Oh yes, it’s that time of year..Christmas. A time filled with joy, good will toward men (and women), peace on earth, and LOTS of shopping. Now, I personally know that Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ but the holiday has been hijacked and become a celebration of consumerism instead. This means that Christmas shopping has become almost like a competitive sport. I’m going to share with you my Christmas shopping style…Dad Style.
The Types of Shoppers
First we have what I call the “year-round-ers”. These people start Christmas shopping on the day after Christmas…for next year!!! They constantly pick up items here and there for their needs and by April rolls around they are pretty much done with their shopping.
Don’t you just love it when you’re talking to a friend around November 30th about starting your shopping and they say “Oh, I finished my shopping back in May…now I sit back and relax”. You need to read that last sentence with a smug look of superiority to really grasp how they say it. They have this holier than thou attitude and look down on us poor souls who are still shopping in December.
Next we have the other extreme, the “Christmas Eve-ers“. I was once a part of this group. Myself, my two sisters, and our families get together every Christmas Eve for a little get together. When I was single and living 5 hours away from them I would drive there on the morning of Christmas Eve and stop at a store to pick up gifts for their kids…and then wrap the gifts in the parking lot in my car.
Yeah, I was THAT guy! Now that I’m a husband and father I don’t dare do this but I have a friend who still does. The problem with this method is you have to take the left overs. All of the good gifts are gone.
Of course, we all know the “Black Friday-ers”. They start Christmas shopping hard and heavy on the day after Thanksgiving (or Thanksgiving day). Then they are going after every sale they can until Christmas. These are hard core shoppers who don’t mind the crowds and even thrive on it. My wife used to be one of these. She would gladly go to the mall on Black Friday and shop. I can’t take it…unless they are giving away a 100 inch curved screen Samsung TV…I’m not standing in line to buy stuff.
Lastly you have what I have become…the “In your pajamas-ers”. Yes, online Christmas shopping. I love it. You have virtually endless selection, no crowds to push around, and you get to do it all in your PJs. I have purchased roughly 95% of my gifts online this year. There was one small hiccup with shipping (which is one of the few negatives with online shopping) but it was resolved quickly.
I hear you now…
- “I want to actually see something first” – Well, I agree on the seeing it first. The one item I went to the store to buy this year was a gift for my son that I could have purchased online but I wanted to see it first to make sure it was appropriate for him. But that was just one item…the rest is fine.
- “I don’t want to pay shipping” – Shipping? Most online retailers have free shipping deals if you spend a certain amount. Shop strategically and you won’t pay a dime for shipping. In fact, some stores don’t charge sales tax depending on where they (and you) are…so you potentially could save some money.
- “I want to actually interact with people” – Interact with people? I got nothing on that one….have you interacted lately? It’s overrated.
Now ladies, I know that many of you LOVE to shop and if you want to brave the mall..then by all means…go for it. But most of us dads are hunters…we go in…we get what we want…we get out. So if we can do this online without having to go into a store…well then that’ s a no brainer.
Have your own shopping style? Let me hear it below in the comments.