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When do you start shopping for Christmas?
Asked at Massachusetts Street on October 12, 2007
“I would say I start about December 23rd, but I’m always running late.”
“I usually start the day or two before Christmas. I’m still shopping when the stores are closing on Christmas Eve.”
“I’m a December 20th kind of shopper. Not necessarily the last minute, just the weekend before.”
“I start thinking about it in early December.”
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Comments
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merrill (anonymous) says…
Hey retail corporate america put away all that christmas stuff.
Face it most holidays including christmas have become major commercial events......not a special day. Consumers can take it back from corporate america if they so desire by not participating in "shop and spend till you drop" the day after thanksgiving. Retail commercials are running the lives of consumers as if there is nothing fun left in our lives.
We are so close to being done. It starts when we see something hopefully unique that will be enjoyed for years to come. The lions share of gifts for children become dust collectors as they focus on one or two items.
Some of the most fun things are the music,lights and christmas scenes scattered about.
jimjones (anonymous) says…
I bought myself something already!
blue73harley (anonymous) says…
My wife shops enought for the both of us. I think she pretty much does it year-round. It is an obsession. It is okay with me though because it gets her out of the house...ahhhhhh, peace and quiet!
And did I mention that it is Friday, FRIDay, FriDAY!!!!!!?
chemegirlie (anonymous) says…
I start shopping on the after Christmas sales and continue all year. I have most of my shopping done already, but I kind of have to do that. Both of my parents are divorced and remarried giving me a whopping 40 people to buy gifts for. As a college student, if I didn't spread it out over the year, I wouldn't be able to afford it.
preebo (anonymous) says…
My wife goes shopping at a ridiculous hour on what some call Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving) to wrestle with other women for a Tickle-Me-Elmo or something. I don't get it, but she and her friends turn into a full on military-style operation.
blue73harley (anonymous) says…
preebo - exactly! My wife does the same thing. I went with her once when Best Buy opened. Boy, never again!!!!
BTW - I am proud to say that I have not been in a shopping mall in over 10 years.
jhkfan (anonymous) says…
blue73harley--you sound like a peach of a guy. I bet you never buy your wife a present & are still wearing the same sweat suit you bought on your last trip to the mall 10 years ago! Get in the spirit & enjoy the holidays.
preebo (anonymous) says…
No malls for me either. I think there is an age restriction enforced most of the year. Anyone over the age of 18 is not permitted except from November 23rd to December 24th.
Pywacket (anonymous) says…
jhkfan~ You call fighting a bunch of militant, glaze-eyed harridans "getting into the spirit"? And do you think a soulless mall is the only place someone can shop? He didn't say he'd been living under a rock for 10 years...
I bet Blue finds more creative ways to show his wife he loves her than to run in to a chain store and buy whatever marketers have decreed everyone must have for this or that season.
I wouldn't be caught dead shopping on Black Friday. My husband's younger sister and her friend did that a few years ago, just to say they'd had the experience, and once was enough for them. Not every woman is infected with that particular bug.
As for when I start shopping... I head to the liquor store a few days before Saturnalia begins and pick out a special bottle for each friend. We stock up on grapes, cheese, and other appropriate comestibles, make sure our finest togas and laurel hair accessories are clean and serviceable, pile a few more logs on the fire, and let the good times roll!
acg (anonymous) says…
I despise shopping so I always put it off til the last minute. I have to literally drag myself to the store/mall because the whole thing aggravates me so much. From the poisoning of the idea of Christmas, to the way everyone gets grumpy, snatchy and rude around the holidays (masking it, of course, with fake cheery smiles and copious amounts of egg nog). Bell ringers make me nuts and they're everywhere. The whole deal is unpleasant. I think I may make the hubby do it this year.
trinity (anonymous) says…
thank you py for posting what you did; jhkfan's post about getting into the spirit&*enjoying* the holidays really ticked me off! i'd betcha blue is one of the sweetest sweeties on here&treats his wife very well! and lord have mercy, if getting in to a holiday spirit entails being caught up in a frenzied throng of shoppers in order to spend money that could be better spent elsewhere on geegaws and jimcracks that'll be forgotten in a matter of days, well-count me out. *whew* that was a long sentence, lmaooooooo...
