A CHRISTMAS GIFT WORTH A SATISFIED SMUG SMILE!
I got an aftershave as a gift on the Christmas day. It is one of the commonest gifts that people get and give on this festive occasion. Look in any of the gift shop windows during this time, you would be sure to find a plethora of perfumes, aftershaves, and such, displayed in brightly colourful, eye-catching packagings. The newspapers and the magazines are bursting with half to full page adverts of big brands. On the television a lot of very creative, sexy and glittery adds start appearing in primetime slots. Online the social media is awash with similar adverts.
I was incredibly thrilled to get this. My old one was almost run out. I was planning to buy a replacement soon. As I have not got a favourite or “can’t live without” brand, choosing one in the shops becomes very difficult, more so because this is a nonessential item, at least for me. The merchandise available in the stores and online is truly astronomical. I would have spent hours in sampling quite a few of them and then found out that the one I had taken to the counter was so expensive, it would not be a justifiable spend, ethically or financially. I would be back to the drawing board!
An essential item is much easier to choose and justify its price than a purely luxury item. Even though financially I can easily afford a really expensive object, I do fill a sense of guilt when the item is not a need. I am not alone in feeling that. After all, “guilty pleasures” and “buyer’s remorse” are very frequently used British idiom and phrase respectively, not for nothing!
The feeling of guilt in spending excessively on a Want not a Need, comes from the fact that it reminds one of conspicuous consumerism and the appalling economic inequality. It is also related to a niggling feeling that the money could have been more useful in doing something charitable or of more utilitarian value.
Last year after much rummaging I found an aftershave I liked, it had a classic, crisp fragrance, and the price was not too high. When I was taking it to the till to pay for it, a co-shopper conspiratorially offered a completely unsolicited advice “you would find it much cheaper online, I bought it yesterday on Amazon”. I did thank him but I am afraid my hesitation betrayed my frustration and annoyance at the time. I put the box back at the shelf and later that evening ended up spending an hour or so on Amazon, the online shopping giant. The aftershave was indeed fifteen pounds cheaper but I spent another eighty pounds on other bargains!
Now you can see, why I was so delighted with this gift. This was like having three gifts in one: an aftershave I like, removal of guilt and the last but not the least, a big chunk of time. What is not to be chuffed about and have a smug smile!
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