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Odd Angles
Too much of a good thing: There was a time when I would only shop at stores with gigantic selections. I'd stroll, browse, think, examine and, occasionally, decide. I never grew exhausted of inexhaustible choices.
I'm not that person anymore. My time, energy and sanity are a priority, maybe because they are so easily lost these days. Therefore, this holiday shopping season, I plan to stick to stores with limited choices. I'm no longer willing or able to gape at dizzying displays such as shelves holding roughly 380 candles of varying shapes, scents, colors and sizes. I'm good with two: red/strawberry/tall and white/scentless/votive.
I'm not sure why I've lost the interest or patience in choice-driven shopping. Perhaps it's because the vastness of it all triggers insecurities, leaving me second-, third- and fourth-guessing myself. Or maybe it's that the needless overabundance symbolizes materialism and greed, or that mountains of stuff have become a cruel joke about the current economy.
Whatever the reason, I plan to go on a Choice Diet in which moderation and small portions are key.
This Choice Diet will be a challenge because I was a choice-aholic for so many years. I recall my daughter once saying she "never thought someone could spend so much time looking for socks." Come to think of it, men's athletic socks are a perfect example of choice excess. The product has more options than Ameritrade. Crew alone has six subcategories: crew extended, medium crew, mini crew, micro mini crew, walking and runner crew (as of this writing, there are no sitting or lying down crew socks). There is also the quarter, low cut, over the calf and no show (which hints of an Emperor's New Clothes scam to me). Not to mention the not-very-manly-sounding footies and anklets.
In retrospect, this Choice Diet was a long time coming. I realize that my most satisfying shopping experiences were ones with limited choices, like getting a new cell phone every few years, when I am eligible for a rebate. I usually try to restrict myself to styles that are within the rebate amount. Not surprisingly, that's usually three phones. Sprint doesn't make money off me, but they do get my appreciation for simplifying the process.
Conversely, my most unsatisfying shopping experiences are ones that bring about choice overload. It can even overshadow what should be a deliciously wonderful shopping experience, like Cold Stone Creamery. I'm betting that its incalculable (to me) number of permutations of ice cream flavors and toppings results in a strong statistician consumer base.
It took me roughly an hour to read the entire menu, which not only listed ice cream flavors, but each item within the "mix-ins" categories: candy, nut, cakes and cookies, fruit and other. The sheer complexity gave me pre-ice cream brain freeze. Note to Cold Stone Creamery: Add an edited menu (let's say six flavors plus M&Ms) and a brief video for first-time buyers.
For all it's worth, at least fast food keeps it simple: single-digit selection assigned a single-digit number. "I'll have a number four." Done. That's a meal. Now I can move on to deciding on Tums or Rolaids (again, just two choices).
The day I became overwhelmed buying ice cream was the first day of my Choice Diet. Rules for this season of gift-giving: If it can't be found at CVS, I'm buying Target gift cards. I mean, how many choices could there be in a gift card?!
Footnote: Target's gift card designs include 12 holiday, eight winter, seven birthday, two wedding, five new baby, two appreciation and three any occasion.
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