How to get a MacBook Pro for under $1000

This is for real. No wacky pyramid scams or other wise. This is a tutorial of how to walk into Future Shop and pay less than $1000 for a MacBook.

The 13" MacBook Pro retails for $1249. Apple has a promotion on right now for college/university students that offers $100 off any computer plus a free $100 Mac app store giftcard. They also always offer $100 off a printer when you buy a computer and since they have some that are only $99 you can get a free printer. Future Shop has the 13" MacBook Pro on sale for $1199 this week anyways but if you are a student they put it down to $1149 to match Apple. They don't have Mac app store giftcards so instead of giving those away they are offering Microsoft Office for Mac for free with the MacBook if you are a student. (Side note: they don't actually care if you are a student or not. I am not a student and still got this. They don't ask for proof. If you are visibly too old to be a student tell them you are shopping for your brother/sister/niece/nephew/son/daughter/whatever. They really don't care, especially since this offer is also available online.)
So now you are down to $1149 + free MS Office. The salesman is going to try to sell you all these extended warranties. Make it seem like you're interested but tell him that it just costs too much. Ask him if he can do any better on the price of the warranty or the computer. The 3 year warranty costs $299 but the salesman was able to knock $80 off the price of the computer when I agreed to buy the warranty. (This proves that they can for sure at least take $80 off. See if you can do any better.) He said something about how the discount is essentially coming off of the warranty but since they can't actually reduce the price of the warranty, he will take the discount off of the MacBook itself. This brings the price of the MacBook Pro down to $1069 and now you have MS Office for free and a warranty for $299.
Here's the catch: After purchasing an extended warranty at Future Shop, you have 30 days to "return" the warranty (they actually call it PSP- Product Service Protection), meaning cancel it for a full refund. Who wants that shit anyways? Since the discount was taken off of the computer, and not the warranty, when you cancel it you'll get your $299 back but still get the MacBook for $1069.
"What about a printer?!" I asked. "Apple will give me a free printer." Well Future Shop won't give you a free printer, but they will give you a Canon All-In-One for $10 when you buy a computer or tablet. $10? Why not! It retails for $59.99.
Well I took that little printer home and sold the shit out of it on Craigslist. $50 cash in hand. That's $40 profit to put towards the computer bringing the price down to $1019. And Microsoft Office? Who actually pays for software these days anyways? Suckers, that's who. But if the store can sell that for $130, why can't I? Craigslist, be my bitch. Someone will be swinging by tomorrow to grab that fucker for a smooth $90, which I of course will apply to the tab bringing your grand total down to $929!!!!!! Ring ring ring ring ring. Cha-ching, cha-ching. The price is right! Now if only sales tax in Ontario wasn't 13%.... son of a bitches.

I have to be honest...

I'm not sure why, but lately I've been pretty off of music. I don't know if it's due to working so much and being so constantly exhausted, or growing up faster than I'd like to and becoming jaded, or a combination of both. Lately everything I listen to either bores me to the point of turning it off, or makes me outright cringe. This whole situation upsets me more than I can textually explain. I start to feel like I've lost myself- since when am I not interested in music? It's the most important thing in my life. If I don't have that, what do I have?

I'm bored with everything on my iPod, and everything on the radio sounds the goddamn same... and it's awful shit. I feel like I don't even know how to play my guitar anymore. I pick it up and I don't know what to do with it. I don't even remember how to play my own songs.

I've now been at my job for over 10 months and I'm more miserable and jaded than ever. Every "musician" that I work with is exactly what I consider to not be a musician and everything I never want to be. Egotistical, competitive, arrogant, irresponsible, immature (not to mention a hillbilly). In my opinion, being a musician is not a hobby- it's a career. Until the day that playing music becomes you're full time job, you are not a musician- just a wannabe. But everyone has to start somewhere I suppose. Maybe these inbred pig farmers that I call co-workers are what have left such a tainted taste in my mouth.

Tonight while goofing about on the internet, I decided to give my iTunes playlist another chance to sweep me off my feet. I started with the song "Little Hell" by City and Colour, which I absolutely love and put the shuffle setting on. As much as I love "Little Hell" it still didn't make me feel anything.
Finally the song "Paper Wings" by Rise Against came on and for the first time in several months I got goosebumps. I immediately turned off shuffle and put on the Siren Song For The Counter Culture album. Front to back. I'm in love. Again. It's literally the perfect record. It feels good to be me.

It's All About The Little Things

1 cup of peanut butter + 1/2 a cup of sugar + 1 egg = 3 days of snack induced smiles

Always....

A truly great song can be stripped down to nothing and still give you shivers.

This week in music: March 29 - April 5

I love new music. So much has happened in the world of my bands this week. Yes, my bands. That's what I call them. My faves. My heros. The guys I've grown up listening to and will forever love. There is something though. Some love-blinding vice that makes you oblivious and in complete denial when something you have so much admiration for lets you down.



Sum 41 has been a favourite of mine since I was 8. That's 10 years going strong. That's the longest I've ever been in love with a certain band. In fact, I remember as if it was yesterday being 8 and wanting All Killer No Filler more than anything in the world. My mom refused to buy it for me because Sum 41 was not a boyband like *Nsync or Backstreet Boys. They were "punks" and "hoodlems" and their music was "loud and noisey" and had "bad words". So being my defient self, I called my dad and had him drop it off at my house. Ahh the joys of devorced parents. I remember the Sam The Record Man bag and everything.
Well last Tuesday album #6 dropped and I was beyond excited. I felt like a little kid again as I imagined the spikey-haired Whibley and his synchronized pop-punk jumps.
Screaming Bloody Murder sounds like Patrick Stump and James Hetfield fucked and popped out a retarded little baby. I don't hate it, but I can't love it. Attn Deryck Whibley: You are not John Legend. Lose the fucking piano. Xoxo Nicole


Long awaited. Solid. That's all I got for now as I am giving it a first listen as I type this. I do really like that they leaked it themselves and I'm not stuck with some shotty copy. Now tour goddamnit.


City And Colour leaked the first single "Fragile Bird" off the upcoming album Little Hell today. You all know how much I love Dallas Green's music but I can't stop picturing the Black Keys when I listen to it. See for yourself here.