friday friday friDAY friday friday friDAY friday friday fridayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy! :)
snap_pop_no_crackle (anonymous) says…
Expect carbon credits in your sock.
geppetto (anonymous) says…
it is too early to ask this question
snap_pop_no_crackle (anonymous) says…
Good one, geppetto. ;)
canyon_wren (anonymous) says…
Some great posts here! Congrats, harley, on avoiding the malls. Like pywacket and trinity said, whatever you give your wife is bound to be picked out with more thought. I live 110 miles from any real mall (it is great!) and the one mall available to me (in Grand Jct., Colo) is pretty small and manageable. I try to "buy local" here in town when possible, but you can only give so many t-shirts, mugs and Indian jewelry every year! I make one of my "quarterly" trips to GJ in mid-December, usually.
I certainly hate to see all the seasonal stuff already--I just try to ignore it. It would be nice if folks could follow merrill's advice and refuse to buy anything Christmas-y before December. But for many, the habit is too strong to overcome. I still give small presents as we all have 'way too much stuff as it is!
blue73harley (anonymous) says…
jhkfan - I really take exception to only one thing - I have never worn a "sweat suit" in my life. Pretty much just jeans and black T-shirts suits me fine...and some are easily 10 years old! Just recently i finally wore out my first ABATE Labor Day Rally T from 1986 and sadly threw it away. And my wife has stuck around for almost 30 years so things must not be too bad...for her anyway!
Crossfire (anonymous) says…
My plan this year is on Monday the 24th I'll grab a hand full of cash go to Cottin's, see what I can find for everybody.
Should be done just in time for lunch.
If I have time I'll wrap the stuff up. If there's cash left over I will hand it out on the way out the door on Tuesday.
Ho Ho Ho. Gotta Go...
sgtwolverine (anonymous) says…
I don't really spend much time on it. My family has gone to a system in which each sibling buys a gift (or gifts) for only one other sibling, so instead of buying small gifts for lots of people, we can buy nice gifts for one person. It makes shopping easier.
ms_canada (anonymous) says…
In our family we don't buy gifts for a lot of people out side the family. Our family is small, me, hubby, two daughters, one son, 4 grown grandsons. The 4 boys get money. So, that means I only buy 4 gifts. Not difficult to shop for them a week or two before Chirstmas.
grandson # 3 just signed with the American Hockey League to play with Norfolk Admirals and has been told to get an apartment and has to buy furniture, dishes, bedding etc. So I think I will send him his Christmas gift early, like next week. Exciting time for a young lad.
ms_canada (anonymous) says…
Hey there snap, pop no crackle - would you be interested in seeing a picture of my grandson, Rob Klinkhammer? If so, just google www.norfolkadmirals.com - click on team, click his name and there he is, my handsome wee laddie.
jonas (anonymous) says…
I go on the day after Thanksgiving.
But I don't buy anything, I just go to get in people's way. I generally target the most highly sought after good, and get there real early to grab two or three of them, put them in my cart, and just wander the stores, parking my cart perpendicularly across isles while I look at DVD racks, and sometimes criticizing other people's selections in semi-audible voices. Then I'll take my sought after products up to the line, and fish in my wallet for a minute or two looking for the credit card that I (cough) forgot to bring, muttering and cursing my luck, until I have to admit I can't find it and get out of line. Then I put the products back where no one would think to look for it (Tickle Me Elmo? Meet Automotive Products!) and then I head out to the next store.
Of course, I just heave my cart off into the lot when I'm done with it too.
sgtwolverine (anonymous) says…
ms_c: Congratulations to your grandson! Unfortunately, it doesn't look like they make the trip out to Michigan to play Grand Rapids. If they did, I might go to the game.
jonas (anonymous) says…
My Hummer H2 takes up two spaces, also. But sneakily, by parking all twisted in the space next to an empty space next to another big truck or SUV, so there's the space available, but no car can safely fit into it! Mwahahahahaha!
CindiCat (anonymous) says…
Some good posts here. What was the question again??
Oh ya.....start my list throughout the year....if any of my kids happen to mention a particular "want" or need, I write it down cos I'm gonna forget. That "over 50" thing ya know ;)
The husband and I do the shopping the morning OF 12-24 and get it all done. DO NOT hit any Mall to do this. No way, no how. We shop for our 4 kids and 2 granddaughter's only.
