On the 4th Day of Christmas

I love Christmas shopping. I love getting a good deal or picking out a present that I know the person getting the gift will love. In the past I have done a lot of my shopping on the Friday after Thanksgiving but this year I have done most of my shopping online. I will say I did get Matt to go shopping with me on Friday this year but it was at about 6 pm not 6 am. Anyway, back to online shopping. It really does make sense. You can shop at almost any store and get deals on shipping, you can buy items that you might not be able to get at you local store, and you never have to leave your house to fight traffic or crowds. Matt's family even makes wish lists on Amazon which is very convenient for shopping. I heard on the radio that 70 million Americans will do some Christmas shopping online (up from 60 million last year).

But what about the security concerns and other issues. I encountered one myself today but it's more funny and a hassle than a threat to my bank account. On Sat. I was shopping for an item online (I will call it a printer from Office Depot to protect the identity of the gift but also give you an idea of the size and weight of the gift I purchased). I had visited the local "Office Depot" and they did not have the printer I wanted so I went online to order the printer (actually 2 of them because I want to give two people a printer). I also had to order a few other things to get my free shipping. WARNING: Don't do this, that's how they get you to spend more money. After almost completing my order I received an error message that my cart was empty. So, I waited about 4 hours and never received an email confirming my order so I assumed it was safe to order again. And I did. This time with different items to get my free shipping because I forgot what I chose before. Clearly I didn't really need those items from the first order if I couldn't even remember what they were 4 hours later. I received an order confirmation email within 5 minutes of placing the order. But, today I received 2 emails telling me my order shipped. I thought it was curious that "Office Depot" emailed me twice so I looked closely at the emails and found there were 2 printers in each shipment but different odds and ends. So low and behold it is confirmed, 4 printers will be arriving at my doorstep this week plus $40 worth of stuff to get free shipping. I hope "Office Depot" in town will let me return 3 of the printers without shipping them back. Why 3, I found out one of the people I ordered a printer for doesn't think she will ever use it anyway!! But, here's the thing, I still LOVE shopping online.