Hello dear readers. It's been too long. I have had a long hiatus from this here blog and I feel a return coming on. This post is going to be mainly about something I have been thinking about lately. Christmas shoppers.
I work in retail which everyone knows is a total nightmare this time of year. It's not the ideal job to be in right now. Hoards of semi-feral shoppers, crowding into shops, all pursuing the same end - the hunt for the perfect presents.
I am infuriated by people who show up in the shop with no clue what they want, take up loads of my time, then buy nothing, whilst holding up the queue of now huffing and puffing fellow customers. It would be a much better experience for all involved if these people could be more motivated and organised. Which I am aware is rather unlikely ;-)
The other thing I must mention in regards to Christmas shopping - those who treat the occasion as an excuse to throw as much money at it as possible. Working in jewellery has opened my eyes to a world I didn't realise existed. I have had people come in and choose things without asking the price of any of it. That simply wouldn't occur to me. I ask the price of everything! Now, if you have the money to spend and you do it in a quiet manner with no fuss, I have no problem. It's the ones who come in and make a fuss about things not being expensive enough. Seriously, we have people say that they want to spend, say, £50 on a gift. They pick something for £20 and when they find out the price, they appear variously horrified, disgusted or suspicious, demand to know why it's so 'cheap' and insist on seeing something more high-end. If I liked something and it was £20, I'd probably buy it, even if I had budgeted £50 for it. I'd see it as a bonus if it was cheaper! It's so bizarre.
It's an obsession we seem to have cultivated - having more 'things', and, increasingly, more expensive 'things'. Toddlers with ipads, the latest games consoles, and TVs in their bedrooms. We have created a generation of spoilt children who just 'want' all the time. And I think it has spilled over into the adults too. We have men coming in who say they must buy what they're told, even if it is horrendously expensive. Snobby women buying charm bracelets for 8 year old girls who will 'probably lose it' as one lady told us recently. Those things are not cheap costume jewellery, it's proper silver. Why buy it for a kid who is likely to lose it? By giving them these things, how are they learning the value of anything?
I'm becoming quite against buying useless crap for people at Christmas. There was a time for novelty gifts, but now I'd rather give what people have asked for instead of randomly buying 'things'. And it should never be the quantity of gifts we give, but the quality, and the thoughts and meanings attached to them. The BF and I have asked for money this year so we can buy some furniture for the bedroom. We don't need or want more stuff. The house is tiny and there is no more room for 'things'. What we need is some decent sized drawers and a bigger wardrobe!
Now I must go, dear readers. Willow (our cat) is attacking the Christmas tree again... every morning I have to redecorate it with the baubles she knocks off it overnight. Little scamp!
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