Did the "Black Friday" once.......jeez-a-loo never again.
RETICENT_IRREVERENT (Ronaldo Ignacio) says…
Blue,
I just realized I have not been to a mall in 13 years...
Unless you consider "The Worlds Foremost Outfitter" a mall...
canyon_wren (anonymous) says…
ms_canada--your grandson IS cute! How exciting that must be for him! A local boy signed on last spring with the Minnesota Twins as a pitcher--we're pretty thrilled about that.
jonas--sounds like you have a lot of fun with your shopping--will have to try that sometime.
RETICENT_IRREVERENT (Ronaldo Ignacio) says…
Either Zwarte Piet, or Sinterklaas himself brings gifts the evening of Dec. 5th.
I do not shop for any.
They just appear.
I don't know when Sinterklass starts shopping.
Pretty early I suspect.
sunflower_sue (anonymous) says…
Yes! What a cutie that Rob is...I can see the family resemblance! He favors his gramma.
Shopping: Don't do a whole lot of it. Only buy gifts for the hubby and girls. In the hubby's family, we don't exchange gifts, and in my family, we only do a gag gift. We draw numbers out of a hat and we can keep the gag we got or steal from the person ahead of us. Last year I got a lovely Nacho Libre pen set. I cherish it. The hubby got a redneck flashlight which was a paper towel tube with matches duct-taped around the end. Very classy...and useful to boot! Good times!
sunflower_sue (anonymous) says…
RI, you mean "HERself?"
Bone777 (anonymous) says…
The day after....
RETICENT_IRREVERENT (Ronaldo Ignacio) says…
sunflower_sue,
You Heretic!
Sinterklaas is not a woman, in any shape or form.
His red bishop's robe is not a dress!
This year when he rides in on his white horse Amerigo...
I'll wager you will find a bag of salt in your wellingtons.
Gootsie (anonymous) says…
Ms_C - what a cutie patootie! And he has one proud grandma!
I always get my kids something very strange (one year I gave one of them an antique false teeth kid that a salesman would use - they still talk about it). But every year, fewer and fewer gifts are bought and more goes to a charity. Except for the little ones! One year I went to Paxico and bought antiques (i.e. junk) for everyone, but it had meaning to that person. I didn't spend much but had a great holiday.
Blue, we support you!
snap_pop_no_crackle (anonymous) says…
Very cool, ms_c. Too bad the Admirals don't get down this way.
mom_of_three (anonymous) says…
I ususally start buying Christmas gifts around October.
But if I see something for my kids, my mom or inlaws, I will usually buy it and hope I don't forget where I put it by Christmas!!
My mom usually tells me not to worry about them. But I always buy them something. Basically, I buy for my 3 kids, my 8 nieces and nephews, my grandma, my parents, inlaws, and maybe something for my sisters. Oh, and my husband.
But my dad's side of the family does the "Silly Santa" thing, with my sisters, parents, cousins, etc.
The more the merrier.
My cousin shops for Christmas all year long. She is usually done by October. She is SO organized.
sunflower_sue (anonymous) says…
RI, Tell ol' Sinter that I'll leave my boots out in the pump-house next to the water softener.
I've been very, very bad and will need lots of salt. :D
Ceallach (anonymous) says…
Let he who is without "bad" cast the first salt :)
If Black Friday offers something I really, really want and it is really, really cheap, I will venture out. That rarely happens because come 5:00 am, I usually decide to pay a little more and get it later. Most of my shopping is done the last two weeks before Christmas. Crowds are nicer, and I'm more in the Christmas spirit . . Family members teenage or older get gift cards. They use them on the sales and get more for the buck. We all get something for the little ones, but then again, they are quite easy to please.
Pywacket (anonymous) says…
Love your technique, Jonas. Do you try out several carts to ensure getting the one that goes, "thunk-thunk-thunk" all the way through the store? That'll drive people crazy.
