Eclipse, when you DO finally go shopping for one, I wish you GOOD LUCK! Oh my hell, let me tell you you will NEED IT! Let me tell you I felt like I was in the twilight zone every time I went to go get my hands on one!

The first time it was a Friday and I was on my way to Polo Practice (thank the gods I have an assistant who got my A and B string horses ready!) I figured on my way I would stop by Walmart and pick one up, I mean it was on my way anyway. So I go to Walmart and no one knew what it was, and they didnt carry it. So determined to get one, I hit K-mart... same story, so not to be detered (when I set my mind on something it is ALL I see) I went across the parking lot to the mall and hit Babbages (which sells exclusively video games and related equiptment... it even buys and sells used stuff) And immagine my surprise when they ALSO did not know what it was. I told them what it was and what it did, and the two guys working there actually said "wow that sounds pretty cool".... YEAH I know! I was confused and annoyed... but by that time I was already significantly late and had someplace else to be.

A couple days later, on Monday, It was raining like you wouldnt believe and I figured since I couldnt do my regular routine, I was off to go shopping (I am a woman, it is a genetic thing) So I was bound and determined to go hunt one down (because I was really excited about my whites since Jim told me I was the ONLY one with them!). I went to TOYS R US, where they had more PS2 accessories than I knew existed. But no shark OR X-ports to be found. SO I asked the lady who worked the video game section, she knew what the Shark port was, but said it was discontinued... I told her they switched manufacturers and it is called the X-port now... she looked for it, told me she had it... but what she had was a jumbo memory card made by the same manufacturer (If it doesnt hook up to my computer, it is NOT what I am looking for!). And with that I was off...

Next stop, MICROPLAY, like babbages, it is ALL VIDEO GAMES and related stuff! Hopes high once again... Nothing, they didn't even KNOW WHAT IT WAS! I actually grabbed the guy by the face and asked him if I was in the twilight zone... it was just not possible for me to know what it is, and the profesional hardcore videogame geeks dont... that makes NO sense at all! He recomended looking on the internet or Ebay, and I overheard him make some comment about how all the pretty girls are crazy as I was leaving.

Yet another drive found me at the another mall and my SECOND Babbages store... Where they actually knew what it was, but they dont carry it! Not even a used one on the floor.... although I did find a game I have been looking for for over a year there (tenchu 1), he recomended I visit best buy at the other end of the mall... I told him that was my next stop!

I walk into Best Buy and am very happy to see that they have the XPORT labeled on the shelf! Dispite the fact that the shelf was empty, at least they CARRY the damn thing! I tap the video games guy on the shoulder and ask him if he can find me one, because sometimes they have them in the back.... and he was a cutie, so I was feeling rather better about the whole thing, I got my hopes up yet again! He goes over to the computer and he can't find it in the computer! By this point the absurdity of it has me laughing, and the cute guy helping me looking extremely frustrated because he cant figure out their new computer system, he was clearly trying to go above and beyond to impress me and the fact that I was laughing I dont think was helping his self esteem any, but I just couldnt help it. I mean really, it SHOULD NOT BE THAT DIFFICULT TO LOCATE THIS ITEM! (not just in best buy, but I mean in general!) So he gets upset at the computer and with this look of total shame on his face calls his supervisor (who along with all the other young men working the floor was ALREADY watching us... it was rather comical to watch him get on the phone to call his superior only to have his superior's phone ring just down the isle from us!) Within seconds ALL the young men on the floor are dashing about to their nearest terminal to look this item up for me, and a couple of them run back to the stock room to see if there are any in the store at all! Have to appriciate the comedy of that. When we finally locate it in the computer, it is out of stock and no new stock on it has been ordered... and they can't order it for me for some odd reason (regional management has to do that or something) But he does give me the manufucters name and address, and tells me my best bet is to look it up on the net, or ebay. I leave the store ANNOYED but very entertained and I just cant stop laughing at the absurdity of the situation... I mean this thing should NOT be that difficult to locate!

