I know. I know it is not technically a little thing. But it makes me happy. Unbelievably, weirdly, wonderfully happy.
Amazon Prime is a yearly membership in which you pay a set fee (as of this writing, it is $79, but that might change soon according to this CNN article) and get free two day shipping on most of their products on their site. Since I usually purchase all of our books from Amazon, this has been beyond wonderful. I will say this will probably not be worth the cost to you if you do not shop at Amazon a lot. Unfortunately, I spend a pretty good amount of funds there. I buy all of my beauty products, excluding make-up, (this is tricky, because I thought one of my products was covered under Prime, but I ended up paying $8 to ship one item. Make sure you check) from Amazon. I also tend to buy everyone’s toys through Amazon.
In addition to the two day shipping, I also receive unlimited streaming of many movies and television shows. The kids utilize this feature the most. Plus I have free access to their Kindle library. I do not use that feature though. You cannot hoard a paperless book.
On Life Hacker, there is a breakdown of the question, “Would I benefit from Amazon Prime?” It gives a better answer than I could, because they actually use math to make their decision. Imagine that!
I did write a post I have not published (and I am not sure I am going to, because one company earned an F) of the internet companies I used during Christmastime for gifts and Amazon was one of the few companies who earned an A+ from me. I think they do things right.
In the last five days, I have purchased three books. It is kind of like magic how quickly they have come. I have to stop myself from buying more just to see how fast they will get here. You mean you have to actually pay for the books? This isn’t really magic?
And now, Amazon has Sunday delivery! Yes, Sunday delivery! I am sure there are many differing opinions about this, but I love it. I have not taken advantage of this option (I guess I never shop on a Friday), but I might in the future. There are many articles stating this is a fantastic revenue venture for the U.S. Postal Service. Here is one of them from USA Today.
I bought “Fan Girl” on Saturday. I received it on Monday. I finished it on Tuesday. Now, that’s a beautiful thing! The situation of my house is, um, not so pretty.
I ordered “The Magician’s Elephant” and “Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore” on Monday and I received them on Wednesday. Unfortunately, housework did end up dominating and I have not started those books yet. But I know they are there. Cheering for me from the wings when others might not.
I am not gonna lie. It has been a tough couple of months in terms of health and some other things going on behind the scenes here. A new book just makes me happy. It takes me away. Being able to get a little bit of another world in the dreary mail, is real-life magic.
It’s the little things: an upgrade on Amazon that upgraded my life.
Have you upgraded to Amazon Prime? Do you think it is worth the extra money? I was a skeptic for so long, but I am now reformed.
I love it!
* This is just my review of Amazon Prime. I am not being compensated for this post. And, as with all of my reviews, your experience might differ from mine.
Anyone have had both Netflix streaming and Amazon Prime and can give me a comparison of the two?
http://fancynancysfashionsafari.blogspot.com/
Hi Nancy. We have both, but are going to be canceling our Netflix soon. They are very similar. But it does seen what one has, the other doesn’t and vice versa. Amazon is cheaper. At least for us. We are paying $20 something a month for Netflix.
If my husband has a different reply when I ask him later, I will update!
Have a great day!
Jenni
Don’t have Amazon Prime, but have looked into it. Don’t think I make enough purchases to offset the cost for me. Looking forward to hearing how you like Mr. Penumbra’s. I will definitely be checking out The Magician’s Elephant. I LOVE Kate DiCamillo!! Thought Because of Winn Dixie was FAB!!!And also really enjoyed The Tiger Rising. Currently reading A Train in Winter by Caroline Moorehead about some women in the French Resistance during WWII. It is interesting, but heartbreaking. My next book is A Star For Mrs. Blake: A Novel by April Smith, which is already loaded on my Kindle. I borrow most books from my library and load to my Kindle.
Thank you for the recommendation! I will hopefully get to it tonight. It looks so good! I have never read anything by Kate DiCamillo. But The Magician’s Elephant looks so good! I can’t wait! I will definitely let you know what I think of both of them!
I love the library, I just can never remember to return the books. Then it ends up costing me half of the book when I remember due to late fees. So I purchase for my sanity!
Have a fabulous day!
Jenni
Loved Mr. Penumbra! I put it by my bedside at a hotel and later when I turned out the lights, was mystified. Um, try it.
Okay. Now you have me intrigued! I am starting this tonight! I will definitely do what you suggest!!!
Can’t wait to see what happens! : )
Have a lovely day!
Jenni
We have Amazon Prime and love it too! Definitely worth the money! If they raise the price though, they will probably lose us.
I so agree, Cynthia! We would not pay an extra $40 for it. That is just too big of an increase.
Sweet dreams!
Jenni
I have a free 3 month trial of Amazon Prime now so we’ll see how I like it. I just don’t order a ton of stuff from Amazon so I’m not sure it’s worth the $80 price tag for me. And to answer your question on my blog about the boots. I got them this year from Nordstrom, here’s the link…
http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/minnetonka-double-fringe-boot/3329058?siteId=J84DHJLQkR4-zle1TdK1zXpN__lHLgCq_Q
I love them and they’re super comfortable too. A great little boot to just throw on and go. I just wish they were a little warmer with the negative temps we’ve been having here. 🙂
Thanks Jessica! Those boots are so much cuter than the boots I returned! Great purchase you made! They are adorable.
Three months of Amazon Prime free is a fantastic deal. Just make sure you remember to cancel it if you do not keep it, because they bill you when your trial is over. Right away! That is how I ended up with it! It is actually good to get the trial around Christmastime so your packages come super fast.
Have a gorgeous weekend!
Jenni
funny you wrote about this. we accidentally got prime, well, we signed up to take advantage at Christmas then forgot to cancel….but,we too received mail from amazon on a SUNDAY! it was so weird! forget the math, I feel like that alone is worth it!
Melodee, that is exactly what happened to me! I signed up at Christmas… And BAM! They billed me. And I had Amazon Prime. I had to get it anyway because I had promised the kids it came with their Kindles they got for Christmas. But it was still kind of shocking. I naively expected a warning.
But Sunday delivery is so awesome! It is like magic! I agree that it makes it more worth it to me, too.
I hope your weekend is delightful!
Jenni
I was annoyed with my hubby when he signed us up for Amazon Prime because it didn’t seem worth the added cost, but now I absolutely love it. I have seriously ordered things right before I have gone to bed, and they have been waiting for me on my doorstop by lunchtime the next day; it’s rare that the 2-day shipping takes even 2 days for us! Their customer service has also been superb whenever I have had to deal with it. I’m not sure we’ll stick with it if the price is hiked TOO much, but I am definitely enjoying it now! I hope you are loving your new books! I’m the same way in that new books make me all warm and fuzzy inside. 🙂
BTW, Amazon Prime is free for college students, just so anyone who is eligible knows. You just have to sign up with a valid college e-mail address. It makes me wish I was still in school! 😉
I felt the same way Casey! My husband wanted it. I did not. But now I am the one who loves it the most. As the way it always is.
I would be so excited to have the one day shipping like you! That is truly magic! So awesome!
Thank you for sharing about the college students being free. I will try to update soon to reflect that information. Gosh, it makes me love Amazon even more!
I hope your weekend is creative and fun!
Jenni