What on earth????

[linaewen]

My DS ordered a lovely new Dell computer online and has been watching it gradually make its way here for the last couple of days.  Today it arrived, and we were under strict orders to not open the box until he got home from work.

Well, guess what was in the box?  Not a computer -- even though all the packaging matched his order, from the Dell shipping box, to the shipping label with the order form and receipt, to the "how to set up your computer" pamphlet inside and a nice white Inspiron box for the laptop computer.  But inside the nice white Inspiron laptop box were...

Nine sets of United States Mint uncirculated commemorative coins -- and nothing else.



Very nice coins, they were too -- but when you've been waiting for a new top of the line laptop computer, somehow coins just doesn't do it for you.

I was actually away when DS unpacked the box, so I came home to find a very disheartened and crushed son, and a very disturbed hubby, who was blaming himself for not opening it upon receipt to be sure the order was correct.  However, once Mom comes home, then order is restored.    I urged DS to get online in a chat with a Dell representative, and he did so.  The end result is that they are reshipping his computer and want him to send back the order he received so they can investigate the problem.

What seems likely to us is that some sneak in the Dell packing department thought he/she had struck on an easy way to take home a nice computer, and when they were filling the order they replaced the computer with the coins.  Not sure where the coins came from, as that's not something Dell deals with, but who knows?  Maybe they came prepared.  The way everything is packed fits this theory, rather than there being a sneak in the DHL shipping office!

Hopefully Dell will investigate and catch the culprit before any other hard working young DS's who just spent a wad of their hard earned cash from their first job end up getting something they didn't order and have no imaginable use for.

My Dear Son is laughing about it now, because really, it's just about the weirdest thing that could happen -- but he's still at loose ends for another week, waiting for the next computer to show up.  It better not be commemorative coins this time!!!

Comments

[bageldelight.livejournal.com]

That is just messed up. Truly.

Poor Nathan! He must have really been looking forward to his new baby and then its not...trust Mom to restore order with both father and son. Let's hope Dell expedites shipping so it gets there faster this time!

[lin4gondor.livejournal.com]

He really was quite crushed, poor thing. It is his baby, for sure, and when it didn't come, he felt like his baby had been stolen from him. Which it had, I guess! He's got a computer game that he got for his birthday a year ago, that he still hasn't played because of having an old computer -- he spent the whole day at work dreaming of playing that game, and then he was disappointed.

I have a feeling we're going to be watching a lot of Naruto together this week to help him get over the pain! Even so, he's handled it all quite admirably, so I'm very pleased about that!

[mumstheword54.livejournal.com]

Lin, I'd recommend holding on to the false shipment until the real computer arrives. It would also be wise to contact the police: The FBI and the USPS Inspector General (I think is the position) need to know about this "fraud by mail" -- not on the part of Dell, but on the part of somebody in their shipping department. If you've already shipped the package back to Dell, contact the police and tell the local postmaster about the problem. It's important that the perpetrator be brought to justice, not just slapped on the wrist by Dell management. The coins themselves may be stolen goods.

*end Law Enforcement mode*

What an upsetting experience for all of you! I know you're just so proud of your DS, and I pray that it all turns out well for you.

*hugs*

[lin4gondor.livejournal.com]

Thank you for your prayers, my dear! He really did handle himself well, in spite of the disappointment.

We hadn't thought of the stolen goods aspect of the whole thing, so thanks for that advice. We'll see -- we are waiting for the new shipment to come which will also contain instructions on how to send back the false ones and what to do about the parcel courier who delivered the shipment -- DHL, in this case.

It was interesting that after Nathan finished the chat session with the Dell agent, he got an email from a more important Dell person, who said he was taking over the investigation, and would make sure Nathan didn't suffer any loss. So that was encouraging to him. ;-)

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

That is so bizarre! I hope they straighten that out soon.

[lin4gondor.livejournal.com]

It sounds like they are going to straighten it out, thankfully. I wish we could find out how it came about, we are very curious about the mystery now!

[shirebound]

!!!! How frustrating! I hope the real computer comes quickly.

[lin4gondor.livejournal.com]

It's supposed to come in another week, though we are hoping it will come sooner!

[meneleth.livejournal.com]

I hope he gets his computer soon! Two weeks ago a box arrived from Barnes & Noble.com with (we thought) the long-awaited full set of Vicar of Dibley DVDs. I was at work, but when Meg called to say it had come I told her she could open it. She called back about two minutes later and said I'd better call B&N. Instead of DVDs there was a coffee-table sized book about spiders, with a very large close-up of one on the cover. It was a nasty shock to her when she opened the box, as she really doesn't like the creatures. They've already sent us the correct order and a return shipping label, but you have to wonder...

[lin4gondor.livejournal.com]

Eeeee! That would be a shock, yikes! I wonder how often these mixups actually happen -- more often than we think, I bet!

[estellye.livejournal.com]

That is the most bizarre occurance I have heard of in awhile.

If they were going to replace it with something, why choose something like that? I presume the coins have some sort of intrinsic value. Surely there was something the right weight at the dollar store, lol. Unless the nefarious individual stole the coins with the idea of stealing the laptop... I just don't speak criminal, so it's completely baffling.

My computer arrived this morning, and it is in fact a computer. I will discover if it is in good order when I get it to Paul's this evening - but it sure is pretty! I hope Nathan's computer arrives quickly and perfect. I can certainly understand the disappointment. I expected when I picked up my G5 at the Apple Store after it's repair for it to be ready to use, and when it wasn't it was quite a blow knowing I would have to wait longer.

I am having a tough time concentrating today with it sitting right here next to my desk. :P You should see the keyboard! It looks so cool and I didn't even splurge for the wireless!

[lin4gondor.livejournal.com]

The coins are probably fairly valuable. Each card has more than $6.00 worth of coins included on it, and there were 9 boxes with 2 cards of coins each in them, so that's heading on for $100 just for the coins themselves, without the value of them being special. They didn't even weigh the same as the computer, though. I don't know, it's quite a mystery, which I would like to know all the details of!!

Yay that your computer is a computer and that you will be getting it set up tonight!