Friday, September 21, 2007
The first Christmas catalog of the year
So, I received my first Christmas catalog this week.
While I won't say that I am either surprised or offended, I am, well, dismayed. I say this not because I cling to the romantic idea that Christmas has become "too commercial," but because L.L. Bean, an analytical profit-maximizing business, must have decided that more than a few people out there are so neurotic that they want to buy Christmas presents in September.
That is depressing.
8 Comments:
By 
Miss Ladybug, at
Fri Sep 21, 06:44:00 PM:
Hey, don't knock starting your Christmas shopping early. I try to do that every year, and I do it because I like to spread my spending out, so I'm not left with having to use plastic to get everyone covered (and I have a fairly low per-person limit - I'm not into spending gobs of money for presents - I can't afford it!)
By 
, at
Fri Sep 21, 08:34:00 PM:
I am an outsider here in that I xmas shop year round.
I look for things that match up to the tastes and interests of those who will receive them.
For example I bought a painting several months ago that will be given to the couple it is intended for.
While out shopping I always have one eye open for similar opportunities.
The reaction from those who are the receiving end has always been positive because they appreciated the gift tailored to them rather than a generic gift that says little.
By , at
Fri Sep 21, 09:09:00 PM:
I will be generous and cut LL Bean a bit of a break. The last few years I have found life to be so busy in the last quarter of the year that I rarely have time to focus on shopping, just a few minutes at a time snatched from other responsibilities.
Just to flip through a 280 page LL Bean Christmas catalog will be stretched out in small segments over five or six weeks, meaning it's almost mid-November before I can narrow down the selection of gifts.
Maybe for people like me it's not too early already
By , at
Fri Sep 21, 10:22:00 PM:
I agree that Christmas is too commercialized. The big businesses push the fun right out of Christmas and then the economic pundits get us going about Black Friday and this sector or that sector or this chain will have record earnings and such. It does put a damper on Christmas.
By the same token, quotecritter and I shop in similar manners. I will be out traveling or shopping for something entirely off the Christmas list and something will holler at me from the shelf: “Take me home now! I’m for ________.” Of course that does make for some interesting gifts, but they come from all over and are targeted for an individual rather than just a gift because it is Christmas.
If you happen to visit Germany, Kathe Wolfhart is a huge all year round Christmas store that has really cool Christmas decorations.
By Purple Avenger, at
Sat Sep 22, 12:28:00 AM:
Not very eco-friendly encouraging the chopping down of trees. I bet the LLB corporate parking lot is full of SUV's ;->
By , at
Sat Sep 22, 01:01:00 AM:
Can anyone remember when the SEARS WISH BOOK would come in the mail and we would pour through it looking at all those great new toys THOSE WERE THE DAYS
By Miss Ladybug, at
Sat Sep 22, 01:34:00 AM:
Dave~
I have many Christmas ornaments from Germany, quite a few of them purchased at Kathe Wolfahrt's. When I was little, when Daddy was stationed in Germany, we'd get a new ornament each year. Then, when I was older, I started buying ornaments myself, so I'd have a respectable ornament collection once I was on my own, and I knew this would be our list time in Germany. We left for the last time in July 1990. I have enough ornaments to fill a large 8 foot tree (I know this, because I had one that tall one Christmas when I had my house with the 10' vaulted ceiling in the living room!).
By Assistant Village Idiot, at
Sat Sep 22, 05:47:00 PM:
One has to make a conscious effort to keep Christmas Christian and noncommercial. I suspect that was more true in earlier days than we pretend. I certainly grew up on a steady diet of "true meaning of Christmas" sermons, and I doubt that was a new idea in the 1950's.
The commercial focus was on cheaper objects, and on food, then. Not an enormous spiritual improvement with the time machine.
