Each of us has that friend, co-worker or maybe our own inner shopper who is at the department store at 5:00am waiting for the doors to open the day after Thanksgiving.  The rest of us like either have to work or use that day to catch up on our beauty sleep.  Just the thought of trying to find a parking space at the mall on a normal day makes the stress-o-meter rise, then after finding the spot, fighting with the other holiday shoppers.

Advertisers try to give us this Pollyanna idea that as the winter holidays approach the loving atmosphere of the season will heighten and that people will be so amazingly friendly to you wherever you go you won’t even be able to take in all of the good will coming you way.

Unfortunately the good will we feel some time early November seems to wear thin as we get involved in the chaos of the season that should be focused on love and care for our fellow humans.  A large number of people who, throughout the rest of the year are wonderful, giving caring people resemble the Scrooge or Grinch by mid December.  The reality is there are still plenty of good will givers out there, however; you rarely find them at the mall the week before Christmas.

The good news about online stores is that they are open 24/7. 

If you cannot sleep in the middle of the night you can get on and buy Uncle Joe a t-shirt that says “What happens in the garage stays in the garage”.  You get the idea.  Having that kind of freedom is wonderful.  To make the experience even better the item is then delivered right to your doorstep.  This eliminates hauling awkward shaped bags and boxes around a crowded mall and then having to lug them the ½ mile to your car, that’s if you remember where you parked your car.  The fact that it can be delivered directly to your home should make most of you want to shout for joy and hug the UPS man.

If you order things well ahead of the holiday you won’t have to pay extra for shipping and therefore you won’t be sitting up the night before Christmas trying to wrap gifts.   By the way some online stores will also wrap them for you.

Buying online may take some of the “fun” out of the shopping experience, but having the extra time to spend with family and friends or just to take a bath and spend some time alone is well worth it!

Blog note: Check out ShopGrace.org.  This site allows you to shop for all your holiday gifts while supporting a worthwhile charity.