Christmas Shopping Report
I drove by Walmart today, and they had a good crowd in the parking lot… well, a good crowd for a Saturday, in the Spring, before the tax refund checks have started to arrive.
There were no back-ups in the lot of people looking for parking spots, as spots were available all over. Two years ago they were parking on the grass and there were people waiting in the driving lanes. [Note: I get to observe the parking lot because of the taxpayer funded traffic lights that bracket the Walmart location.]
I go out on the 23rd every year to be sure I won’t need anything until the 27th. This year is really bad locally.
6 comments
the taxpayer funded traffic lights that bracket the Walmart location
funny, we have one or two of those here too…
There are businesses and homeowners that have been justifying lights at different locations on that road for years and nothing was done, but Walmart gets two that add to the problems of other locations. It is almost impossible to get to two of the stores I once went to frequently because of the back ups caused by those two lights.
ooooh! it’s back! [your new header photo, i saw it once, then never again]
the walmart closest to me not only has a traffic light where we didn’t used to need one [until the walmart showed up], it’s got confusing extra entrances and exits that are one-way, and in non-intuitive directions too. i haven’t seen any accidents there yet, but my dad was telling me about a parking-lot-rage incident that he had a front-row seat for not too long ago.
I just got back from a last minute shopping trip for a few items. The stores were busy, but not unusually so. Especially given that Target, K-Mart, Woolworth’s. etc, etc all had 40% (and I even saw a store with 60%) off sales already! I remember a few years ago, they decided to have the shopping mall’s and Plaza’s open until midnight for three days before Xmas day. We had to park 3 blocks away from both because both had their multi-level carparks full, and this was 10 PM! And no way anyone had anything other than token pre-Christmas sales on (Maybe 5% or 10% max) Then either. The other difference was that it was much easier to move through isles. Again, a few years ago, you had to turn sideways to get past the pyramids of goods filling the isles!
Sign of the times indeed.
Bryan, when you described the two traffic lights, I thought immediately of a Wal-Mart south of Austin, TX, then again immediately of one a few miles north of Galveston. In both cases, on busy weekends, traffic backs up for what seems like a mile… forget about getting anywhere, Wal-Mart or otherwise.
I’m set for the holiday. I’m staying home today (well, I might go as far as the corner grocery store), and we’re going to Stella’s father’s place tomorrow. With luck, I won’t have to go out again until Monday. Good. There’s a reason “mall” and “maul” are homonyms…
A happy merry whatever to all of you!
It replaced the fall foliage on the Solstice, Hipparchia, and will be there until the Equinox.
Given the apparent tradition of stopping in the driving lanes to wait for someone who might be leaving and the inability of some to understand the meaning of arrows indicating one-way traffic, road rage doesn’t surprise me.
That pretty much echoes what’s going on here, Kryten – early sales, bigger reductions than ever, and less merchandise – seems to be world wide. Woolworths is already in shut down sales in Britain, and I think they are already gone in the US, as I haven’t seen one in years, with K-Mart not far behind. The iconic names we grew up with are fast disappearing.
Things are really looking desperate around here, Steve, so I expect that the 26th will be the heavy traffic day, with people trying to get cash for gifts they need less than money. An MBA in the White House and Republicans in charge would seem to equal the economic disaster that many predicted, but few people know of the predictions because the people who get things right are never permitted to speak in the media.
Happy Christmas to all.