To Shop or Not to Shop? That is the Question.
I consider myself a traditionalist. I like to go to cemeteries on Memorial Day…. Cook out on the 4th of July…. And go shopping on the day after Thanksgiving. If there weren’t so many traditionalists out there, how would that day have become the “busiest shopping day of the year?” Many folks shudder at the mere thought of the Mall on that frantic Friday. They want no part of the hustle and bustle, which marks the official beginning of the holiday shopping season. They would much rather stay home, eat leftover turkey and watch football on television than fight the crowds, long check out lines, and traffic jams in parking lots. Wimps?
About a dozen years ago, I succumbed to the lure of the newspaper ads in the Thanksgiving Day edition. I began pouring over them after feasting at the holiday table…. I drew up an itinerary and a carefully itemized list of what I wanted to buy at each store. Being a morning person, it wasn’t difficult for me to rise before dawn and find my way to the local discount store in time for its early bird opening. I would wear a Christmas sweatshirt, comfortable shoes, and a little Christmas bell around my neck. Filled with Christmas cheer, I would often enjoy free giveaways to the first “so many” shoppers. I got great savings on particular items because of my ambitiousness. Best of all, I was usually on my way home before most shoppers had even left for the city. After a few years of shopping “solo,” my husband decided to join my fun. We would set out in the early morning hours…. With travel mugs full of coffee and Christmas music on the radio…. All set to beat the other shoppers to the best buys around. He would always laugh at me when I would get a good deal… because I’d ring my Christmas bell. We would visit with other shoppers as we waited in check out lines and were especially kind to the clerks, who had long days ahead of them. Regular little “shoppers of mercy” we were… as we made our way down the list of appointed stops.
In recent years however, things have changed somewhat. For one thing…. Many more people have joined us in the foyers, awaiting the store openings. The crowds that used to peak at mid day are now in full force by 7:00 a.m.…. And the great deals that lure us out aren’t nearly as spectacular as they used to be. Add to this a few non-related, extra ordinary circumstances, and it has even me questioning the wisdom of my annual excursion. For instance:
One year, as my husband and I set out bright and early (though still dark), we weren’t three miles from home when we noticed flashing lights behind us. “Uh oh…” goes my husband.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
“I think he’s after us.” He was. We pull over and the policeman comes up to our car.
“You were going a little fast back there…. I clocked you at 13 miles over the limit. Are you folks in a hurry?”
“Sorry Officer,” my husband responds, “We’re going Christmas shopping.” I give the officer a little wave. He looks at me… at the clock (it’s 5:35 a.m.) and then back at my husband… with a sympathetic look … (a “guy” thing).
“Oh… I see. Well, ‘tis the season I guess… just watch it, okay? …. And uh… Merry Christmas.” Again we were on our way, well within the speed limit and grateful for a police officer with holiday spirit.
Another year, we were able to get a very reasonably priced 18-speed bicycle “while supplies last” only to learn that the store would not assemble it. They claimed the price was so low, they were losing money just to get us in their store, so we would have to put it together ourselves. This was not part of the plan… my husband hates to assemble anything. But, we loaded the boxed bicycle into the van… took it home… hid it in the garage for four weeks, and then loaded it back up and returned it to the store. I presented my receipt and said I guess I would go somewhere where I could buy one put together. They reluctantly put it together for their standard $10 fee.
I admit I have always prided myself in my organization of itineraries, shopping lists, etc. but sometimes the best-laid plans go awry. A craft store advertised 25% off all purchases from 6:00 to 7:00 a.m. and after 45 minutes of shopping in the store, we proceed to check out. As the clerk announces the total, I remind her of the 25% discount. She looks at me with a puzzled face, (which I can only attribute to the early morning hour) so I reach into the cart and show her the advertisement. She takes it from me… flips it over to show the front of the ad and informs me I’m in the wrong store.
And if all this isn’t enough… there was the time I was picking up a couple gifts, as a favor for my mother. She and I have a joint VISA card for this exact purpose, so I hand it to the cashier. As she goes through the now obsolete ritual of looking up my card number in a little booklet, she surprisingly announces my card number is listed there! “I’ve never had this happen before!” she exclaims.
“Neither have I,” I tell her. “What does it mean?”
“Well, your card has been reported stolen!” Oh yeah…. I forgot. My purse had been stolen three months before, and later recovered. I had cancelled all the cards and gotten new ones… with the exception of mother’s. This was the first time I had tried to use it.
“Just forget it,” I said, “I’ll write a check.” Well, there was no “forgetting it”… the proof of which was a string of managers, security personnel and other clerks who were all quite interested in my “stolen” card. I must say… it certainly did clear the line behind me quickly! I explained the situation to management’s satisfaction… they confiscated my card… I wrote a check…. And made as quiet a “getaway” as possible. Of all the days….
So… am I planning to go shopping November 27? Or will I sleep in…. Put up some Christmas decorations and fix a nice turkey casserole for lunch? It’s a tough one. Experience tells me there are better days and better deals to be had…. Tradition beckons me to don the sweatshirt and prepare to ring that bell! With only 28 shopping days between Thanksgiving and Christmas… the time will have to be used wisely. Solomon made it very clear in Ecclesiastics that there is an intended time for all things and as the holidays approach, I must remind myself that there are indeed better times than others in which to go shopping. To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die… A time to plant and a time to reap… A time to shop and a time to refrain from shopping….
2008 - Although many people still associate me with my early bird shopping adventures, I have opted out of the Friday morning rush the past several years. But the final decision isn't usually made until the advertisements are perused while watching football after dinner. (And who remembers those little newsprint booklets the cashiers had to look up credit card numbers in?) Has it really only been ten years?!