Gootsie~ We went to Paxico around Christmastime one year and lucked into seeing the coolest real-beard Santa ever. Our little guy was only 7 months old, so he didn't get as much out of the experience as we did. I'm ashamed to say, we have missed getting back there every year since. Maybe we'd better go this year--it's probably the last year for him being a True Believer, so we should make the best of it. The antique stores were pretty cool there. One place had gorgeous woodstoves, too. Yep--we're due to head back that way.
Gootsie (anonymous) says…
If you see a middle-aged blonde/redhead with lots of empty Prince Albert cans (my daddy smoked it and he's gone and I miss him), that will be me! (And yes, I did that prank phone call when I was little. ) I didn't know about the Santa - that would be fun! I never want to stop believing in Santa! I nominate BlueHarley to play him on the boards this year.
blue73harley (anonymous) says…
Bah humbug!
Actually, I am often seen weaing a Santa hat. And I still have a kid at home so the house gets massive amounts of lights. Not to mention my 9 foot long, inflatable chopper with Santa astride.
My coolest decoration - I have an antique horse drawn sleigh. One year, we put it out front, filled it with fake presents and a plastic Santa and hooked it up to 6 pink flamingos with a garland harness. You might be a redneck if...
sigerson (anonymous) says…
So Jonas is the person we were cursing in the "how patient are you with lines" thread. Would love to go Christmas shopping with you!
Agree with Gepetto: Too early to be asking this. But since the question is on the table...
Only have one present to buy. The rest of us just ignore gift-giving. My brother and a friend, though, think Christmas begins December 26. They made Black Friday and the Day After Christmas into a military-style operation, communicating with each other by phone in different cities as to what's available, with strategies on where to head first in the store and how to "duck and roll" under the metal gate as it comes up when the store opens. Every second counts, y'know.
I am not making this up.
His exploits in late December are particularly fascinating to watch. He'll buy Christmas ornaments and decorations at 70% off. Great bargains, right? But he's just getting started. In following days, he cases the store to see when the prices go down further, then then returns the merchandise and re-buys it at an even greater discount.
I am *not* making this up.
This sordid cycle continues, over and over, taking back the stuff and purchasing it again, until he's bled every drop of savings out of the deal (or March, whichever comes first).
I have a suspicion: one of us is adopted.
sunflower_sue (anonymous) says…
blue, I would actually drive by to see your decorations...the sleigh pulling flamingos, that is.
dbrm4ever2006 (Bobbi Reid) says…
I already started... picked up an order at JcPenney today, and bought my 9 year old a mp3 player. I will be done by Thanksgiving, and will have everything under the tree the day after.
coolmom (anonymous) says…
i start about now with occasional casual shopping but mainly do money or gift cards for the neices and nephews and i watch for the stuff i know my kids would want on sale between now and then. i do the black friday thing every year but usually do not buy anything. last year i bought dog food while roaming the store in morbid fascination. then i go to breakfast meeting friends and go home and nap.
gccs14r (anonymous) says…
I used to be a last-minute shopper, but I got tired of fighting the crowds and finding everything picked over. Now I keep my eyes open year-round and if I see something I think someone will like (that they're unlikely to buy for themselves), I buy it then and stash it for the holidays.
sunflower_sue (anonymous) says…
Woo-hoo, I'm sunflower_sue!!!
I do all that domestic goddess stuff!!!
I'm a "food snob"!!!
woo-hoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
beatrice (anonymous) says…
As soon as I run out of re-gifting options.
sgtwolverine (anonymous) says…
Wait a second. I just re-read the question, and now I'm confused. At what store can one buy Christmas?
camper (anonymous) says…
Remember the story about the wife who sold her long hair to buy her husband a watch band? And the husband who sold his watch to buy his wife a hair braid? What a great story. If there is any gift to give, love is the best. It is more valuable than anything in the world. I hope everyone has a memorable season. I always cherish this time of year because I see people tryin to do the above.
tangential_reasoners_anonymous (anonymous) says…
I stopped shopping for Christmas years ago.
(Now, if I could only stop *paying* for all those years of Christmas shopping.)
BTW, from one happy "camper" to another...
It's true, the spirit of Christmas cannot be captured between cash registers.
GretchenJP (anonymous) says…
I start earlier and earlier every year. I start thinking about it in August already but I don't like going near the stores... internet shopping for me. eBay been bewwy bewwy good to me.