The Circuit City Fingers-Crossed Sale: The Results Show

Copies of "Witness for the Prosecution"? I was already overconfident in thinking that there might be even one copy at the Stevenson Ranch Circuit City. But, as it turns out, I was also overconfident in thinking that there might be all four volumes of "Futurama" there, waiting for me.

Instead, I found a Chuck Norris movie. I don't remember the title. I also spotted Seinfeld: Season 9, Everybody Loves Raymond: Season 9, Grey's Anatomy: Season 4, about seven copies of "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," along with a stray copy or two sitting among the CDs that couldn't be sold, and what felt to me like miles and miles of empty shelves, too long and disappointing to walk, yet I did it four times on the off chance that I might have missed something, that what I wanted was perhaps sitting behind another DVD case. I looked behind some of the DVD cases on my third go round. Nothing. Yet there were other customers walking past me holding stacks of DVDs. Some of what they were holding, such as "Catch and Release," starring Jennifer Garner, made me think that they were buying just to buy. "Oh my god, look! A total bargain! I have to buy this. I want that feeling of having bought something at a severely discounted price. I can't live a day without that feeling."

Yes, I'm a little bitter. But Mom was right: They get all the good stuff out of the way before total liquidation, and what remains is what discerning movie buffs and music fans would never buy. Being a discerning movie buff, I wasn't interested in any of what they had. There was "Air Force One," but in fullscreen and I don't go for that. Had there been a copy of "The Hunt for Red October," I might have bought that, despite spending nearly a week with it for a review for Screen It (parent-oriented review, so all details about violence, profanity, and blood and gore are required in list form in different categories), but I really enjoyed it, especially that level of intelligence in a suspense film.

However, there were some good things about spending time at Circuit City not at all finding what I originally wanted. I read the back of a triple-disc pack of "Psycho II," "Psycho III," and "Psycho IV," and now I'm curious about them (Netflix for the first two, VHS copy from the library for the third), and I got new headphones. It was quite apparent I needed new ones because the black fabric over one of the ears had fallen to the side and in order to wear them comfortably, I had to stretch the fabric over that ear and put them on while holding down that bit of fabric so it would stay. Obviously new ones were necessary.

I found them, stereo headphones, they work well and with thicker fabric over the ears as opposed to the thinner ones before (now thrown out), I can turn the volume up on the computer a bit more and it won't be too loud. It's the only reliable item you can get there that you won't get stuck with, since they don't accept returns now. $9.99 at 30% off comes to about $6.99 plus tax, so I did ok with these. And I don't have to again go through the ritual described above. That reason alone is worth it.

I'll just hope for "The Noel Coward Collection" to eventually come down in price on Amazon, and....wait! $6.20 for "California Suite" on Deep Discount (http://www.deepdiscount.com/) instead of $9.95 on Amazon, with free shipping from Deep Discount instead of the price paid for shipping for orders under $25 on Amazon? With how large my wishlist is becoming, I may have to switch my allegiance. On some DVDs at least.

The Circuit City Fingers-Crossed Sale

Tomorrow, I will be the vulture picking at the carcass on the desert floor. I will hop around it, looking for those crevices where the most beneficial things lie. I will peck and peck, hoping to break down that which is hardest.

I'm going to Circuit City to see what's left of their merchandise. Earlier in the week, I heard that all DVDs are now 50% off and I have to go. I need to go. My growing wishlist (see "A Partial Wishlist") demands it.

I highly doubt they will have "The Noel Coward Collection" in stock, but what a joy it would be if they do. I wouldn't be disappointed if not, as I'm also looking for "Witness for the Prosecution," "California Suite," "The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)," and "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie," which had been on sale on Amazon.com for $8.49 towards the end of December, but by the time I decided to order that and "My Blueberry Nights," it was already back to $14.99. "My Blueberry Nights" remained at $8.99, and I wasn't going to let that pass.

Because of the overwhelming appeal of DVDs sold at 50% off, I thought harder about what else I wanted. The four volumes of "Futurama" came to mind, especially because of those episodes airing on Cartoon Network, and being reminded of how continuously funny and literate they are. I'm not putting too much faith in them being available at this Circuit City in Stevenson Ranch, because they'd obviously be more popular than my desire for "Witness for the Prosecution" and the others, but they're on my list. Maybe I'll get that lucky.

Then I thought about "The Simpsons." I own the four seasons from the start, then a huge gap, as I also own season 9, which I requested, but I never requested 8, 7, 6 and 5. Or at least I thought I didn't.

For a few weeks in January, I decided that I wanted to Tivo "The Simpsons" every night. Before that, I watched it once in a great while. I still have old assignments from 1st grade and in one of them, inside clip art of a TV, I drew "The Simpsons" in crayon. Badly, but they're there, in overdone yellow. Maybe that triggered sudden daily viewings of "The Simpsons."

One episode I saw during those weeks was 'Round Springfield,' where Bart unknowingly eats the jagged metal prize in a box of Krusty-O's, ending up in the hospital. Lisa spots Bleeding Gums Murphy in another room, and Lisa doesn't know that Bleeding Gums is dying, since he doesn't let on about it. He dies and leaves Lisa his saxophone and she wants to find a way to honor him, which would be to have his sole record, "Sax on the Beach," played on a local radio station, if not for Comic Book Guy jacking up the price to $500 upon learning about Bleeding Gums' death. With the $500 Bart receives from a settlement over the metal in the Krusty-O's, he buys Lisa the album because she was the only one who believed him when he said he felt sick. She gives the record to the radio station DJ to play, and is handed a transistor radio so she can listen to the broadcast. It seems like it would get limited play, until a bolt of lightning from the dark sky electrifies the transmission tower, and all of Springfield hears Bleeding Gums' jazz. Then Bleeding Gums, appearing in a cloud, plays one last song with Lisa, which brings forth the most affecting version of Carole King's "Jazzman," performed by Yeardley Smith, who voices Lisa. I listened to it over and over from the Tivo, and then found it on YouTube.

So it would seem necessary to look for the season 6 DVDs which this episode is on, but I went on Amazon to look up season 6 and the Homer-head packaging looked familiar. I went into my room to take stock of the seasons of The Simpsons that I have and digging through the stacks I have in boxes on their sides that serve as shelves, I found that season. So that's $15 I've saved. And I know for sure I don't have "The Noel Coward Collection."

I've always liked Best Buy more than Circuit City anyway. Always felt that the former is more geared toward electronics and DVDs and CDs and appliances than the latter, which always felt like the stores were saying silently, "I know more than you'll ever know about what you like and if you have any questions, the employees are sure to look down on you and laugh in private later." I prefer the illusion that employees at these type of stores are willing to answer your questions, though I've not had any in years.

So tomorrow, I am a vulture. And I don't mind it, even though all sales are final. I doubt that possible copies of "Witness for the Prosecution" have been jostled around as much as DVDs current around some time in January.