This morning I got caught with my pants down and didn’t get the JQ blog up in time. Normally, I have my blogs done early because they’re on my calendar. I suppose it’s the time of year. I’ve spent the past three days driving all over town, shopping, snatching toys out of the hands of other desperate mothers and dashing for the check out line. (Okay, it hasn’t been quite that bad.)

The point is, I’ve barely been near my computer, let alone checking my calendar. So it was this morning before I realized I needed to blog.

Why, you may wonder, in this age of digital wonder was I driving all over town instead of ordering on line like a civilized person? Last year, I got burned ordering on line. A gift I ordered on December 2nd didn’t arrive until mid-February. It was something for my mother and I’d talked my sister and my dad into going in on it. So on December 23rd, I was driving around town (okay, to the jewelry store three miles from my house) desperately looking for a replacement gift. It worked out. She loved the replacement.

But this year, I wasn’t willing to risk it. I decided I’d rather have the stress of facing the crowds than the stress of waiting all month for packages to arrive. But of course, there was one crucial item I couldn’t find locally, so it’ll be arriving in the next three to five business days. I hope.

What about you? Are you an on-line shopper or a local shopper? Which is more stressful or more fun? Do you have any shopping horror stories? That wasn’t you I swiped the toddler safari truck from, was it?