So no big surprise, I'm Canadian.
Suck it.
I've been fantasizing about getting one of those "Made in Canada" tattoos, which everyone in Canada has...but well obviously I'm not in Canada so that might be kinda cool. Minus the Hep-C fear. And minus that I think tattoos look pretty crappy after a few years (no offense to people who have them). Minus that I go through hell and a half to AVOID scarring my skin.
Anyway buying gifts for my friends in Canada for birthdays or whatever is SUCH a pain. Usually because everything I send I have to factor in the cost of shipping. I can't just mail some big bulky $30 item and then pay $20 for shipping...that's retarded.
Or even if i get something else that's small, if it's pricey then I'd wantt o insure it. Well THEN my friends get taxed on it in Canada, and I think it's dumb to send something that's going to make them pay money just to get it from the post office.
Right now I'm having a bitch of a time with a friend in Toronto's wedding gift. She didn't register, and she doesn't want a gift, but she can suck it...I adore her, she's getting a flippin' gift.
BUT...with registries, i don't know what she would need and I"m not paying to mail a frickin' Cusineart food processor if it turns out she'll never use it or has one already.
So...now you're thinking..."Hey beotch, shut yer pie hole and just get her a gift card".
Riigghtt.
Canada is apparently too ghetto for online gift card shopping. So far the only stores I've found that have gift cards available for online purchase are The Bay, Sears, and Canadian Tire.
The Bay is alright...probably what I'll end up doing...but it's more of a "mom" kind of place to shop. It's like...Macy's I guess...so you COULD buy housewares there, but you wouldn't think to do that.
Sears...well in Canada it's not half as ghetto as it is in the US, but I think they bought out Eatons and both of them are bankrupt so I don't want to even risk that. Plus they only allow for specific denominations, none in the category that I want to spend (I suppose I could combine a few to make the dollar amount, but taht would be kinda tacky).
Canadian Tire...well that would be okay if they lived in a house right now but they don't...and I can't even remember what I ever went in there for. (No, they don't just sell tires. It's kinda like...OSH...mixed with automotive stuff).
HOme Depot...they don't even mention gift cards ANYWHERE on their site. They have suggestions for gifts...no gift cards. Do a search for "gift card"...and the search comes up with nothing. WTF.
Heck, I even checked out Walmart's Canadian site. No gift cards. Plus, if you want to do a search you have to search within each department, you can't search the entire site. That's effing annoying as dirt.
What I really wanted was either Best Buy or Williams Sonoma...ummm wtf. Williams Sonoma's canadian website is so useless, and you can't buy gift cards. Flippin' Best Buy's website lets you buy stuff online...but apparently gift cards can only be purchased in store. WTF! Is it THAT hard to ship?!!
Maybe there are laws about buying gift cards online, I don't know...but you'd think for any organization that is the #1 easiest thing to sell and ship online.
I have never been so flippin' annoyed in my life.
In the end, I'll probably ask Evan (dude!!! if you're reading this...) to pick up one for me, bring it with him next week, so that I can write up a nice wedding card and mail it back to Canada.
C'mon Canada...you whine that the US doesn't notice you, that you really are powerful deep down inside...uhhh, how about you learn some technological advances and ALLOW ONLINE GIFT CARD PURCHASES WTF!!!
FYI: No, I don't say "eh". I've said it like ONCE in my life.
FYI p2: KA TOE MAH TAY!! ha haaaa
2 comments:
Bean, if you go The Bay route they sell Cuisinart stuff there so a gift card could work especially if you put in the card that's what it's for.
Or you can have someone buy the gift here in Canada and send it to the couple on behalf of you. Sort of a proxy gift giver. :) Evan, me, or one of your other friends here in Canada.
The U.S isn't all that great when it comes to online shopping, I remember before there was an A&F in Canada you couldn't order anything from their website, same goes for a few other clothing websites, I think Victoria Secret was like that at one point but I can neither confirm nor deny that for sure.
So in reality both countries can be blamed for poor cross boarder ecommerce relations.
There is no excuse though, you are right. If you buy the gift certificate using your CC then why can't you have a digital gift certificate emailed to them or you can print that up and snail mail it to them.
Last time I checked gifts did get some sort of exception at Customs but it's up to the descretion of the Customs Officers I think. I received many an eBay item from complete strangers this way. :) Items under $100 are automatically covered by mail insurance but if it's worth more then spending the extra is the way to go but how often does something get busted when you mail something?
Whenever I've had to send something I used FedEx, they are way better at that sort of stuff.
I should send you a Made in Canada baby T. Oddly enough I've never seen a Made in the USA T-shirt but I've never looked for one during my brieft visits to the U.S. Do they even have those?
What about Amazon? Can't anyone use Amazon?
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