I consider myself a traditionalist. I like to go to cemeteries on Memorial Day…. Cook out on the 4th of July…. And go shopping on the day after Thanksgiving. If there weren’t so many traditionalists out there, how would that day have become the “busiest shopping day of the year?” Many folks shudder at the mere thought of the Mall on that frantic Friday. They want no part of the hustle and bustle, which marks the official beginning of the holiday shopping season. They would much rather stay home, eat leftover turkey and watch football on television than fight the crowds, long check out lines, and traffic jams in parking lots. Wimps?
About a dozen years ago, I succumbed to the lure of the newspaper ads in the Thanksgiving Day edition. I began pouring over them after feasting at the holiday table…. I drew up an itinerary and a carefully itemized list of what I wanted to buy at each store. Being a morning person, it wasn’t difficult for me to rise before dawn and find my way to the local discount store in time for its early bird opening. I would wear a Christmas sweatshirt, comfortable shoes, and a little Christmas bell around my neck. Filled with Christmas cheer, I would often enjoy free giveaways to the first “so many” shoppers. I got great savings on particular items because of my ambitiousness. Best of all, I was usually on my way home before most shoppers had even left for the city. After a few years of shopping “solo,” my husband decided to join my fun. We would set out in the early morning hours…. With travel mugs full of coffee and Christmas music on the radio…. All set to beat the other shoppers to the best buys around. He would always laugh at me when I would get a good deal… because I’d ring my Christmas bell. We would visit with other shoppers as we waited in check out lines and were especially kind to the clerks, who had long days ahead of them. Regular little “shoppers of mercy” we were… as we made our way down the list of appointed stops.
In recent years however, things have changed somewhat. For one thing…. Many more people have joined us in the foyers, awaiting the store openings. The crowds that used to peak at mid day are now in full force by 7:00 a.m.…. And the great deals that lure us out aren’t nearly as spectacular as they used to be. Add to this a few non-related, extra ordinary circumstances, and it has even me questioning the wisdom of my annual excursion. For instance:
One year, as my husband and I set out bright and early (though still dark), we weren’t three miles from home when we noticed flashing lights behind us. “Uh oh…” goes my husband.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
“I think he’s after us.” He was. We pull over and the policeman comes up to our car.
“You were going a little fast back there…. I clocked you at 13 miles over the limit. Are you folks in a hurry?”
“Sorry Officer,” my husband responds, “We’re going Christmas shopping.” I give the officer a little wave. He looks at me… at the clock (it’s 5:35 a.m.) and then back at my husband… with a sympathetic look … (a “guy” thing).
“Oh… I see. Well, ‘tis the season I guess… just watch it, okay? …. And uh… Merry Christmas.” Again we were on our way, well within the speed limit and grateful for a police officer with holiday spirit.
Another year, we were able to get a very reasonably priced 18-speed bicycle “while supplies last” only to learn that the store would not assemble it. They claimed the price was so low, they were losing money just to get us in their store, so we would have to put it together ourselves. This was not part of the plan… my husband hates to assemble anything. But, we loaded the boxed bicycle into the van… took it home… hid it in the garage for four weeks, and then loaded it back up and returned it to the store. I presented my receipt and said I guess I would go somewhere where I could buy one put together. They reluctantly put it together for their standard $10 fee.
I admit I have always prided myself in my organization of itineraries, shopping lists, etc. but sometimes the best-laid plans go awry. A craft store advertised 25% off all purchases from 6:00 to 7:00 a.m. and after 45 minutes of shopping in the store, we proceed to check out. As the clerk announces the total, I remind her of the 25% discount. She looks at me with a puzzled face, (which I can only attribute to the early morning hour) so I reach into the cart and show her the advertisement. She takes it from me… flips it over to show the front of the ad and informs me I’m in the wrong store.
And if all this isn’t enough… there was the time I was picking up a couple gifts, as a favor for my mother. She and I have a joint VISA card for this exact purpose, so I hand it to the cashier. As she goes through the now obsolete ritual of looking up my card number in a little booklet, she surprisingly announces my card number is listed there! “I’ve never had this happen before!” she exclaims.
“Neither have I,” I tell her. “What does it mean?”
“Well, your card has been reported stolen!” Oh yeah…. I forgot. My purse had been stolen three months before, and later recovered. I had cancelled all the cards and gotten new ones… with the exception of mother’s. This was the first time I had tried to use it.
“Just forget it,” I said, “I’ll write a check.” Well, there was no “forgetting it”… the proof of which was a string of managers, security personnel and other clerks who were all quite interested in my “stolen” card. I must say… it certainly did clear the line behind me quickly! I explained the situation to management’s satisfaction… they confiscated my card… I wrote a check…. And made as quiet a “getaway” as possible. Of all the days….
So… am I planning to go shopping November 27? Or will I sleep in…. Put up some Christmas decorations and fix a nice turkey casserole for lunch? It’s a tough one. Experience tells me there are better days and better deals to be had…. Tradition beckons me to don the sweatshirt and prepare to ring that bell! With only 28 shopping days between Thanksgiving and Christmas… the time will have to be used wisely. Solomon made it very clear in Ecclesiastics that there is an intended time for all things and as the holidays approach, I must remind myself that there are indeed better times than others in which to go shopping. To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die… A time to plant and a time to reap… A time to shop and a time to refrain from shopping….
2008 - Although many people still associate me with my early bird shopping adventures, I have opted out of the Friday morning rush the past several years. But the final decision isn't usually made until the advertisements are perused while watching football after dinner. (And who remembers those little newsprint booklets the cashiers had to look up credit card numbers in?) Has it really only been ten years?!
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