Hubby and I are getting our kids a Wii for Christmas. I have a blister on my heel from Black Friday when I overslept my alarm (I’m not sure it even went off) causing me to miss out on the Wii deal at the store that was giving a $50 gift card with the purchase of a Wii making me so mad that I walked a mile in dress shoes, the only shoes I could find at 4:58, 2 minutes before the 5am doorbuster deal started, to meet my husband because I couldn’t stay in *that* store. 

Yesterday while going through the sales ads with my neighbor over coffee (our new Sunday morning ritual) she pointed out the Wii bundle at Walmart.com for today’s Cyber Monday specials. $249 and you get the console, extra wiimote, a game, and an accessory. I’m really just worried about the extra wiimote which seems to run about $30 so for $20 to have another game, that was a pretty sweet package.

I looked at the site yesterday and found a bundle which was already sold out. I thought it was some form of the one my neighbor told me about and since it was sold out, probably any others would be too. But no, at midnight the $249 bundle went online- and sold out.  

For some reason, I went back to walmart.com and there it was, headlining on the front page, the Wii bundle in all its $249 glory. I clicked on it and lo and behold, it was in stock. I logged into my account and it was still available. I think I heard angels singing! I checked off my options, loaded the bundle into my virtual cart, pulled out my credit card, and then…..then it was gone. 

WHAT?!?!? 

GONE!?? 

I went back to the page. In stock. Check. Options. Check. In cart. Check. Payment options. Negative.  

WTF?! I called walmart.com’s 800 number to find out just that. Turns out that the system doesn’t hold the item in your cart long enough for you to pay for it. If someone else puts your bundle in their cyber cart before you can pay for it, you’re cyber screwed. And me without my CY(ber) jelly. 

As I sit here hitting refresh repeatedly, I am wondering what kind of system Walmart has over there. I’m sure that the load and pay system usually works, but clearly, they weren’t ready for this kind of volume. Considering the trampling death over last year’s Black Friday, it’s lucky this is a cyber deal. Can you imagine if someone took a Wii bundle, for my kids none-the-less, out of my cart in person. I’d learn how to make a shiv out of lipstick real damn fast. 

This is not my first experience with large retailers who have systems that can not keep up. I bought and paid for an iPod dock from Sears earlier this year only to get an email back saying the dock was unavailable. I literally bought it within minutes of seeing it in the sales ad so I was yelling bait and switch. Tacked on to paying for an item then finding out it’s not available, oh, I was a pretty pissed person. 

I understand that smaller retailers might not have the technology required to advertise such great Cyber Monday deals, but they are not putting their name out there, sending teasers out in print, letting people believe they’ve finally scored a good deal, only to shoot down their customer’s hopes. 

The girl I spoke with at walmart.com did try to find me a bundle close to the going price of the Cyber Monday special. Sweet thing. But, she wasn’t finding anything I haven’t found myself and, at this point I can promise you that unless Walmart gives me a Wii, we won’t be buying it there- or Sam’s Club either. 

Sam Walton is dead to me.

Enjoy!