[  Not arcade-related, ...but funny   ]


My wife decided that she wants to run a marathon
and has started training a few months ago...

She borrowed a GPS heart-rate monitor sports watch once,
and has been asking for one ever since..

...and of course, she wants the Cadillac...  the Garmin 405CX ...at $450 CDN !

That said, she's also reaching a major life milestone on Wednesday, when she will turn 40.

So as the good hubby that I am , I went looking on-line for a Garmin 405CX for her birthday.

I found a US retailer on eBay , who had them brand new, shipped, for $320 US.

So I ordered one, and had it shipped to my US PO Box.

I was driving down to NY State this morning to pick it up ,
and I decided I would be 100% legit at Customs and declare everything at actual paid price.

So I printed the eBay auction info, the "actual" purchase price , and all that Jazz,
and was quite willing to pay $45+ in Taxes to avoid any problems.

So I get my package, drive back across the river and declare my goods to the Customs officer.

I'm sent inside to pay the taxes, and the clerk inside asked "what is it ? "
I tell him it's a heart-rate monitor sports watch, and show him the picture on the auction receipt.

So he enters the info on his computer, and says, thank you sir, have a nice day...

?!?!?!?

So I asked if he was sure there was not tax,
and he looks at me strangely and says "No .  No Tax.  Do you really want me to charge you for some ? "

So I say, nope, no problem, thank you very much, goodbye...

When I get back to my car, I look on printed receipt and see :
" Heart rate Monitor  -  Category : Medical "

The guy mis-categorized it into something that has no tax implication !   BONUS !!!

So here I am being Mr. Honest and everything,
and end -up not having to pay any taxes because of a clerical error !

That's good Karma !

;-p


Steph

That's pretty cool. Maybe it wasn't really a clerical error but a gesture of kindness.

Maybe all heart rate monitors are categorized as medical in so far as they are sometimes used for that purpose.  

Quoted from OTTOgd

That's pretty cool. Maybe it wasn't really a clerical error but a gesture of kindness.

You don't got through Customs much do you .... ?    

Nah, these guys don't usually do "nice" things.

At best, they'll be courteous if you come well-prepared with receipts,
but I've never seen them purposely not charge any taxes.

I really think the guy entered it under the wrong product category.

... so from now on, I know what to declare my boxes of blank eproms as ...  


Steph

Quoted from Steph

You don't got through Customs much do you .... ?    

Nah, these guys don't usually do "nice" things.

At best, they'll be courteous if you come well-prepared with receipts,
but I've never seen them purposely not charge any taxes.

I really think the guy entered it under the wrong product category.

... so from now on, I know what to declare my boxes of blank eproms as ...  


Steph

I would say this of the postal customs inspectors, but not of the border inspectors, at least not the ones at Rainbow Bridge.  They regularly wave you through without having to pay if you make an honest declaration.

Nice gift Steph.  As a fellow runner how only has a Garmin 305, I am kind of envious.     She will truly enjoy it.

In a strange way having one of these diagnosed someone close to use with Atrial fibrillation.    He noticed some high values, and so we tried another thinking the cheapo watch one was kaput, and the second one verified it.   Went to ER and was fast tracked to be taken care of.   So, yeah, they were a medical device that day!

Happy Birthday to the Other Half.

(Oh yeah, I owe you syrup money - wallet's upstairs - I'll get it now....)

My wife runs so I bought her the Garmin 405CX for Christmas last year and she loves it.
A little extra money than some of the others, but it is more the size of a watch compared
to other models that look like they should have a shoulder strap to carry them.