The Dawn of a New Era

This past weekend, a new, glorious era began in my household. On Friday night, armed with some newfound nerve and a 10% off coupon, I drove to my local Best Buy with one goal in mind: purchasing an HDTV. My months of number crunching and watching prices drop would finally pay off. From this weekend forward, I would watch my basketball (and all other sports, for that matter) in all its high definition glory. It was a step not to be taken lightly.

Indeed, while I ultimately succeeded in my purchase of the television on Friday evening, during my drive to my favorite electronics retail outlet I was unsure of what would transpire. Would I, in the face of making a large appliance purchase, back down and make a more prudent choice like, say, socking money away so that I could someday purchase a house? Apprehension filled my mind as I pulled into the parking lot and prepared to enter the store and make perhaps the seminal purchase of my life to this point. As I approached the doors of Best Buy, I was about to embark on an internal debate of epic proportions. There was still time to turn back, and my mind knew it.

That epic debate, however, never happened. It was preempted by forces of the world that I cannot explain. As I walked up to the door of that Best Buy, you see, a player for the Wisconsin Badgers, my favorite college basketball team, walked out the door. This had to be fate. Here I am, a frightened consumer, unsure of whether I should spend my hard-earned money on a device which I would be purchasing primarily to enhance my college basketball watching experience four months from now. At the same time, a potential starter for my favorite school, which is located just over an hour away in Madison, walks out the door of the Milwaukee-area store that I am at, unknowingly reminding me why I want to make the purchase. It was as if some higher power was looking down on me and saying “Just buy the damn TV—you’ll see this guy on it in November.” And who am I to argue with this logic? I bought the TV.

To my surprise, I was able to arrange delivery just two days later. Admittedly, the true power of my new purchase will not truly be felt until November (though until then, football will provide an adequate diversion). However, as I learned this weekend, you don’t mess with fate. And fate was telling me that the purchase needed to be made right away. If there was any lingering doubt, even after the Best Buy entry moment, it was dispelled on Sunday night. After spending hours during the day unable to correctly connect my new cable box to the television, I went to bed frustrated. During the night, I had a dream in which I connected the television perfectly. Upon awakening, I went to the television and did as I had in the dream. The connections that I had dreamt worked, proving again to me that some outside force wants me to enjoy this purchase. Either that, or my subconscious is really good with AV equipment.

And so, while we’re still just over 4 months away from real basketball, I’m prepared. Come November, I’m ready for basketball as it was meant to be watched: in high definition, while drinking a beer from a beer dispensing soda machine. I see very few ways in which life could get any sweeter.