So as I am getting in my car, I spot a COMP USA on the other side of the streed... I figure, why not? I enter this gigantic computer store and notice that this place has MORE VIDEO GAMES than any other place I have been to... games I have never heard of are here... again I get my hopes up, but can't seem to find what I am looking for on the shelfs and shelfs of ps2 accessories. I ask the creepy guy in there about it, and he immediately goes to the shelves and looks (like I didn't JUST do that, with him perving me from two isles away, so he KNOWS I just looked there) He goes to the computer and it is not in stock, they dont carry it... but I should try EBAY. At this point I am soo frustrated I throw my hands up in the air and actually scream at the top of my lungs in the store "IS THIS THE BIZARRO WORLD?" I mean the geeks dont even know what it is, at what point did I, little miss SOO NOT THE TYPE to play video games at all is suddenly soo hardcore that I know about equiptment that even the geeks havent heard about? Dont try to wrap your mind arround it, it will make your head bleed! It does mine every time I TRY to make any sense at all out of it.

SO I go home, I hit the net, I surf product reviews then hit Ebay as was soo often suggested! And I find 3 Shark ports there! Two of them were new, one used. I check them out individually, the used one has been used pretty hard according to the buyer, and has a 40.00 pricetag... that is how much a new x-port costs at best buy... so I give it some thought. The first new one is bid up to 60.00 and I think, that is too much to pay for something I can buy for half that price direct from the manufucterer. And the other one is 20.00 and brand new, from a seller who has a ton of good refrences.... I bid 40 (because that is how much I would end up paying for a new one anyway) and I am confident I will win... and start getting excited again. I WIN the auction and only end up paying 24.00 for it... I am THRILLED, I pay with credit as soon as I find out I won (less than 10 hours after the auction ended)... Now I am really excited, I won, I paid less than expected, and I now "own" this thing that has been soo elusive for me... I actually jump up for joy when I recieve confirmation that they recieved payment and I should expect the thing in the next couple days! I mean I see the finnish line, it is ALMOST over, right?

TWO DAYS LATER, I get an e-mail and do you know what it says? "there is a problem with your order, between the time you placed your order and the time we recieved payment (LESS THAN HALF A DAY MIND YOU!) the product has gone out of stock! It will be several more weeks before we can restock this item, thank you for your patience".

If you could see the look on my face... PATIENCE is something I have quite alot of... but on this matter there is NONE LEFT, it had been erroded away until there was actually less than none left! HOW IN THE HELL DO YOU AUCTION A PRODUCT THAT YOU DO NOT HAVE ON HAND? Espeically if you are a COMPANY and not an individual! If I had known they did not have it on hand, I would have bid on the freaking used one! I mean the kid selling it may have used it, but at least he had it on hand!

I wasted no time sending the company a NASTY e-mail how unprofesional it was, and because I was bidding on an item that is no longer manufuctered It seemed rather suspect that they were going to "restock" it... GRRRR... I am still pissy about that.

I was so violently pissed off I started screaming and jsut couldnt stop. Every curseword I know in at least 4 different languages at the top of my lungs! My assistant snuck out, my dogs hid under the couch, my great dane sized greyhound couldnt fit under the couch so she ran and hid under the bed... it was not pretty! I went and vented all that healthy rage on my punching bag (I kickbox) But appearnetly I was SOO scary my assistant called my EX-boyfriend over to calm me down!

Just think about that statement for a moment, she called my EX-boyfriend to calm me down! There is soo much wrong with that sentence alone, it boggles the mind, but even wierder he actually DID managed to calm me down... and I got all that violence out of my system, for now. But I am still incredibly frustrated and confused and those two things are the parents of anger and violence... so I think it may come back again, and you know what they say about angry women and the limits of their estrogen driven fury. I am not kidding when I say I was a viscious hell beast! It is just disturbing you know? Still that is soo wrong it bothers me... I feel like there is a curse on me or something!

But the damn thing is paid for and on backorder, so it is stuck in the "On the way" stage. Just GRRRRRRR! Oh well at least there is Men's tennis on to distract me (good looking, athletic, TALL, guys who get paid well sweating and grunting... I know I am wierd, but I find it very hard to concentrate on anything else when I am watching it, espeically when my favorite players are going at it... hey guys like cheerleaders... I have a thing for tennis players, who are you to judge me! :)

See at least my sense of humor is returning.... but lets hope you dont have such an ordeal getting your hands on one! Like I said GOOD LUCK!