The annual fatigue of Christmas shopping in 1986
'In January you promise yourself that next Christmas, you'll start shopping early'
Crowds. Long queues. The pressure of finding the right gift.
These were just three reasons holiday shopping was a stressful chore for some Canadians in 1986.
Back in 1986, the task of holiday shopping was seen by some as a tiring chore.
Shopping fatigue was the focus of a story from CBC reporter Lynn Kelly, which was shared on Midday on Dec. 17, 1986.
Stress 'every December'
"Every year, it's the same thing — in January you promise yourself that next Christmas, you'll start shopping early and finish early," Kelly told viewers at the start of her report, which was filed from Saint John, N.B.
"But then every December, there you are — you and thousands of others."
Kelly surveyed shoppers' experiences trying to round up the Christmas gifts they planned to put under the tree.
She showed footage of tired and stressed-out shoppers, trudging through stores and eventually waiting in long lineups at the cash register.
Some people like it
"With all the to-ing and fro-ing and the pressure of finding just the right gift for just the right price, does that dampen the Christmas spirit at all?" Kelly asked near the end of her report. "Not on your life."
A smiling shopper told Kelly she loved going Christmas shopping.
"I just love it," the shopper told Kelly.
Asked for further explanation, she said: "I guess I'm a child at heart, I really love Christmas."
