True confession...I am one tough customer. Sweet, but tough. Probably because I spent four years in two different cultures where you negotiate the price of your vegetables. I'm pretty sure that the day Lee decided to marry me was the day we went to Schlotsky's (which have since closed and I MISS!) with a two for one coupon. We went in, totally unaware that it was for a different location about five miles away. When the cashier brought this to our attention, I said, "Oh, you don't want us to have to drive all the way over there, do you? You'll honor it, won't you?" And he did.
When we got engaged, a lady in our church said to Lee, "There goes your money guy!" Lee was laughing as he told me about it. She had no idea how much money I would save this man.
So today I took my computer to the genius bar at the Apple Store to have the battery looked at. Thankfully I had done my homework. I went on their support page and found that this was a problem people have been having, and that, if my computer was purchased during a certain time frame and had one of a list of symptoms, I was a candidate for replacement even if the warranty had expired (which it did a month ago). While I was at the store trying to bring the bookmarked page up, the genius was telling me sometimes batteries just wear out, and your warranty is expired, and what? you don't have AppleCare?, and you'll probably have to replace it. And do you have Leopard or Tiger, or do you know? What?? Do I know??!!! What kind of a question is that for an intelligent person? (Tiger.) So I pulled up my Apple Support page, and voila!
Free new battery. Value: $129
Knowing your stuff well enough to beat the genius at his game: Priceless.
I celebrated by buying sandals for Bethany and me. Twenty bucks. Cha ching!
P.S. Due to popular demand, the Apple page for dying batteries is here. Go get 'em!!
82 comments:
Atta girl!! I love when I hear of women outsmarting the sharks. Good for you!!
I can't imagine the amount of money I could save if I tried. Can you come help me!!???
Haha! It pays to know your stuff.
(I came from SITS!)
way to go...and he was probably some punk young kid too! he didn't see it as a savings, however...just the next technological toy that he will not be getting with that lost sales commission! bwhahahaha.
Have you ever totalled it up? That would be fascinating to know.
WTG! I can't stand when people try to pull the wool over one's eyes.
You remind me of my mother (um, that'd be a compliment ;) ) and her mother, too. The Money Saving Queens - between looking for a bargain and being "sweet but tough customers" just like you, bundles of money have been saved over the years.
My mom's best "savings" move is if she is at a store where there's a coupon (like the kind that gets mailed to you if you're on the list) and she doesn't have the coupon but sees the person in front of her using one, to say to the cashier "Oh SHOOT, I forgot my coupon..." and nine times out of ten, the cashier will just ring up the discount for her. I've tried the same move a few times and it has NEVER worked for me. Humph. Guess I don't look "sweet, little old lady" enough yet..... :D
Cheers!
Happy Happy SITS Day to you!
I need you to be my new best friend! Sounds like you know how to work it. :)
Way to do your homework! Nice :)
You're my kind of tightwad! Good for you!
Nice going! That must have been such a great feeling when you were buying your sandals after some savvy saving!
good for you! I need to get better at this because I'm married to a spendaholic.
You are my kind of blogger! I love free and almost free.
Winner!
It's such an awesome feeling to save money, when others are throwing theirs out the window, it seems. I love me a good deal.
Happy SITS day to you! Hope you're swimming in comment love by the end of the day!
Oh my gosh! Congratz on being today's SITs gal! You've come a long way baby! hehe I just like saying that ;)
Boy do I bet my DH had met you before he met me! Being the good Calvinist that I am I know it was not God's plan! I have spent the past 19 years trying to learn proper spending habits. My main motivator is the grief that shows in my DH's face when I make a poor choice! I'm learning! You can teach an old dog new tricks!
You're my kind of woman!
Found you through SITS and really enjoy enjoy reading your blog ~ congratulations!
That's awesome!! Gonna have to get a hold of you for some more valuable saving tips!! ;)
*Happy SITS day!!
I've learned so much. Um...do you have a book, or something? ;D
Congratulations on your being the featured blogger today.
Good for you, researching before you went in. I wonder if that's what's wrong with my Mac. It doesn't seem to hold the charge for very long. Do you think they still have this on their website. I will just have to go and look. Maybe you could nudge me in the right direction.
Congratulations again!
Oh I'm so proud of you! I am with you on sticking to your guns and doing research ahead of time. I have a fun phone call ahead with Verizon. And yeah... I've been putting it off for a couple days. But I think you inspired me!
Way to go! It is good to be in the know. :)
Happy SITS day!!
(And yay for Macs!)
You go girlfriend!!!!! Nice job!
ANd happy SITS day my dear friend!!!
Beating Apple at their own game... Huzzah!
:-)
Good job! It's always best to be well-researched. That way you can confidently and properly assert yourself!
That's my kind of bargain! FREE! You go girl!
I guess I'm the other side of your coin. I get took every time. I have lost more money being a push over than I can truly fathom.
I came from SITS. Happy SITS day.
I love it! Way to get yourself a new pair of sandals in the deal:)
Always feels great to beat the system!
way to beat the system, lady!
You would get along so well with my hubby!!
I am SO cheap! I love getting a deal! I use coupons for other locations all of the time. If the place I'm at won't honor it, I don't bother to spend any money there. They usually go ahead and honor the coupons because they don't want to lose the sale.
Oh, my husband would love you! I'm never letting him read your blog.
Next time I but a car or need a mechanic I will look you up! LOL
Congratulations on being the SITS blog today. And way to go with the money smarts!
Nicely played :]
I HEART you!
I love getting a deal BUT outsmarting the Apple guy AND scoring new shoes...bonus!!
Awesome!
