Luckily here in California we have this chain called Fry's Electronics. They sell stuff normal electronics like Best Buy but also sell specialized electronic parts as well.
There are 4 of them here in the DFW area. Hell, I worked at one for about 7 months.
Luckily there is also a Microcenter in north Dallas too. Got my 4690K + mobo on combo deal for $240. Saved me $60+ compared to Newegg.
Being a computer salesman at 20 years old really sucks when you know more than anyone else about the products you're selling, but no one wants to buy from a kid when they can buy from some greasy Indian/Pakistani or old guy who must be a better/nicer and more trustworthy person than me *sarcasm*. I do think however, I just wasn't as good as I could've been (or as much of a charlatan). These days I would be much more apt for the job. I had wanted to work in the components department anyways, because everyone in that department was in my same age range. It was the "cool" place to be there.
As for work horror stories, I don't have any really, 'cept maybe black Friday at Fry's where everyone works from 6 to 11 at night. You get a 3 hour break at some point in the day, but you still feel stuck. Though the worst general thing about Fry's was working on a concrete floor all day, sometimes 9 or 10 hours. When I first started, I had a running foot injury that made working painful at times. Also, there was a requirement to sell at least 2 wireless install services and 2 Fry's Credit Cards a month. I think I sold 1 of each the 6 months I was a salesman and I was actually forced to take a day off of work as "punishment" once for not meeting quota. This was late 2007, early 2008 mind you. Most people already had wireless systems already built into their routers, and the Fry's Card has a horrendous interest rate. One was a product very few people needed, the other was just atrocious.
I also worked for Gamestop before Fry's for a year and a half. It wasn't a half bad job for minimum wage if you could stand the waves of consumers, nerds, and general riff raff of the occupation. My ASM became a manager at a store that needed alot of fixing, and I went with him as a "third key". Two months later, after he, myself, and the ASM fixed the problems with the location, my manager was moved to another store that needed problems solved. My new manager decided to show up early one morning after I opened the store with his old manager he was ASM under and acted as if me and my manager hadn't done anything much to "fix" the store, when in fact we turned it around into a successful business again. I didn't show up the next day and I turned in my keys the day after that. Turned out the new guy got fired some time afterwards for theft.
Where I work now, and have been for 6 and a half years is pretty good for retail. Most problems stem from sociological bullshit between coworkers, but we are all pretty close in some way or another. We get healthcare, hour lunches, profit bonuses every quarter (though lately they've been low due to the company adopting new technologies), and we really work only 35 hours a week. If I had really wanted to, I could've been a store manager, but I took my sweet time. The past three years, I've worked in inventory management and merchandising of product. In March I'll be moving on from the job to move in with my girlfriend who lives a couple hours away and to finish school. I will miss the place and the people, but I will not miss most of the customers and the ass loads of litigation that plague the higher ups.
I feel for the Radio Shack guy, and I'm glad that I never had to go through anything that drastic. However, anyone stuck in such a bad job really needs to just get out of there for their own sanity. It's easy to just stick with something because it's there the next day.