I know I totally have a hard-on for Barnes & Noble's online store. That has not changed. I still stand by the awesomeness of bn.com.

Two: I know in that very same post linked above, I crapped on Amazon a little bit. They deserved it. Especially after they shipped my semester's worth of textbooks in SEVEN separate boxes. That's just a bit excessive.

Three: I know that, while I haven't posted about this in any of my blogs, I have gone on record numerous times in opposition to Guitar Hero and games of its ilk. I don't need some fucking computer telling me I don't know how to play a song that I could totally play if I had, oh, a real guitar in hand. (I mean, Jimmy Eat World tweeted the other day [March 14, 2009, 10:55am] that they couldn't get through 20% of "Sweetness" on Expert -- and they wrote the damn song!)

All that having been said...

Amazon e-mailed me on Monday morning with an extremely enticing deal. The Guitar Hero: World Tour full band set, on sale for $119.98. A savings of $70.

Anyone who followed my Twitter, my Facebook, or my discussions pre-seminar knows that I actually did ruminate extensively over my decision. Should I get Rock Band instead? Is it worth the investment, even at the price?

In the end, I said yes. Pulled the trigger. Placed the order. I then figured on needing the 5-9 days it would take to ship it to let the purchase regret really sink in. But I figured wrong.

Last night at 5:38pm, I got an e-mail from Amazon saying my order shipped. A little over a day, but still not bad. Then I look at the shipping estimate. March 18, 2009. "That's tomorrow!" cried yesterday-me, who couldn't help but think there was a typo there somewhere.

But there wasn't. FedEx had my package in Lewisberry, PA -- just south of Harrisburg, which is a little over an hour south of State College -- so next-day delivery was a totally reasonable possibility.

This morning, as I sat in office hours, I decided, what the fuck? Let me track it. Clicky-clicky...oh, how nice. It's on my doorstep!

It took Amazon less than 48 hours to receive my order and put the product on my stoop. That's pretty darn impressive, especially since I decided to take the free shipping to save a little more coin. A small price to pay for my soul, since I anticipate my productivity plummeting as of about 4:00pm today.