Hey everyone, Slothyy here with the Infamous Laptop to Mexico story - with a pretty shitty twist today.
I am normally extremely cautious - I always have someone I trust to watch my stuff, or always have it packed up in my backpack, even if it is a pain in the ass to set up everything over and over.
And my laptop is always with me 24/7 - I travel 80% of the year and it's pretty much the only materialistic item of value I have in my possession.
I guard this thing with my life 99% of the time, and trust my close friends 1% of the time with it, because, without it, I can't work - designing for my clients, building Steemit and Gamers United, keeping up with my marketing gigs, etc.
It's literally my lifeline.
And sadly today someone had to steal it.
I had a Razer Blade gaming laptop that I just received only a few weeks ago - it was $1499 + tax + shipping in the US.
Since I'm in Mexico, they wouldn't ship to me here, only to my Mom's address in the US.
2-day express shipping with full insurance set me back I think $486 - but I figured that for work and being able to provide better streams, it was worth it.
I couldn't buy one locally - didn't have the cash on me. I had set aside some funds with my mom back home and a few cards on my person, plus a little bit of sock money (just in case) with enough money for my basic essentials - it helps me stay budgeted (not my first time traveling, and it's easier than you think to lose focus and start blowing money when you're playing the geoarbitrage game).
So I had my mom buy it and have it shipped to her - then ship it to me with a bunch of letters I had received (new debit cards, bank statements, some old medical bills, etc).
Then here comes the fucking kicker - Mexico holds my package in custom for 5-6 days (I have the exact details/shipping info/dates, so I can upload if people want).
Then no response from Customs for days. I'm frantically calling UPS USA and Mexico every single day inquiring what's going on.
Finally, my mom gets a phone call (her number was on the package) saying that Mexican customs was going to "clear it" for delivery - after I paid 6300+ pesos in "import tax". She immediately calls me and tells me the news.
WTF?!? Their website said things like computer and such were exempt from these "tariffs". Bullshit. But fine. I go and pay them a day or so later - having to borrow the money since I had already hocked up everything I had for the laptop and horrible shipping costs.
Then it gets even worse - UPS MX themselves decide to start playing games. Changing delivery dates, locations of the package, etc. I call them, have a friend translate for me (my Spanish was horrendous at the time) and figure out that they need me to email this guy to pay the Tariffs to customs and them. Plus there's a daily "storage fee" (about $4 a day if I remember correctly).
So I email this random person with an official @ups.com email address and begin conversing - desperately asking what needed to happen so I could get this damn laptop to me.
I'm told to go to X bank, pay the 6300+ pesos in cash, and then send a copy of the receipt to them. Along with signing this paperwork stating my address and other info. So fine - I handle it all.
Then these pendejos start delaying their email response times to me - or directing me to other emails/phones to call, where I'd once again be given the runaround.
Then I'm told over the phone a few days in that I needed to pay a "delivery fee" of an extra 2000 pesos, to the delivery driver in cash, or else he would not scan and give me the package.
Obviously, at his point, I'm fucking furious and about to smash everything in sight - my $1500 laptop was quickly turning into a $3000 laptop.
I agree to this bullshit because I was not going to lose all that money for nothing. And I honestly thought that they'd be scumbags and still steal it (i've been told of stories after providing passport copies/info/etc -that they keep this info then use it to "verify" deliveries here then keep the packages for themselves).
Then radio silence for another day or so.
I call them back, email them nonstop, everything - I finally get another male stating that because of an increase in their rates, I now needed to pay $3927 pesos in total upon delivery, or else the driver would return it to the Cancun UPS hub and keep it there (it's 1 hour north of where I'm currently at - Playa del Carmen)!
I mean, if you think I'm kidding or joking, look at this chart and see just how many extortions there were ALONE in MEXICO in 2012. How high is that number today, which I'm now going to be a part of that statistic?
I'm crushed. Completely extorted by Mexico and feeling completely defeated - I scramble and take out a Neoxian loan. I really didn't have any other options then.
So I agree - I went in balls deep on this one because I refused to lose it.
The driver finally shows up after weeks of having that excited feeling of receiving a new toy to help improve the output and quality of my work and the pace at which I could do so.
I pay him the pesos - he leaves. Yay, a victory - bittersweet as fuck but OK, fine.
All's well for a few weeks...then today comes. And my favorite backpack with my journals/notes/laptop (completely encrypted and nothing locally stored so data-wise it's fine) - along with my sole source of income generation while traveling just vanished.
Some pendejo ran in and jacked my brand new Razer Blade, my gaming headset AND my mouse, along with my backpack (1 of 2 backpacks and half of my possessions I own) - snatch, grab and run. I've frequented this cafe' many times and made friends with the workers - they always were happy to just peek an eye on my stuff while I used the restroom quickly.
I had to borrow $45 today to buy a craptop (some Asus netbook 2nd hand with 2GB RAM and an Intel Celeron processor....it's painful just to even type this out. 1 other browser tab open and SO FREAKING SLOW - and I've been in IT a long time so I know how to optimize a machine.
