I’m a bit of a walking contradiction. I love to buy things, yet I absolutely abhor shopping malls. I’m not sure when it happened, because I was a total mall rat just like every other suburban teen in the GTA, but somehow, somewhere along the way, I began to hate malls with a passion. I also don’t particularly like the hassle of shopping for clothing, except for shoes, but even then, I prefer to go to shoe stores that are outside of malls so that I don’t have to experience the torture of being inside one. Same thing with anything else I need/want to buy. If I can get it somewhere else, I’m totally there.
It is for this exact reason that the ability to shop online is both a godsend and pure, unadulterated evil for me. You see, I really, really like to buy things, and when you partner that up with my fangirlish tendencies, havoc will ensue. Take this weekend, for example: I purchased 4, yes, 4 JYJ CDs; a JYJ cell phone charm; 2 JYJ pillow cases; a JYJ wall calendar; and a new case (miraculously not JYJ) for my iPhone. Did I need all that stuff? Well, I did need the case, as mine has broken, and a new case does dictate the need for a new cell phone charm. But the CDs? Maaaaybe kind of, sort of, but, not really. I already have most of the songs on the CDs I bought, but the reason I say ‘sort of’ is that I’m a firm believer in supporting the artists I love by buying their products and going to their concerts. So even if I download something for free, eventually I will buy it, or buy enough of their other products to restore my musical karmic balance. Also, the CDs come with posters and photo books, so, there’s another reason to buy them. But again, not enough to dictate need, really.
The calendar was completely frivolous, since I already have two calendars at home – one of them from another fandom: Bleach – yet I absolutely had to have the JYJ one. (Really, I was thiiiiiis close to buying it back in November, but I changed my mind, so really, all I’m doing is changing my mind back again.) And let’s not even discuss the pillow cases, because frivolous is not a frivolous enough word to describe that particular purchase. But OMG they’re so adorable! Ahem. Yeah. Frivolous to the Nth degree.
Anyway, this is just a long-winded way for me to document the fact that I really need to stay away from eBay. And YesAsia.com, and J-list, and all the other e-commerce sites that suck me in so efficiently. Truly I do, because I’m supposed to be saving money for Japan, not buying things that I can probably get cheaper there anyway!
On the up side, I have been a good girl when it comes to concerts. I’ve made a rule that I’m not allowed to buy concert tickets for any band/artist I’ve seen before, though what I’m actually aiming for is to spend no money on any band unless JYJ return to North America like the rumours say they will. Now that I’ve written that down, I think it means I’m obligated to adhere to it…
Ugh, wish me luck!
Purple Line 