Sunday, July 13, 2008

Impulse purchase

If you've been thinking about possibly buying something, let's say a new tent, just hypothetically, you know, after all these years of using the old Sears two-person (one person really) backpacking tent, if the opportunity presents itself and the price is right and the stars align, and it's not really a plan or even a strong desire, but you stop at Dick's on the way home from church on Sunday just to see what they have in stock, not even thinking of making a decision, and you even leave your wallet in the car, knowing that you won't need it because we're just here to gather information and see what's out there, and once you make it past the basketballs (only $15.00) and the full line of canoes and kayaks (who knew there were so many kinds, sizes, lengths, depths, girths, and how those dimensions relate to speed, maneuverability, and lateral stability?) you find quite a variety of tents, and some of them are drastically reduced in price, and all of them are less money than you thought you would have to spend, so you start comparing, just for the sake of argument, the Field and Stream brand to the Quest, narrowing it down to two or three designs in the same general size and price range (quite reasonable actually), and the salesman, a nice guy named Justin, offers some helpful information about the easy assembly of the Quest but the superior quality of the Field and Stream, yet there is a Coleman that is both larger and less money than both, with most of the same features and a killer warranty to boot, and why not get a little more tent for a little less money, so you carry it out of the store in the handy carrying bag and set it up in the backyard right away of course, and it really is easy to put up and spacious enough for a small revival meeting, and you're not really sure what the old lady will say when she gets home and sees it, but it sure seemed like a good idea at the time, and this will allow us to go up to northern Michigan any time without having to arrange to rent a cabin, so under the circumstances, is it still an impulse purchase?

No comments: