I think most people who live or work in Seattle know at least one person who works at Amazon, or has worked there. I’ve heard some of these stories firsthand from people I trust, although I don’t believe for a second that everyone at Amazon has had the same experience. I remember reading a story in the Puget Sound Business Journal a few years ago, and it discussed Jeff Bezos’s legendary frugality. He actually rewarded an employee who suggested unscrewing the lightbulbs in all of the vending machines in the company, because it would save something like $30K a year in electricity costs. On the one hand, it sounds reasonable to save that kind of money, but it does make you wonder where else a company that does billions in annual sales is looking to cut corners.