Nicholas Sparks ebooks!!

Occasionally I purchase e-books online from individuals.  This is a bit of a dodgy practice.  I purchase things online a lot.  I buy from etsy, ebay, and sometimes some questionable places apparently.

7 day’s ago on 1 -20-10 I purchased an 11 piece e-book collection of Nicholas Sparks e-books from a seller on sell.com  YES, I said 7 day’s ago.  I never heard from the seller. I was specifically after a copy of “Dear John” and after 4 day’s I grew impatient and purchased an actual copy of the book.  In fact I’ve read it already in its entirety.  I paid $11 bucks to buy a copy from Target.  I was after a copy of it to read along with a co-worker.

7 days ago people!  A few day’s after I never heard from the seller, I contacted paypal of course and opened a dispute to get my money back.  It wasn’t a lot of money but it was the principal. I realize when you buy these types of things online you take a risk.  I took it…this time I felt I just lost out and would probably never see my money or my e-books.

Today I get the following email from the seller

Sorry for the delay, my nieces 14 day old baby girl died one week ago today and I just got back home last night to New York from Kansas.

Here you go and Thanks SO much!

** If I could achieve one thing, it would be that we were united as one people and never again divided by the color of our skin, nationality, religion or sexual orientation. **

Seriously?  Why is it every time a seller fails to be prompt (and really I would have been happy with 24-48 hours of response time but honestly I usually get a 1 hour response when I purchase e-books online because it’s a matter of simply sending an email with a link.  Which if you notice, she did…..7 day’s AFTER my purchase.  So for 7 day’s this woman ran a business and didn’t respond to a customer.  After I made the purchase I realized she had no feedback on the website.  

My immediate reaction was to write back to her and said “Really 7 days?  I don’t want the e-books because I wanted “Dear John” and have since purchased it in the store”.  But the more I thought about it….maybe….maybe I’ll write back to her in 7 day’s.  

Yes, some will say I’m heartless…after all a baby died.  However, I have no way of knowing if that’s the truth or just bad customer service. In today’s day and age I know no one who doesn’t check their email for 7 day’s.  Especially if you run an online business and you are the “seller”.  Either close your sells down or set up an automated email response telling people when to expect your return.  So now I have a “worthless to me” ebook download link.  So   I read Dear John via real book and loved it…until the last 20 pages and then I wanted to punch Mr. Sparks in the face.  And I mean it.

Don’t you love how she said to me all sarcastic like “thank you SO much”.  Really?  And her “if I could achieve one thing”….yah lady you’re failing miserably to be the change in the world you want to achieve” and it has nothing to do with the color of your skin (as I have no idea!) your nationality, your religion or your sexual orientation.  You failed because you’re a jerk and I have a big suspicion you are a liar.  

Also notice that no one in there did she apologize for her poor business practices, her lateness or any inconvenience her actions had on my life.  Well listen lady…I had a hangnail and wanted to read Dear John on my e-book reader but because of you I had to painfully hold a real book for hours upon hours.  

Oh and I know a 14 day old baby ….tugs at the heart strings don’t it?  I mean how can I be so heartless?  Perhaps years of being an online student where I’ve seen the same students claim their grandma has died over and over again forgetting I’ve been in a class with them before, just so they can get out of doing their teamwork.  Or maybe it’s because it’s a phantom 14 day old….or it could be because I just wanted a nice transaction and now this lady is dumping the guilt on me as if I did something to cause that baby to die because I actually expected her to provide the product I purchased.  Also, if I had a niece I would know how to spell the word “niece” I’m thinking.  I also know that this lady lives in Kansas from the extensive searches I did of her name on Google.  However she told me she got home to New York.

*sigh*  I think she needs to read some books, she might learn how to write a sentence.

 Updated 2-08-10 The link was never a good one… *sigh*