I can barely remember how I managed to holiday shop before the Internet. This year, I must have purchased 90+% of my gifts via online shopping. Ok, I know I’ve been seen at the mall. But that’s because I’m still a sucker for a little holiday decoration and seasonal music. But, without the pressure to purchase, I have managed to minimize those trips to a bare minimum. I now do most of my shopping complete with all discounts, from the comfort of home.
And I think most adult shoppers are like me in that regard. At least that’s what the statistics seem to tell us. I figure these days most of us who head to the mall, do so for a climate controlled walk, to get visual stimulation and ideas, and perhaps in these few weeks at the end of the year, to get in a holiday mood - otherwise known as exercising retail therapy to take our minds off the hard reality of shrinking daylight, dropping temperatures and solid precipitation.
Not sure about the rest of you out there but I’m already done with winter and it’s still technically fall. I no longer see any redeeming qualities as I look ahead to the next 3-4 months of cold, dreary days. If I owned a body shop, I might feel elated with the optimism of a nice quarter of business, but that’s like a hospital finance officer looking forward to the winter flu to improve admissions. I refuse to get that dark.
Since I’m frequently accused of finding a silver lining, I will simply add that now that I’m retired, every bad weather day can be a snow day. No longer do I need to equip my car with a shovel, blanket, flashlight and boots for my bad weather work commute. I can now stay safely in the warmth of my home and kvetch about short days and cold like the rest of my fellow retirees.
And of course, get my holiday shopping done!
Comments