Harry Potter

I am a Harry Potter fan, but I'm not rabid about it.

I went to Borders to pick up my copy Saturday evening. It wasn't as busy as I thought it was going to be, but they did open at midnight. I figured I wouldn't have too many problems picking it up on Saturday.

They had all the Harry Potter books hidden behind the front desk. In order to pick up your copy, you had to go check in at the Harry Potter desk to get a ticket. You could then take the ticket to the checkout counter to pick up the book. When I came in, there were seats for two at the Harry Potter desk, but there was only one person there. There wasn't a line. The checkout counter was similarly deserted.

I was browsing the sf isle, looking for something to use the 25% off coupon on that I got when I per-ordered the book when the manager's voice came on over the PA system. He said, "Attention Borders customers. We have about 150 copies of Harry Potter available for anyone who didn't pre-order. If you'd like a copy of Harry Potter but didn't pre-order, come to the Harry Potter desk for a ticket."

Thirty seconds later, the manager came on the PA system again. "All available assistants please come to the registers."

I looked over at the checkout counter. There was a line that went all the way to the door.