What gifts will you buy?

 

It’s not too late to double-check your Christmas list. Since you won’t be going to the mall with your friends or window browsing for they are all boarded up, Google and Amazon have become your favorite websites.

Every retailer has super, special deals on everything in the store, but you can’t get in because of the virus. Add to cart and give your credit card number. It’s quick and easy.

Now wait.

You’ll get lots of ‘verification’ emails and phone calls in hopes that Santa will deliver to the right address before the big day. The anticipation adds to the stress of the day.

Now the algorithms have your likes, you’ll be seeing more ads from them. Consumerism 101.

All the news sites have the “Best of” or “Deals of the Season” to help promote their advertisers. As the season gets closer the prices keep falling. Do you buy now or wait until they are out of stock?

The list appears the same as last year. For the Black Friday bargain hunters there are home products, kitchen cookware, utensils and large and small appliances, audio gear, health and fitness gear (who are you kidding?), televisions (of course), laptops, tools and sporting goods, and mattresses. Don’t remember coming down the stairs to see that Santa had delivered a bed under the tree.

Don’t be buying toys. Retailers up the prices and the most popular run out early. Jewelry seems like a good purchase but it also shows the lack of innovation. The same is true for furs, perfume, and silky nighties. Might as well give an apron and a vacuum cleaner.

The kids are easy to buy for. They like whatever is being advertised as the ‘hot item’ and are swayed until the next one comes along. Remember Beanie Babies, Cabbage Patch dolls and Rubik’s cubes? Might as well settle on a Baby Yoda that will soon be a dog toy.

For the grand parents, the gift should show some care but be remindful of their age. A walker might be as inappropriate as running shoes. Something warm will always be used.

The parents are the most difficult to select. They never used the 8-track player you bought them. They are still fumbling with the remote on the 800-channel television you thought would be the bees knees, but it wasn’t. A goofy sweater will be worn that day with false appreciation and then put back in the closet with the golf clubs and out of fashion jackets. A trip overseas (during other times) may seem like a nice extravagant gift if they like to travel. A new car or a condo at an assisted living community might be worthy of your appreciation that they fed you for all those years or indicate you are ready to put them away.

For you partner, the choice might be simple as a gift card or as complicated as an engagement ring. All year long, every want and need has been purchased, so now what? At the end of the year, this gift should be extra special to show how much you care.

Each of you will have to decide. Good luck.

Which is worse? Finding something you want but don’t have the money to pay for it or having the money and not see anything worth buying?