And so it begins anew…
We’re been contemplating upgrading to a Blu-ray player for Christmas, and this week we finally committed to the idea by purchasing a Play Station 3. Unfortunately by doing so, we’re setting ourselves up to be taken advantage of by the movie industry (yet again). Always trying to squeeze more money out of collectors, the typical DVD buying pattern goes something like this:
- First DVD release on Tuesday
- Special extended editions DVD
- Collected box sets with even more extras
…and now, it’s going to be Blu-ray that’s going to be getting my money.
For the record, here’s what our DVD collection looks like today:
I’ve been collecting DVDs since 1998. A couple DVDs every week for 10 years and this is what you end up with. We rarely watch television, opting instead to watch a movie just about every night. We’re running out of shelf space but the way I figure it, purchasing Blu-ray DVDs will free up room due to their slim packaging.
On the negative side, Blu-ray disks are more expensive than their conventional brethern, which means we’ll have to be more selective in our Blu-ray purchases. Instead of buying our movies at Best Buy where new releases cost anywhere from $25 to $30 (who’s plunking down that much for a movie anyway?!), we’ll be ordering them online where they’re much cheaper, or waiting a few months for the new releases to go down in price.
Also, from what I hear, the older movies that are “remastered” for Blu-ray don’t look much better than their regular DVD counterparts. For my money I’ll be sticking to newer movies on Blu-ray, especially if the newer releases take advantage of modern high definition film standards. I can’t see Casablanca looking any better on Blu-ray than it does on DVD.
There’s a group of companies currently airing commercials on television promising cash for gold. Guaranteeing nothing, they promise that they’ll pay money for your “unwanted gold, silver or platinum”. All you have to do is ship your extra gold in their insured envelopes and within 24 hours of its delivery they’ll send you a check.
What they don’t tell you is how much they’ll pay you for your gold. I’ve been searching online for some sort of scale they use, but so far I’ve come up with nothing. The commercials make it seem as if by sending in your gold you’ll make a tidy bundle. According to various reviewers (and ex-employees) that’s simply not the case. The more I read about them the more shocked I become. To say that their business practices are suspect is an understatement.
They’re also not required to verify that the items sent to them actually belong to the sender. This service they provide screams “fence” to me. It’s a perfect source of revenue for thieves and grifters wanting to unload stolen merchandise.
These scam artists are scum. In times of high unemployment these companies are preying on the old, the uninformed, and the desperate. They offer low-ball payouts for those who most need the money, and don’t care if the items they receive are stolen or not. I’m sick of these businesses who prey on the weak. My only respite is my belief that there’s a special circle in hell reserved for “people” like them. It’s a rare sort of entity that gets me worked up enough to wish karma-tic harm upon them.
UPDATE (2.1.09): Here are 10 Confessions of a Cash4Gold employee, guaranteed to make you think twice about using this “service”.
I can't believe you people are falling for this crap!
Insured for $100, or how much we think your gold might have been worth, whichever is less...
I hocked my grandmother's gold, and in two short weeks I received a check for $22.76!
Turn your neighbor's bling into cash to support your meth habit!
Deep in an undisclosed safehouse a nearsighted tattooed mafioso parolee transforms precious family heirlooms into unrecognizable ingots
Karin and I took a quick spin to Home Depot to pick up a new air filter for the house when we spotted this urban camper settled in for what appears to be an extended stay. Notice the satellite dish next to the camper door? The man must be on a serious shopping mission.
If nothing else you gotta admire his dedication to staying off the grid. It’s this type of person we’ll be looking up to when machines finally take over…
Is it just me or has America become more self centered? I mean, I’ve been around the block a bit. I’ve travelled to London, Hawaii, and had an extended stay in Japan, and nowhere else do I see such disregard for others as I do here in America.
Now, don’t get me wrong, but I think that America is the best blah blah blah blah blah…you’ve heard this before, I won’t repeat it. It’s little things that tend to bug me. This is a prime example. As you can see, there’s a sign posted on both sides of this fence that states in bold red letters that are easy to comprehend for even the dullest of knives that there’s absolutely NO PARKING here. This is an emergency fire lane for a housing development. What if a fire broke out? Do these tiny little people ever consider the consequences if a fire did break out and fire engines were unable to get to the fire?
Let me take a step back here and….breathe. It’s possible that these people can’t read english and I’m blowing this whole situation out of proportion. It’s possible that they don’t even have a drivers license. But if that’s the case then they’re not only ignorant of the law, but also a danger to everybody out there. I might sound like a ninny picking jerk, but these people might be putting your life on the line every time they hit the road.
It’s the morning after thanksgiving, and I’m awoken at the crack of 10am to the sound of Christmas music, rustling paper, and the shuffling of boxes. Thinking that I must be hearing things I roll over and turn on the DVD and flat screen and begin watching an episode of Land Of The Lost. Just when Marshall, Will, and Holly are about to figure out why gravity is acting all wonky I hear it again. This time the sound of boxes and paper is accompanied by the unmistakable tinkering, delicate bell-like echoings of…Christmas decorations?
I spring out of my bed to see what was the matter, and what to my wondering eyes should appear? It’s the wife, and she’s already decked the house out for Christmas. The hand rail to the stairs are wrapped with fake evergreen needles, various green and red accents are strategically placed carefully about the house, the fireplace is trimmed with garlands, and the fiber optic tree is up with presents already waiting patiently beneath.
Is it too soon for Christmas?
…and how many of those presents are mine? 
