Monday, February 13, 2006

Why Ikea Sucks

Yes, Ikea does have interesting stuff and reasonably-priced furniture, I agree. But dealing with them is horrific. About a week and a half ago, my husband and I went to Ikea for the first time. We had received their catalog at the end of last year and wanted to see some of the book shelves in person. The parking lot was very large for a store. When we went inside we were amazed at how many people were there. There was a lobby area with some of their products on the wall and a large wire bin filled with shopping bags. We grabbed a bag and went up the stairs. There were sample rooms set up and a walkway with arrows pointing in some pre-determined circuit. The sample rooms were very appealing. There were also areas with little odds and ends, a bedding area, kids stuff, shelving units, etc. We spent about an hour and a half comparing the different shelves and beds. We wrote down our order on the provided info sheets, and we headed for the "checkout" area. We followed signs, we followed arrows, we went down stairs, we went up stairs, we passed a restaurant, a large coat closet full of kids (well, that's what it looked like). We could not find the way to the check out. We wandered through an area filled with bins of various small items. Other shoppers meandered around with the look of deer caught in the headlights. brrreeeport. It was ridiculous. 2o minutes later, we decided the heck with it-we just wanted to leave. We followed signs that said "exit" to find dead ends. (What would they do if there was ever a fire in Ikea!) Somehow, after numerous failed attempts, we pushed through an unmarked door into the lobby and escaped out into the rain. Was that enough for us? No. We figured we would go home and order the items online. We went to the Ikea.com website. Maneuvered our way around it, found most of the items we wanted and ordered them. I promptly received an email acknowledging my order and stating that I would be contacted in 5 to 7 days with the total for delivery and a confirmation. 10 days later I was wondering what happened. I went to Ikea.com and tried to look at my order. They have no capability for looking at your order online. I tried to find a phone number to call, that was another run around. When I finally called it, it was busy. I kept calling and it was still busy. Eventually, I got through, had to go through various menus until I got an option to talk to a person. Then, I waited 30 minutes (I kid you not) until I finally got a live person. I immediately cancelled my order. When they asked me why I was canceling I said that it is taking to long to get my furniture (I was trying to be nice, I figured this guy is just a phone guy doing the old 9-to-5 thing). I am never going to Ikea again.

So, after that fiasco, I decided to look up "Ikea sucks" on a search engine. Well, I hit the motherlode! There are people out there with worse stories than mine. Some of the sites are sad, some are funny, but I was glad I didn't actually get burned as bad as some people out there.

Thursday, February 02, 2006

2006 Movie Preview

This is a list of movies coming out this year that look like they may be worth watching. Here is the quick list, scroll down for more details.

Nanny McPhee
Hoodwinked
Pink Panther
Night Watch
Date Movie
V for Vendetta
Find me Guilty
R.V.
Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
A Scanner Darkly
Lucky Number Slevin
The Benchwarmers
Lucky You
Scary Movie 4
The Notorious Bettie Page
Water
Mission: Impossible III
Poseidon
The DaVinci Code
Over the Hedge
X-Men 3
Nacho Libre
Cars
Click
Superman Returns
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Monster House
The Children of Men
Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny
Casino Royale
Eragon
The Good Shepherd
Clerks 2
In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale

---
Nanny McPhee
Hoodwinked - I actually saw this one already. It's funny and entertaining, very light-hearted.
Pink Panther - I have fond memories of the original movies, and can't wait to see this one. I love Steve Martin and I'm a big fan of physical comedy, so this should be great.
Night Watch
Date Movie - A spoof of "date movies" of course. Looks funny, it pokes at specific movies.
V for Vendetta - I love "comic book" movies. This is another Wachoski bros. movie (Matrix). Should be a visual treat.
Find me Guilty
R.V. - Comedy with Robin Williams and Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm)
Ice Age 2: The Meltdown - Well, my kids actually want to see this.
A Scanner Darkly
Lucky Number Slevin
The Benchwarmers - A comedy from Adam Sandler, looks good.
Lucky You
Scary Movie 4 - All right, this series is one of my guilty pleasures.
The Notorious Bettie Page - I'm a Bettie Page fan.
Water
Mission: Impossible III - Action, baby!
Poseidon
The DaVinci Code - I read this book and am looking forward to the movie. The preview shows stunning scenes of the Louvre.
Over the Hedge - This looks really funny.
X-Men 3
Nacho Libre
Cars
Click
Superman Returns - I love......Lex Luthor!!!!
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - This is a sequal that actually looks pretty good.
Monster House
The Children of Men
Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny - Two words: Jack Black! This should be the greatest movie in the world! Or at least a tribute! :)
Casino Royale
Eragon
The Good Shepherd
Clerks 2

-----

Movie Links

Internet Movie Database - General Movie Info
Movies.com - Great place for Movie Trailers
Screen it! - Movie Reviews for Parents