I'm going to figure out a solution to this - because I won't be defeated. This financially just blew me apart - but it didn't kill me and only angered me more, which I'm going to funnel into time and energy focusing on the creation of great content and website designs, and learning to code Javascript, while still growing Steemit - just pretty much text-based posts for a while :/
Yes, I did have the Cafe' review their cameras, and apparently I was sitting near a blind spot next to the front entrance/window, where I could be seen but not my laptop/backpack while sitting at the table. We also did see a skinny, tall, Mexican fellow quickly run in and run out with my shit, in less than 10 seconds - wasn't using my charger at that point so it was so easy to grab and go.
I'm trying to get the Cafe' to release a copy of the video to me, and I did contact the police, so I'm hoping something comes of this.
Dunno what else to say. This fucking sucks. Blah.
Either way - that's tonights rant. What a shitty day.
Sad Slothyy out. Not even doing a recruitment footer today.
These things just keep happening to you, don't they Ben? Sigh
Please people, don't fall for this latest sob story.
https://steemit.com/scam/@neoxian/scam-warning-fatpandadesign-getslothyy-ben-schwartz
Is this how we're gonna do things? After I've already mediated with multiple witnesses? Alright, let's do this then
You are done. Go ahead and create the new account. We all know you will.
Hey bro! Since you left Discord channel I can't contact you anyway anymore. You got any other means for communicating?
Slothyy scammed you.
Yeah, it won't let me message you either - might be my privacy settings, or yours, let me check.
I thought you have lost your account? people myself included think you scammed them (seems you're aware) I wish to hear from your side.
U were scammed
Yup, I know... But if he have an excuse I still want to hear it, no matter how unbelievable it is.
Oh and I didn't leave, I was kicked. FYI
Is this true? How do you thank the people who trust you and who lend you money that you earned so hard? That means that my money will not come back :( and so much that it cost me to earn my 70 SBD AND 80 STEEM that lends you :(
https://busy.org/@therealwolf/warning-ben-schwartz-is-a-scammer-who-owes-me-2600-sbd
Dude that fucking sucks 😥
Yeah. Not really sure how to react right now, but trying to remain proactive... Seriously the last thing I needed right now.
Gratz, bro!
Yeah, apparently I won high fucking score today.
Sorry about your laptop soth. Some people are just too much.
That sucks dude.
Thats is awful, Do you have a desktop PC at all or was that your only machine?
I backpack across the world - it was my only machine and I spent pretty much everything I had on it (and more) after the extortion, for steemit/streaming/etc.. I currently have a craptop that i had to borrow $45 to get.
I've got an old Sony Vaio Laptop that might be a tad better than that laptop if you want it? Let me know as I do have spares for Desktops if you need something up and running.
This is an amazing offer on your part and I would be so blessed, but I think shipping it would cost you more than it's worth :/
That's the worst, especially when you thought you could trust someone to help you. Sorry to hear that, buddy...
That's sad to read it ;/ I hope all your data was in cloud too :/ I know how you can feel, because I without PC will be dead, I do my work, earn cash ect by my pc, it's like my third arm ;/
That's kinda how I feel right now. It's so hard to do even the most basic of things on this lappy, I mean i'm not complaining as I was definitely lucky to even have the chance to nab it but it just really sucks cause I can't stream, design, etc - I can barely have Discord and Steemit open at the same time with everything else closed.
@getslothy This is the worst that could happen and not only affects you, do not trust anyone, worse if there is money in between.
What you have to do is try to work on something and thus save enough money to pay the people who have lent you and then try to buy a new PC.
Good thing you did not lose any important information.
Each fall makes it bigger to one so be strong and move on!
Yes,, this is true - it just sucks because I had everything I needed to earn at a good pace and move forward, and now i can barely even type this without it lagging out. Makes it 10x harder to get shit done and earn.
Dude this is so fucking terrible to fucking read :c I can't even imagine how you feel right now. Like why would that dude do that??? It's like he had you on his tracks before you even entered the cafe. It's so shitty.
Let's try not to crumble down in here, we'll work it out of this and make it even bigger. I'll offer any support I can possibly give. You know I got your back whenever you need me <3
Got it, Look as poor and cheap as possible if I go to Mexico....
..Sorry to hear and I Truly hope things get better.
You poor bugger I feel for you, I really hope your luck turns around soon.
It can be real tough living abroad some times.
That is so awful!! Are you still in Playa? If so, go check the pawn shops; that's normally where that stuff ends up.
Hi Lynn. I came here through a post about this guy scamming people. Do you know him?
@profanereviews I saw the Mexico/laptop comment and noticed it was in the same town I'm in. So I replied to the guy to check pawn shops here and never heard back from him. Makes perfect sense now though!
Oh, okay. I just stumbled across Doomsday's post and ended up there.
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