I know exactly how you feel... I was in (almost) the same situation with my Xbox. I had never told my story online, but now might be a good time to share it (I know some were curious).
Go back to pre-launch day. I'm in Australia and I want an Xbox/Munch badly and don't want to wait until March 2002 when they come out here. I don't want to get a bundle because it doesn't have everything I want. Solution. Rope an employee from our US office to buy me an Xbox and Munch. Better still he's returning to the US TWO days after launch.
Come launch day, I'm up early for OddChat and am wondering if I got an Xbox or not. I email my work collegue and he said he got an Xbox. From the third store he went too (which was Toys R Us incidently). They had also sold the last one while he was paying for mine. So I'm over the moon. Some people from OWI were in OddChat at the time and I was pretty excited.
Three days time (allow for changes in timezone) my work college arrives complete with Xbox. I can't believe it as I take the console out of the box. He thought to get me a copy of Munch too (even though I forgot to ask him about it). So my lunch break comes along and I wander down to my local electronics store (which was a major chain store) to get a power converter (otherwise it won't work here in Australia). In I go, Xbox in hand and the people there are amazed at what I have. Then the idiots (and that's the only word for it), went and plugged the WRONG converter in. Instead of something that converts voltage, they put in just a plug converter (the kind of thing you'd use for a hairdryer). So there's a bang and a bunch of smoke comes out of the back of my brand new Xbox. I'm in shock. They'd blown it up.
So what now. Try and get it fixed in Australia? I ring Microsoft here and they don't have anyone to repair them yet. I don't want to take it to anyone else as it would void the warranty. The only thing to do is to get it back to the US. My workmate is returning back to the US at the end of the week, so have to send it back with him. But boy am I miserable. I feel as though everything I've been waiting for has been lost.
To cut short, Xbox goes back to the US, is repaired and is shipped back to me. About a month after the time I was meant to have it.
So now I have to go through the worry of getting the power converter again. I don't want to go back to the place that blew it up, so I go to one of their competitors. I also do a bit of research and find that I actually need a step-down voltage converter to convert from 220v to 120v. Anyway, what a difference this other store is. They know exactly what I need. I show them the Xbox (actually went there armed with all manuals, etc) and they look a the back and get me the converter.
I take it home, plug it in, and guess what! It works! So I'm now happily playing Munch's Oddysee.
So, Eibu, it may seem so bad at the moment, but it will all work out in the long run.
I know it won't really make you feel better, it didn't when everyone told me.
Abe Babe...