Confessions of a Shopaholic

My name is Tristan and I am a shopaholic.

***

Okay, the last few days have been crazy. As many of you know, it was Thanksgiving in the States - a holiday that I did not particularly understand until recently. I was told that people were supposed to express their gratitude to anyone and everyone over anything and everything.

Following this logic, it seems, all my favorite labels thanked me - and boy, I was really so grateful to them by the end of the day.

***

I decided to say no to four Thanksgiving invites. Instead, I had leftovers on the couch and prepped myself for the long night ahead. At exactly 9pm, I received the confirmation to shop. I hurriedly placed all stuff that I needed for the night in the bag - ice cold beers, soda, granola bars, a bottle opener, earphones, an umbrella, my phone and wallet. Along with it came a big smile, an extreme desire to get the best deals and patience, lots and lots of patience. I boarded the car and my friend and I drove a good thirty minutes to the local premium outlet store. It was my first Black Friday event and I was ready to make the most out of it.

As I stepped out of the car, I felt a sudden rush of electricity go through my body - the kind that only shopaholics like myself get in these kinds of situations. I remember getting the same kind of rush during holiday sales in Megamall and even Divisoria. Our first order of business for the night - coffee. My Venti Peppermint Skimmed Mocha (No Whipped Cream) did the trick. A few sips later, I was already perky - the perfect shopping attitude.

• Lacoste went crazy. Jeans were selling at 15 dollars from 80. I got two.
• Van Heusen was giving an extra 20% on top of their already 50% discounts on everything else. I got 6 dress shirts and a couple of scarves.
• Fossil was selling watches for so much less money. I bought three.
• Banana Rep was down 40%. I got two pants, a sweatshirt and yes, another scarf.
• Kenneth Cole was giving 41% off on top of already crazy prices. I went out with two leather dress shoes and a happy face.
• I ignored Calvin Klein since I can buy them at sale prices anyway on regular days.
• No good dress shoe finds though; I simply had to walk away.
• But Nike was so grateful that they sliced prices by twenty percent over and above the lowest marked prices. I am now loving my new running shoes.
• Tommy Hilfiger equals love with an additional 40% off their extremely marked down prices. I was holding a hoody, a jock jacket and scarves on my way out.
• Diesel cut down prices by half so I bought another pair of jeans.
• Movado sold their watches at 70% off. Needless to say, I am only human.
• I also got a very stylish reading lamp for almost nothing at Pottery Barn and yes, a very wonderful and magical coffee maker that just needs on flick of a finger to brew nice coffee every single time.
• Coach had a long line of thankful shoppers outside their store as early as nine. It was fifty off and an additional twenty. My big black leather bag, wallet, leather gloves and a keychain were the testament to their unending gratitude.

We were floored by the time the frenzy subsided and we needed to eat. I checked the time and it was already freakin eight in the morning - we had already been shopping for ten hours straight! As I puffed on my Frost (I had to, it was stressful!) - I felt good.

But just when I thought everything was over, our quick stop at Best Buy revealed the greatest find - a hunky Vietnamese sales person, muscles and all, with the last two remaining sets of my new dSLR with everything on it for just... Again, I had to accept that I am only human.

Before I called it a night err.. day, I whispered a silent prayer of gratitude. It was Thanksgiving after all - it felt right. I thanked the heavens for helping me get to where I am right now; for allowing me to provide to my family; and also for providing me the chance to channel OFW stress and a whole lot of other things when I shop. I am really blessed. So, for that, I am thankful.