Thursday, December 25, 2008
Christmas for sale
A lot of wives, husbands, teenage sons & daughters looked out the window this morning at a big red bow on top of a brand new Lexus. or maybe only a Honda. It happens, or else the auto companies wouldn't suggest it in their holiday ads. How else do prep school kids get those nice wheels? The most expensive gifts I've seen handed out on Christmas were diamond thingies & promises of Caribbean cruises, although those had been hinted at & were not total surprises.
Of course, I enjoy receiving a gift that I didn't expect or even ask for, but is so suited to me that it raises my opinion of the giver. But how easy are they to find for anyone? In my experience they've usually been recordings & books, someone realizing I liked what I said I liked, & I remember some of those. Giving me records was difficult when I had thousands. I was surprised a few years ago when UPS delivered a down comforter, it was a perfect present, I never would have thought of it, & was a risk for the giver. She picked up something I said on the phone about sleeping & comfort. I've gotten tiny ceramic lighthouses, a carousel, windchimes, all treasures I see right now from where I'm sitting. I've received clothing with no resemblance or connection to anything I've ever been seen wearing, & wondered if I was supposed to rewrap it & pass it on next Christmas. Better completely practical, obvious presents that fill an immediate need. Some people avoid giving those, I don't know why. I'm always pleased to receive an ordinary flannel shirt & few pairs of socks.
The most reliable presents are the ones we buy for ourselves. A few modest items guarantee you receive stuff you want. This year I gave myself warm fleecy sweatpants, a retro/old guy style summer shirt called a "Sure Shot" (I've always been a little bit retro/old guy; this year I couldn't locate a guayabera I liked at the right price), & Elmer Bernstein's Concerto for Guitar & Orchestra. He was a great movie composer & it's his only recorded concert piece not adapted from a film acore. The sum total of these three items is under $20. Add to those a Border gift card from the Cat Woman that more than covers the cost of a new book of essays I won't receive as a review copy, although nobody's reviewing it & I will, positively, & the editor will then regret not sending me a free one. Also 20 snail mail cards, an excellent Jacqui Lawson flash e card (always great music, never cheesy), & an apology for not sending a card - which is as good as a card, & it's been alright.
So holiday purhases of higher end electronics are down 28% this year, three times the overall decline in other kinds of goods. Should we be surprised? I spread out & compared all the Sunday newspaper inserts & my reaction was, "Who are they kidding?" Meaning the manufacturers mostly, who tightly control what stores can charge at retail. Apparently the makers of digital cameras. HD TVs, laptops, cell phones, & so on wanted to finish the year with warehouses full of unsold merchandise rather than face the same reality as anxious consumers, lower their wholesale prices, & give the retailers permission to go to war with each other. So consumers waited for the price war, & waited, & then gave up went where the bargains were: clothes. Spring is just around the corner in the clothing depts.
"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." Thomas Jefferson
Of course, I enjoy receiving a gift that I didn't expect or even ask for, but is so suited to me that it raises my opinion of the giver. But how easy are they to find for anyone? In my experience they've usually been recordings & books, someone realizing I liked what I said I liked, & I remember some of those. Giving me records was difficult when I had thousands. I was surprised a few years ago when UPS delivered a down comforter, it was a perfect present, I never would have thought of it, & was a risk for the giver. She picked up something I said on the phone about sleeping & comfort. I've gotten tiny ceramic lighthouses, a carousel, windchimes, all treasures I see right now from where I'm sitting. I've received clothing with no resemblance or connection to anything I've ever been seen wearing, & wondered if I was supposed to rewrap it & pass it on next Christmas. Better completely practical, obvious presents that fill an immediate need. Some people avoid giving those, I don't know why. I'm always pleased to receive an ordinary flannel shirt & few pairs of socks.
The most reliable presents are the ones we buy for ourselves. A few modest items guarantee you receive stuff you want. This year I gave myself warm fleecy sweatpants, a retro/old guy style summer shirt called a "Sure Shot" (I've always been a little bit retro/old guy; this year I couldn't locate a guayabera I liked at the right price), & Elmer Bernstein's Concerto for Guitar & Orchestra. He was a great movie composer & it's his only recorded concert piece not adapted from a film acore. The sum total of these three items is under $20. Add to those a Border gift card from the Cat Woman that more than covers the cost of a new book of essays I won't receive as a review copy, although nobody's reviewing it & I will, positively, & the editor will then regret not sending me a free one. Also 20 snail mail cards, an excellent Jacqui Lawson flash e card (always great music, never cheesy), & an apology for not sending a card - which is as good as a card, & it's been alright.
So holiday purhases of higher end electronics are down 28% this year, three times the overall decline in other kinds of goods. Should we be surprised? I spread out & compared all the Sunday newspaper inserts & my reaction was, "Who are they kidding?" Meaning the manufacturers mostly, who tightly control what stores can charge at retail. Apparently the makers of digital cameras. HD TVs, laptops, cell phones, & so on wanted to finish the year with warehouses full of unsold merchandise rather than face the same reality as anxious consumers, lower their wholesale prices, & give the retailers permission to go to war with each other. So consumers waited for the price war, & waited, & then gave up went where the bargains were: clothes. Spring is just around the corner in the clothing depts.
Labels: holidays
