It's 9PM in Alpharetta Georgia, some 15 miles or so north of Atlanta, and it's snowing. At least we are pretty sure it is. We, in this case, is myself and several of the line-sitters at the new Fry's that opened up two weeks ago. We've been chatting for a good 10 minutes now and only just noticed tiny ice particles floating through the ground light nearby. It's going to be a long night.

For the folks here, it's been a long couple of days. The first person in line got here 7AM on Wednesday, setting himself up with a cot and a thick comforter. The line has grown to a modest 35 people since then, with quite a few cots and one extremely elaborate tent, complete with four chairs and a dining table.

The amazing thing is that these folks are camping out for $1100 bundles. Each person in line is purchasing the system along with 8 games that they don't get to choose. You'd think Fry's would treat these potential sales with at least a little bit of respect. Apparently not.

"There was one guy who came out to help us earlier," says the list holder, a well-bundled up black man appointed by the crowd to take down names and keep things in order. "They suspended him from work for talking to us. He came out and got in line, and they told him he couldn't buy from this store, so he quit." Other folks in line were under the impression that Fry's would be taking care of them, providing hot drinks and possibly food. So far all they'd provided was open scorn and mixed information.

Over the course of the past day they've been told the store would be receiving anywhere from 8-26 systems. People have come to the line, heard the lower numbers, and then left, only to have the number arbitrarily change as soon as they were gone.

I thought maybe this was an exaggeration, but as I was standing there a man and a woman, both employees, came out to survey the line. They laugh, and as they are heading back in the guy says, "Wouldn't it be funny if a hurricane came in the night and washed them all away?" I was stunned. Then ten minutes later another pair comes out...young guys. The one who speaks looks like a grown-up version of the main character from Bully, complete with badly fitting dress shirt and unfortunate acne. "Folks, the Sony truck pulled up 10 minutes ago and took all but 5 of the PS3's away, so we're only going to have those 5 in the morning." The folks around me all simply stare at him incredulously until he breaks into a laugh, nudging his buddy back towards the store. "Can't keep a straight face in front of the PS3 campers!"

Despite the poor treatment, the line is in great spirits. There are actual gamers here. The list holder himself is one of them, excited about a whole 3 of the 8 games he is being forced to buy. An honest to goodness Final Fantasy fanboy conversation strikes up, with me in the thick of it...something that wouldn't have happened at the other places I visited today. They put me back in the spirit of things. After hearing person after person in line after line speculating on how much they money they'd be making it was nice to hear people speculating on how much fun was coming their way.

As for Fry's...these people are about to spend $1100 and change each at your store. I'd really like to see your employees trying to sell a plasma television to a customer while laughing openly at his desire to buy it. I know it's hard to staff a superstore without getting your fair share of assholes, but try to keep them away from the paying customers, kay? Michael Fahey