I recently acquired a large collection of law books when the tenants abandoned their office space and did not pay the rent. I paid the maintenance man and his assistant $75 for the books and and additional $15 each to unload them at my residence. I then gave them cold refreshments from the refrig because it was so hot.
Later, I learned that there were gaps in the collection so I e-mailed Half-Price Books in Dallas, Texas since the personnel I have dealt with here at BOTH Lamar Blvd. Stores here in Austin are so unpleasant, incompetent and are as articulate as a marijuana patch on acid! There have been a few new stores open here so I can't generalize as to how they all are but whoever trained the winners I encountered will probably work their magic on these folks too.
I wanted to know if they would broker me some of the missing lawbooks since a lot of lawfirms are using computer-only research and discarding their books... I want law books in case the computer breaks down or there is a brown our or the electricity goes off...
WELL, IT IS A GOOD THING I DID NOT RELY ON THEIR CUSTOMER SERVICE E-MAIL BECAUSE THE GUY MUST BE OUT ON A REEFER BREAK. That was over a month ago. They must not want MY money. And if they don't want MY money, they must not want anyone else's money either...
or maybe they only serve yuppies...
They should have put it on their website.
I did find out that they have what is known as " Books by the Yard" where they will sell law books to people FOR DECORATION! How that works, must be very humilating to the law books in question. I wrote to that guy to see how to get any of them BUT HE REFERRED ME BACK TO THE BEDLAM, CHEECH AND CHONG, RIP-OFF, INCOMPETENCY of my "local stores" who, of course, had not an idea in hell what I was talking about when I called them.
Here is what their website says about their corporate mission:
"OUR STORY
"In 1972, we opened our first store in a converted laundromat in Dallas, Texas.Co-founders Ken Gjemre and Pat Anderson stocked the store with more than 2,000 books from their personal libraries. Half Price Books was created with the idea of offering a great product at a great price. And it worked! Today, Half Price Books is America's favorite new and used bookstore chain. Our simple philosophy continues under the leadership of Sharon Anderson Wright, daughter of Pat Anderson.
"Today Half Price Books has stores in 15 states, with each store carrying a unique variety of new and used books, music, movies and games. The company continues to grow having opened new stores in the Chicago area and Omaha, Nebraska.
"We buy and sell anything printed or recorded except yesterday's newspaper. Preserving and recycling resources and entertainment of every form is our business.
"Whether it's new or used, a best seller, or an old classic, you'll find the most incredible and unique assortment of books. Best of all, almost everything is half the publisher's price or less. And since our stock changes daily, you'll find something new every time you shop. Don't forget music and movies. There's an exciting and unpredictable world of sights and sounds to be discovered in our enormous collection of CDs, cassettes, LPs, videos and DVDs most at half price or less. We buy books that you've already enjoyed. So if you have more books than shelves, bring your books to Half Price Books, where we'll give you cash for your stuff.
"Half Price Books is also committed to the community. To help teachers and librarians stretch their dollar even further, we offer a 10% Discount Card, good at all Half Price Books locations. We've been supporting literacy for more than 30 years by working with local literacy groups across the country. Half Price Books strives to help provide people of all ages with the tools and skills necessary to become readers. And through the Half Pint Library program, thousands of books are collected and donated to hospitals each year.
"And for booklovers, tree huggers, and collectors alike, Half Price Books is a great place to work. Find out about employment opportunities and how you can join this fun, fast-paced retail environment."
Oh well...
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