no more educational discount on the new ipods?

so i was browsing the apple store site, taking a gander at the fancy new ipods. i thought about maybe buying one with my Apple Educational Discount when i noticed a little something missing from the usual agreement…

Who is Eligible To Purchase
The following education individuals are eligible to purchase through the Apple Store for Education individuals:

• Faculty or staff member of a public or private Higher Education Institution in the United States
• Student currently attending or accepted into a public or private Higher Education Institution in the United States

Purchase Quantity
Faculty, Staff and Students purchasing from the Apple Store for Education Individuals will be allowed to purchase the foll owing quantities of product per academic school year:

1. Desktop: One (1) may be purchased per academic year
2. Mac mini: One (1) may be purchased per academic year
3. Notebook: One (1) may be purchased per academic year
4. Display: A maximum of two (2) may be purchased p er academic year
5. Software: A maximum of two (2) per software title may be purchased per academic year
6. iSight: One (1) may be purchased per academic year

**The above purchases can be made either online or through your Apple Authorized Campus Store. Total product quantities remain the same regardless of where your purchase is made.

Statement of Eligibility
I represent that I am a member of one of the defined groups above eligible to purchase and that the products being purchased direct from Apple Computer, Inc. are for my own personal, education, and/or research use.

Nowhere does it mention the ipod. Curious. I fired up a live salesperson chat (there’s a little link at the bottom of the page) and had the following discussion.

• You are chatting with Yaneika, an Apple Expert

• Hi, my name is Yaneika. How may I help you today?
• Yaneika: Hi! How are you?
• You: i just tried browsing through the store to maybe get a new ipod, but my student discount doesn’t seem to apply
• Yaneika: I’m happy to assist with that.
• Yaneika: The prices listed on the web site are already adjusted to reflect the educational discount where applicable.
• You: but the price isn’t at all adjusted on the new nanos. they’re still 149/199/249. would that mean they’re not discounted?
• Yaneika: That’s exactly what that means, Since the new Nano are even less expensive than the old Nano’s without the education individual discount.
• You: ok, thanks for the help
• Yaneika: You’re welcome.
• Yaneika: May I assist with any other product or order questions before you proceed?
• You: no, that’s all i need.
• Yaneika: Have a great night!
• Yaneika: Thank you for visiting the Apple Store. We appreciate your business!
• Thank you for contacting the Apple Store. If you require further assistance, please call 1-800-MY-APPLE.

So, students of the world, be ready to bid adieu to the best reason to use that Apple Educational discount… Oh well, the discount still applies to the Macbook, if anyone wanted to buy one for me…

rain delay? more like lame delay…

So my ’stros got their game against the Phillies rained out today. Knowing how they’ve been playing lately, that might be a good thing, but that brings me to something I’ve been wondering about since I first got into baseball: why isn’t a retractible roof standard on baseball stadia?

Fifty percent of the parks I’ve visited have a retractible roof, and that frankly makes all the difference to me. Admittedly, I’ve only been to beautiful Mintute Maid Park in Houston, TX, and Ameriquest Field in Arlington, TX, so that sorta screws with my percentages just a bit, but the point is my enjoyment of the game was greatly enhanced by the fact that I got to watch in a cool, mid-70s degree temperature, whereas the climate out in the Sweat Bayou City was something absurd like 147 degrees (in the shade) with 300% humidity. I didn’t have to worry one second that the game would be delayed for anything save a streaker or otherwise retarded individual or act of God. Besides, doesn’t the inevitable rain delay in some way screw with the business of MLB?

This is the 21st century, and we’ve advanced as a civilization to a point where we might not have control over the weather, but we can at least put up shelter when and where we might need it. If I were Steinbrenner or any other team owner planning on opening up a new field, I wouldn’t hesitate to tack on that few extra million to make the rain delay a thing of the past.

recent bat-happenings

I picked up the first couple of issues (655 & 656) of Grant Morrison and Andy Kubert’s run on Batman. Fun stuff indeed. I’ll admit I was a bit worried by the pre-release interviews, specifically Morrison’s desire to bring Batman back to his “Bruce Wayne, playboy” alter ego. I grew up in the post-Miller Bat world, so I tend to think of Batman as a ruthless son of a bitch, slightly insane and driven to eradicate crime. I equated softening up Batman with bringing in some element of the Adam West camp, which in and of itself isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I don’t think I’m the only one who remembers how they ruined the Batman film franchise. (Btw, I wasn’t the biggest “Batman Begins” fan. Ninjas? Awesome. But I felt it was just a little to big in scope. I want Batman beating up criminals and busting up mobsters. Save the big threats for the bigger, better sequels.)

I might pick up Dini’s Detective on my next swing around the comics shop.

i’m a horrible blogger

it’s quite literally rained all day, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as this has been the first serious rain i’ve seen around here in months.

new semester’s just started up, and already i’ve cut a couple of classes. haven’t done much of the required reading either, nor does it seem as if i’ll be doing it anytime soon. in addition to being a horrible blogger, i’m a terrible student, and sometimes i’m an ace at pointing out the obvious.

still waiting for someone to buy me a macbook. you disgusting fuckers.