And you can't beat cheap shoes.
Happy SITS day !!!
A friend of mine always used to laugh at the fact that I clipped grocery coupons and scoured the weekly supermarket adds for bargains .. especially where I could use my coupons on items that were already on sale!!
She quit laughing prety quickly when she realised how much I'd saved :-)
It is quite annoying when people assume you don't know what you are talking about. That happened to me at Home Depot when I was trying to purchase some items for our home renovation--the man, probably very handy himself, scoffed when I asked him where an item was...as if I didn't know what it was used for or how to use it myself. Well, a piece of my mind later, he became much more agreeable...and astounded that I could handle my self in "the scary home renovation store"!!
way to do your research, girl...and save a ton! Great post. Congrats on your Featured Blogger status!
I would have loved to see the look on the Apple guys face. I always find that negotiating makes me hungry afterwards. Great Job!
Way to go girl! Satisfying, isn't it.
And thank you for visiting me too!!
Good for you! I am not as good with the money...my man would be jealous of yours ;)
Oh man I need to be more like you. Smart, smart, smart, checking the facts before heading the the Genius bar. I heart Macs too. :D
thrift is a virtue that few people appreciate anymore; it's not about being stingy, it about being frugal - "use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without"... so nice to find a kindred "penny pincher" out there! ;)
*MWAH!*
Tanya
I LOVE Schlotzski's. LOVE it.
You rock saving money and knowing how to work things to your benefit. Too many people out there are trying to cheat us, you've got to be on your toes, and it looks like you are! Impressive!
You are one tough cookie, lady! It is good to know that all that overseas training has percolated the "value" of money in you! Good job!
Great blog!!! I am sooooo going to Apple now... my laptop and my hubby's haven't the smallest amount of battery life! I'll try and search for that page. If you still know where it is... can you send it to me?? Pretty please ;-) LOL I'll look too, didn't even think of that... thanks!!
Good for you! A woman after my own heart. Congratulations on your SITS day! I'm going to go read the rest of your blog now! :)
You are just like my mom. She always said that she could make pennies scream ;)
Happy SITS day!!!
that's so awesome. bring some of that money smartness my way!
Thank GOD for you - I thought I was the only one ready to walk in a selling situation with my sleeves rolled up past my elbows - my husband will tend to walk the other way once I get started! You go girl. New to SITS as of yesterday, and loving it! Thanks for the laugh.
I try to do things like this as often as possible but probably not as much as I could.
Kudos to you for kicking the Apple guy where it counts!
It's sad that many salespeople are not working to get the best deals for their customers. Good for you for knowing your stuff!
i love it! way to go! it's great to be informed!
congratulations on your SITS day! hope you have a great one!
I love stories like this - you go girl!
I admit it!!! I am a total wuus...I wish I were a little more the go get them type at times :o)
~simply~
You're an inspiration!!! Go you!!!
Congrats on being featured today!
Way to go! I could be good at the researching, but am definitely hopeless at the negotiating.
Love it when a frugal plan comes together! :)
Happy SITS day!
Awesome! It's always good to know your stuff before your go to any "genius." :)
Love a lady that can save some money!!
Good job! If the genius thought you'd be an easy target, wrong!
Way to go! The genius probably didn't even know about the offer! I love being frugel
Sounds like we have something in common. I am very frugal, although I haven't always been. Your story shows how important it is to do your homework.
Happy SITS day!
I'm pretty frugal myself but these days I am a coupon NUT! I saved $60.00 at the grocery store last week and the clerk looked at me like I had hit the jackpot as he circled the savings and announced them to me. I smiled my Proud smile and went on my merry way. If only I could do that well and better each time I shopped. Good on you to do your homework too. I am all about my warranties! Even got my sister in laws couch fixed for free reminding her of the warranty when the arm of her couch busted.
Good for you. I am learning how to be frugal wife. The first 13 years of our marriage, I was not. This past year changed everything, while I was staying home with the new baby and hubby lost his job. Thanks for the tips.
Oh, and congrats on being SAUCY SITSta.
I'm so not you, I get chickened out of doing stuff like that and that is why I am probabably broke.
Way to go! I'm all about saving money, which is probably why we still have a roof over our heads and food in our bellies! Yay for money management. :-)
It definitely helps to do your homework for everything! How my husband wishes I was a money saving queen (and I do wish that too sometimes)
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this!!! Definatly doing your homework pays off! CHAA Ching for sure:)
Good job! Always be prepared and have your documentation, especially with those warrantees!
Good girl. I am an Apple lady too, and I love everything MAC...except...the little too-cool-tiny-T-shirt-wearing-smarty-pantses that work at the so-called "genius bar." Must they be so condescending and seemingly bored with life, except when they are speaking in acronyms that nobody knows but them? Why can't they just be nice?
You're my hero! I love frugal stories. They make me want to go out and find those really awesome expensive clothes for just dollars (which I've done)!
That is an awesome story...go get um!!
I smile everytime I hear the name Schlotsky's...we used to have them here...my friend's MIL who is INFAMOUS for mispronouncing EVERYTHING used to call it Schiminarski's...LOL...I'm still laughing!
Congrats on your SITS day; bask in the comment love!!
Hi - over from Secrets in the Sauce - a day late, but at least I'm here!
I'm so not a negotiator - but I'm working on getting better. Okay, so maybe I'm not I just like to tell myself I am.
Love your site. I've bookmarked it - so I'll be back!
Good for you. I always admire a woman who can get a bargain and free is the best bargain ever!
You go girl... I am all about saving a dollar too! BTW I'm Traci surfing on over from SS!
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