# Trying to find an SF story

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trying-to-find-an-sf-story/1031517>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Tags:** books-writing-myths\
**Created:** [July 8, 2026, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trying-to-find-an-sf-story/1031517 "2026-07-08T19:59:16Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\
**Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trying-to-find-an-sf-story/1031517/21 "2026-07-09T16:56:20Z")

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Maybe you haven’t read it…yet.

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**Author:** ![xtenkfarpl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c2a13f/32.png) [@xtenkfarpl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xtenkfarpl)\
**Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trying-to-find-an-sf-story/1031517/22 "2026-07-09T17:18:55Z")

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Hmm, what’s this in my mailbox? Looks like an old SF magazine. I don’t remember ordering that…?

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**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\
**Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trying-to-find-an-sf-story/1031517/23 "2026-07-09T20:59:20Z")

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> [@DrDeth](#):
>
> Other notable adaptations include _Total Recall_ (“We Can Get it for You Wholesale”),

(DrDeth is quoting [Authors, Developing Words – Philip K. Dick](https://blog.acereader.com/general/authors-developing-words-philip-k-dick/))

Looks like that is a typo in the blog you’re quoting - it’s well-established that Total Recall is based on the real PK Dick story “We Can Remember it for you Wholesale” (the IMDB site has it [right](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100802/fullcredits/?ref_=tt_cst_sm)), while the ISFDB has no reference to a “We Can Get it for you Wholesale” - so I think the story doesn’t exist, and unfortunately these days, web searches will gladly invent a story plot if you ask it.

The story “We Can Get it to You Yesterday” does apparently exist, but only in an obscure 2015 magazine, so unless the OP remembers picking up obscure magazines from time to time, this story is almost certainly not the one he has in mind, even though the title sounds promising.

OP: Do you have any sense of how old the story was, where you might have read it, etc?

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**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\
**Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trying-to-find-an-sf-story/1031517/24 "2026-07-09T21:27:36Z")

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> [@Chronos](#):
>
> Then how did the package arrive yesterday? That sure sounds like time travel…

Time travel, or precognition.

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**Author:** ![xtenkfarpl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c2a13f/32.png) [@xtenkfarpl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xtenkfarpl)\
**Post date:** [July 10, 2026, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trying-to-find-an-sf-story/1031517/25 "2026-07-10T09:58:58Z")

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> [@Andy\_L](#):
>
> OP: Do you have any sense of how old the story was, where you might have read it, etc?

Several decades ago, certainly. I suspect it was most likely in an anthology book; I was never much of an SF magazine reader.

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