I pull up to the gas pump, start filling my tank. An anonymous white van pulls up in front of me, two guys, maybe old enough to be out of high school, are in the front. The driver yells to me "Hey. I have a strange question, but: do you want some speakers?"

"What kind of speakers?"

"Hold on, I'll show you."

He pulls around next to my car, and after a moment, comes around the side, opens the side door and there are three huge boxes: two giant floor speakers and a monster surround-sound kit: these and this.

He tells me he works for some electronics company I've never heard of, on the other side of town, and that he was out making deliveries when he discovered someone had accidentally put them in his delivery van, all invoiced, checked out, out of inventory, etc.. He shows me an invoice that I glance at, not knowing what I'm supposed to be able to conclude from it. He says he can either take them back to the warehouse where someone else will take them home, or he can sell them himself so he and his co-worker (who never leaves the van) can make a little extra cash. Maybe his boss has a strict policy that prevents things from ever being put back into inventory. Maybe it's a religious issue - "Loading docks are exit only!. I didn't ask.

He grabs some audiophile magazine he happens to have in the truck and flips to an ad for these speakers; they list for $3100 and $2475, respectively. Good shit, apparently. He asks me to make an offer: "Run to the ATM, take out what you can! Whatever you can get, I'm sure will be fine! It'll probably be more than my bonus!" I tell him I have no use for things that size, and I don't really dig the way they look, even if I did. He says "So, you can sell them yourself. Make a ton of cash!" I tell him I don't want to deal with that. He opens the subwoofer box and starts pulling out speakers, showing me how cool they are. I decline with a modest show of what I hope looks like regret.

So, after a few more rounds of "Come on, this is a great deal" and "No, I don't have any use for them", I get in my car and drive away.

Now I'm debating whether or not I should tell his boss. If these were bookshelf or car speakers, I might just forget about it, but this was $5400 worth of stuff. It's probably more than this kid makes a year. I looked-up the place he said they came from and called the number, but got voice-mail. I didn't want to leave a message, thinking those kids might be able to delete the message before anyone else heard it.

Maybe I'll try again Tuesday?

Edit: or, on second thought, better-travelled commentors inform me this was probably a scam. It makes more sense than two kids risking felony-theft convictions. And, for what it's worth: they said they were from "Empire Electronics" in Raleigh, NC. A company that claims to specialize in burglar alarm systems, but has almost no on-line presence, and the address, as listed on 411.com, is apparently in an apartment complex.

Update: check out the White Van Speaker Scam