Surprise, Surprise, a Column About... Shopping (How Original)

In the longstanding tradition of columnists everywhere, I’ve decided to take my own narrow experiences and make sweeping generalizations about the sexes. (Why not? It’s my forum.) I’m going to dispel a common misconception: Men enjoy shopping as much as women. The key, as a madcap season of Christmas shopping has driven home, is what you’re shopping for.

The popular wisdom is that women enjoy the experience of shopping, while men prefer to run in, grab what they need, and get out as quickly as possible. And sure, that seems to hold true for what most people think of when they hear “shopping.” I can’t stand to go shopping for, say, clothing any longer than necessary; not that I don’t care what I wear (though some may argue that point), but the experience itself does nothing for me.

This is where I contend the thinking is too narrow; let’s turn it around. Say we’re shopping for DVDs. Here’s where Pam doesn’t want to spend any more time than necessary, while I could spend forever wandering the aisles at Best Buy, seeing what’s new, what discs are on sale, what hidden gems I’d long since forgotten. I’ll wander over to the computers for a while (Macs only, of course), walk through home audio before ending up in front a widescreen, high-definition television I can’t even come close to affording (note that I don’t set foot near the home appliances). I’ll behave similarly at Home Depot, and I’m not even all that much of a handyman. Borders or Barnes & Noble we can both get lost in.

I’m curious as to how my daughters will fit into my little stereotype. Our oldest just had her first solo shopping day, at the little “Secret Santa” store for kids at Springfield Mall; she was a little nervous at first, but that passed and she made a return foray to finish off the rest of her Christmas list. I’ll try to push her more toward the Best Buy end of things, but I can only do so much.