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12 . 01 . 2012

The SWAP Life – Adieu Boxing Day!

Written by Laura Vizbara

My fellow swappers,

It is a common truth that many of us who are lucky enough to have a holiday on Boxing Day use the better part of it to forage for bargains. If one commits to waking up early enough, one might even be entitled to obtain a big-ticket ‘’door crasher’’ item for a fraction of its retail price, such as a 3-D projecting TV screen or a hydraulic BBQ powered by its very own thumb-sized cold fusion reactor.

OK, so I made that last item up. :-) My point is that on Boxing Day, the consumer in us tends to go a little haywire and incites us to buy things we don’t really need.

Just what is it about Boxing Day that draws us away from our warm comfy homes to spend more than on any other day of the year? – Part of the answer may lie in the following advert I spotted in Winnipeg’s Portage Place Mall during Boxing Week (you may have noticed its French counterpart in various stores across Montreal):

THE solution for gift fatigue: Be savvy, be swappy!

Gift fatigue. My initial reaction to reading that was, ‘’Yeah, I know what you mean. I don’t want any more presents.’’ It took me a few seconds to figure out that the ad was inviting me to buy something I liked to make up for any gifts I was disappointed with. Such as socks.

I don’t know about you, but the folks I spend Christmas with make it a tradition of giving socks and underwear every Christmas, and I can’t imagine life without that. It’s the present I know I’m going to get every year, and I look forward to it, because it eliminates the need for me to go out and buy them. I haven’t bought socks and underwear in over five years. What’s the real gift behind the undies? It’s one less thing for me to think about during the year, and there’s no better gift than that kind of thoughtfulness.

So what to do if you didn’t receive anything that made you all giddy inside? Well, you can listen to the ad, and buy something else, but why not take it a step further and try to trade it? With Craigslist and googleable (not a real adjective yet, but undoubtedly will be one day) swapping sites at our fingertips, a whole world of trade is available for us to explore.

Swap away!

Laura

  • http://twitter.com/yoyo_banana YoYo Banana

    Hi Laura,

    I hope to join you guys when you’re looking for volunteers for swap events!  I have a Montreal second hand question for you. One of my friends tell me that there is a buy the pound clothing place downtown but he couldn’t remember any details.  Le sigh. Do you know it?  Can you tell me where I can find it?  I really miss my old days of the dusty treasure trove that was Buy the Pound Toronto.  Ga!  The fabrics alone.  Sari material to die for.

    Thanks, lady!  Look forward to meeting you one day soon.

    Andie