How to Save a Bundle on Christmas This Year

In these tough times, it helps to have a strategy. Here's mine - feel free to pass it on!

1. Wait until you only have a week and a half left. The stress helps a lot!
2. Don't make a list or plan. That's silly. Just spend that time shopping, instead.
3. Wake up super early, like 4:00am, the day you're going shopping, because you're really stressed about your biostatistics final.
4. Don't forget to actually go TAKE the final! It's three hours long, and you wouldn't want to miss that. You'll be energized when you're done.
5. Now comes the good part! Go SHOPPING! Drive a good long way to get to a store you think is promising.
6. Wander around the store for an hour or so, picking up less-than-satisfying non-bargain gifts for people who don't really want anything, anyway. That's it, load your cart up really full!
7. Stand in a long, long line at the register.
8. Realize...(very slowly dawning...yep...it's true)...that you left your wallet in your other bag. At home!
9. Apologize profusely to the register people! And the people behind you in line! All of them. Individually. It's a good idea to blush, too.
10. Apologize so profusely, people begin to wonder if you're quite insane.
11. Go home. Decide that was really enough for one day, take a bath with some expensive bath salts and have a nap.
12. Decide maybe you really do need a plan and a list. And that maybe internet shopping really is all it's cracked up to be.