Radio Shack can eat a big, fat one.

Dear Radio Shack:

I hate you from the bottom of my black little soul.

Very Sincerely,

The Social Deviant

Radio Shack is, in my humble opinion, one of the worst stores I have ever encountered. Not only is their merchandise lame, but their employees are rude and desperate. Here are a few examples:

*I'm in a Radio Shack in Norfolk, VA purchasing a pay-as-you-go phone. At this time, I was a starving student, unemployed, and it would not have been financially wise of me to get into a contract without the means to hold up my end of the bargain. As I go to make my purchase, the clerk asks me if I am interested in a plan with Sprint (oh, don't even get me started on Sprint!). I say, "No, thank you, now is not a good time." "Why?" "Well..." I start to explain, wondering why this is any of his business, "I don't qualify for a plan right now. This phone right here will be just fine." The clerk proceeds to chuckle at this reply, adding, "You'll be fine. Even Mexicans can get a plan with Sprint." I am not Mexican, but I was pretty damn offended by his words. I leave and decide to get my phone elsewhere.

*I'm in a Radio Shack in Jacksonville, FL, because I had just moved from Norfolk, and after driving through 3 states, I realize that I left my cell phone charger at home. Nuts. So, I go inside the store, and wait a good 20 minutes to be seen, as the sales clerk is virtually jizzing all over the customer in front of me because he apparently signed a huge cell-phone contract. When it's my turn to be seen, the clerk is friendly with me until I show him my phone and ask, "I lost my cell phone charger, and I was wondering if I could have a replacement?" The clerk looks at my phone with disgust and says, derisively, "What kind of phone is that?" Taken aback, I stammer, "Umm...well....it's a Kyocera." The clerk scoffs and says, "You know, we have great cell phone plans here." "No, thank you," I say, "I just need a cell phone charger." "The monthly costs of these plans are about the same as what you are paying for your PAYG right now." "No thank you," I repeat through gritted teeth, "I can't have a plan right now." "Why?" the clerk asks rudely. Now I get pissed. "You wanna know why? Well, I just moved to this state tonight, I don't have a job, and I'm getting a divorce. That's why!" I, being the naive jerk that I was, thought that this sob story would get him to back off. But no. Instead, he says, "Well, you'd better get this plan now, before the divorce ruins your credit." At this point, I would have told him to go fuck himself and leave, but...I needed a charger. So I just say, "Just get me my charger." And, as expected, he wasn't nearly as friendly to me as he was to the gentleman who got him his commission. He simply got the charger, rang it up, and handed it to me. No "thank you," no "have a nice night," no nothing. So I snatched the charger from him and stormed out.

*I'm in a Radio Shack in Melbourne, FL with my boyfriend because we were too bored to do anything else, ha ha ha. My current cell phone (with a plan that I did not receive from Radio Shack) is kind of lame, so I decided to see which new, nifty phones were available. I had no intention of buying a phone right there and then, but perhaps later in the future. No sooner than 3 seconds since I walk through the door, a sales clerk gets in my face: "Welcome to Radio Shack, is there anything I can help you find?" "No, thanks," I say. "Well, let me know if you need help." "Thank you," I say. Two minutes later, another clerk gets in my face, "Hi, do you need any help?" "No, thanks," I say. "Are you interested in a plan?" the clerk asks as he follows me around the store. "No," I say, slightly loudly. "You need batteries?" "No, thank you," I say sternly, "I appreciate your help, but I will let you know if I need it." The clerk moves on to the next unsuspecting victim. I try to hide in a relatively secluded area of the store (read: jumbo universal remotes and outdated CB radios) with my boyfriend, just to escape the employees. 30 seconds later, the manager gets in our faces: "You folks need some help picking out a radio?" "No! No, goddammit!! Jesus Farting Christ, if you need the commission that badly, why don't you go dry hump your mom?!" No...I did not say this, although I kind of wish I did, haha. Instead of replying, boyfriend and I run as fast as we can out of the store. Even he was exasperated by the constant bothering. So much so that we have a running joke: every time we pass a Radio Shack we get in each other's faces and ask, "Can I help you find something?" "You need a new cell phone?" We do this until one of us pretends to get fed up and pretends to choke the other, lol!

So that's pretty much it. As big-box is Best Buy is, their selection is a million times better, and their service is great. I'm hoping that it won't go the way of Circuit City (which is also decent). Patronize them, as well as locally-owned businesses. Fuck Radio Shack. The end.