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SWAP MEET
Yesterday, the pre-game scramble to Meet was amazing. Numerous posts re:start time, participants ready to sell, buy. Everyone jockeying for position at the starting line.
I am reminded to sales when I was about 8 years old (1955). At that time stores had major sales certain days of the year and many people shopped, looking for the great sales. Here's the scene.
J. C. Penny's big sale, large crowed of women shoppers (my mom included) assembled, waiting for doors to open. 9:00 employee opens door and is knocked down by wave of ladies. The rush at the door to enter was amazing; regardless of age, elbows flying, pushing, body blocks-as the women cleared the bottleneck of door, shoppers were fanning out, literally sprinting to various parts of store to snag their treasures. This was not an exercise for the weak or timid-everything went. I remember my mom sprinting, with me desperately holding on an trying to keep up.
When we reached the promised land, a little 70 year old granny intentionally knocked me on my butt, and moved on to the next Nemesis between her and her prize-no apologies-in fact,I don't think others noticed or cared- I had to scramble to avoid being trampled .
The SWAP MEET brought these days to life again and the thought had me on the floor, laughing by behind off for several minutes.
I hope you oldsters have the same reaction.

I have been to similar sales over here, I remember one at IKEA in Oslo, about 15 years ago; it cured me of over wanting to go to a similar happening ever again. The setting really brought out some less pleasant aspects of some people's personalities... Not that I have seen anything like that here, but I actually had the same thought as you at the opening of this swap meet; the OLF server must have felt like those people opening the doors at IKEA that day 15 years ago!

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

Funny Bob! Seeing those 70 year old ladies sprinting through the store must have been hilarious!
It was so crowded yesterday I couldn't log on for about 10 minutes ...just enough time to loose out on some things. Oh well .Maybe by the time we have another Swap,I'll have a bigger,better,faster computer.

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Anderson Guitars
Clearwater,Fl. 33755

Ever been to a Best Buy (or any other big retail store) the day after Thanksgiving? The tradition is alive.

I do remember the Blue Light Special days at K-mart back in the 80's when I was a kid. It was hilarious to watch those ladies just following that cart with the blue light around the store waiting to snatch up whatever deal was being offered up no matter what it was.

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Jonathan Kendall, Siloam Springs AR

Hey Arnt, Did you ever listen to CD or watch DVD of Emmy Lou Harris and Mark Knofler?

It was nominated for Grammy (I didn't know competition or Catagory-but to me, didn't matter. I knew it would win because it was one of the finest, with two great artists. But I found out it didn't win. I was incredulous and was going to find out who stole the Grammy!!--Sheesh, of all years to release this fantastic work only to be trumped by Dylan-the CD is wonderful, and the artist is Dylan-no chance for anyone in it's catagory. Rats!!

As I had threads open it two tabs waiting to post, and the main page open at the same time trying to figure out if the thing had started, but couldn't get into the main discussion forum to see, it reminded me of the jockeying around at the beginning of a sailing regatta, with everyone trying to get across the starting line at the exact moment of the starting flag/gun.  It was very exciting!

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Waddy

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[QUOTE=Hesh1956] Yeah we men would never stoop so low as to be rude to another while attempting to secure a good deal.........

Bob I have a nearly identical memory to yours of the door opening during a sale at a department store when I was a kid - last week..... This store had a wire system where change was passed overhead from register/department to register/department via a little cup that traveled on the overhead wire. Anyone remember those?[/QUOTE]

Oh yeah! But what I really liked was the vacuum pipelines (circa 1950) that took your money, in a cylinder cartridge, from the point of sale (no register) and whisked it overhead to some deep, dark recess where only the "trusted" could touch money and make change! Then it came flying back with a great WHOOP/THUNK as it blew out the exit hatch and landed in the catch basket. The clerk then gave you back your change and you left with your purchase. Can you imaging the size compressor it took to run all those pipes! I was really amazed that they got YOUR change back to the correct location. I always wanted to see what a baseball would do in those pipes.
Wasn't life simpler, and more entertaining, before computers?

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Hank Mauel

[QUOTE=Hesh1956] I remember those too Hank and they are much like the drive thru banks of today.
[/QUOTE]

I don't do "drive up banking"! When I turn in my hard earned money, I want to see the eyes and know first hand who is handling my dough. Just another quirk of us old guys. And I will NEVER submit to an automated teller machine! Banking should be a personal relationship type of commerce, not standing knee deep in snow punching in codes on buttons on some ice cold slab of stainless steel, with a canned voice and a heartless CRT staring back at you. When that's all that's left, I'll start burying my money in coffee cans in the back yard!

But wait...let me tell you what I REALLY feel about the subject.....

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Hank Mauel

[QUOTE=Hank Mauel] [QUOTE=Hesh1956] I remember those too Hank and they are much like the drive thru banks of today.
[/QUOTE]

I don't do "drive up banking"! When I turn in my hard earned money, I want to see the eyes and know first hand who is handling my dough. Just another quirk of us old guys. And I will NEVER submit to an automated teller machine! Banking should be a personal relationship type of commerce, not standing knee deep in snow punching in codes on buttons on some ice cold slab of stainless steel, with a canned voice and a heartless CRT staring back at you. When that's all that's left, I'll start burying my money in coffee cans in the back yard!

But wait...let me tell you what I REALLY feel about the subject..... [/QUOTE]

To each his/her own ...

I think I've been inside the bank maybe 2 or 3 times in the last 5 years, and those trips required passing by the tellers and going straight to the back office. Why would anyone want to stand in line at the teller?

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Jim Kirby
kirby@udel.edu

Fortunately my bank is a more community oriented/customer service focused operation than the local BofA, Wells Fargo, etc BIG GUYS and I am able to walk right up to a teller (all of whom know me on a first name basis) 98% of the time. Actually, there are usually MORE folks standing at the auto teller outside than in line inside. Probably why I can walk right in most of the time.

Also, getting accosted/mugged at the auto tellers by the low lifes is, sadly, becoming a more prevalent activity on the West Coast.
Anyway, that's just my banking preferences and, as usual, YMMV.

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Hank Mauel

There was a time, not more than a few years ago, that BofA was threatening to start charging a premium for face to face teller transactions, because the costs were too high.  I guess they gave up on that idea.

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Waddy

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