People really like IKEA

So while pretty much every other devoted sports fan was watching the hugely climactic U.S. Open 18-hole playoff involving Tiger, I had to go to a furniture store. Heck, even those that think golf is boring were probably watching Euro Cup. I was sort of in Europe, except it was spelled with an 'I' and a 'K'. And it was Swedish.

If you didn't know, which you probably didn't because very few people I know besides myself have to keep up with New York city news, New York City is about to welcome its first IKEA. It was kind of a big deal around here because local groups in Brooklyn fought like Hell to try and not have an IKEA. And as anyone who has walked into one of those places knows, IKEA sucks and is artsy fartsy crap.


IKEA of Red Hook (a Brooklyn neighborhood for you uneducated folk)

But of course, I didn't even get to cover the real news part about people hating IKEA. I got to cover the people who decided to wait in line two days in advance of the store opening. They were all trying to get an EKTORP sofa. IKEA is giving away free EKTORPS to the first 35 customers on Wednesday morning.

And let me tell you, there were some pretty big weirdos with really fancy tents. This one father-daughter duo told me about how they dressed up as gift-wrapped boxes as part of another IKEA's Christmas promotion four years ago when free shit was on the line. Now they've skipped work for three days so they can get a sofa. To say it took all the power within my corps to hold in my laughter and delirious pointing and laughing would be an understatement.

Seriously people, I know some want to blame this lagging economy on sub prime mortgage leases, but I didn't see any investment bankers waiting in line for a free couch this afternoon. They were all at work.


Yes, those are tents pitched outside of an unopened IKEA.

Although there was this one guy, who was blogging his experience over the next two days on his blog. I thought that was kind of cool. He was telling me how he likes to make his blog posts as if readers are living vicariously through him. You can find all his live blogging here.

Long live the blogger!