So you worked during the Olympics, made some money, went out and spent it all on Olympic stuff. Just as VANOC planned! Why buy stuff we don’t need, especially stuff that can be considered soured milk, since the Olympics have ended for almost a week? Some may say its good to be thrifty, others say theres still the Paralympics to cheer for, but most will agree I just can’t help it. I, for one, tried to avoid it. It started with a China hoodie priced at $70. It came with a free toque and a bag, and it didn’t make me feel guilty about dishing out the amount equivalent to a days worth of paychecks. It felt good, it looked good, and I could wear it casually. If it got cheaper I can “price adjust it.” Then after the Olympics I picked up a $100 jacket, not the best color, or the best size, but it was buy one get another lesser or equal price free, but why couldn’t I pass it up? First of all, the Olympic logos were pretty hidden, which means I could wear it for other sporting events or just casually and even without the Olympic eyecatch, they felt quite comfortable.
So I got a Green $100 jacket and hoodie to express my patriotism now and in the future, yay! I told myself I would stop there, but a friend recently found a outlet store selling Olympic merchandise that was passed its prime. Again I promised myself if I had to pick up something it would be as unOlympic as possible. After lining up for almost 2 hours, I went in, thought i didn’t see anything I liked, but quickly my eye spotted a fanny pack. It was only 10 bucks, and the quality wasn’t bad compared to another one i paid for years ago, which was the same price, but broke on me while I was in China. What surprised me was, while it took me about 10 minutes to decide if I actually wanted, I saw people grabbing loads and loads of useless bags, key chains, and other Olympic stuff that was pretty tacky and putting them into cardboard boxes and buying them enmasse.
What are these people going to do with all this outdated junk? Since everyone was Asian, I assumed that they were going to send it back to Asia as gifts, or just hide it in the closet, be proud and 10 years later throw it away. All the Olympic coverage must have driven into people’s minds that Olympic merchandise will never be here again, and that for some reason we had to grab some to prove that we were here. Everyone on tv with Olympic merchandise was happy, so we figure maybe thats whats missing from our lives! We buy it, feel satisfied, then move on to the next thing. Impulse shopping is for the weak minded, and sometimes I find myself getting caught up in it, however, the longer I spend in a mall, the less I actually want. I was about to leave with my friend when I spotted a computer bag that looked pretty professional. I picked it up, took it to the register and paid for it, because unlike other people there that day, I needed it.