Well...did you miss out this year?

It's a very hectic time with Americans celebrating Thanksgiving, and everyone else pretending we're Americans, as well. Well, mostly brands and retailers, isn't it? I don't know what the rules are like in your country (or if there even are any rules, at all), but here, it's been Black Friday for about three weeks now in a bizarre version of Groundhog Day without Bill Murray (and then, really, what is even the point?).

I was going to say that hopefully, it will be winding down soon, but it doesn't look like it. With Christmas just around the corner, we're probably gonna be hearing about these unmissable deals for a couple more weeks at least.

So, instead, I will ask you.

How did you fare?

DId you get a good deal? Snag yourself a couple of goodies you'd been eyeing for a long time? Did you resist, and could you have put up a better fight? Are you haunted by the fear that you've missed out?

I've tried as much as I can to avoid these so-called deals as they're seldom actually good (I think we've all seen those experiments where people go to Y store a month before Black Friday, scout out an item and price, then find it again on BF at a higher or at least the same price). Still, as it's that time of the year and I do love preparing gifts, I've been making small, careful incursions into the retail world. Once or twice, I've gotten sucked into the spiel. At the end of the day, we all just want a good deal. We all wanna win.

The only thing I actually got, though, was the oven, and I'm fairly pleased to have checked the website just now and yes, seems like I did get a very good discount, indeed. Still, I'm pretty sure that for each one "deal" you actually get on BF, they con you into spending money on three other different things that you didn't actually need and that weren't actually at a significant discount at all, so who's gaining here?

The house always wins, Pinnochio.

But on a more positive note, since it is December, the above is not true in your life, perhaps for the mere haphazard reason that there is no house. There is just the status quo, your innermost fears, and whatever else might be holding you back from the life you've longed for. In which case, the question bears repeating.

How did you fare?

Did you get a good deal? Are you haunted by the fear that you've missed out? How is 2024 rounding up for you?

For me, 2024 seems like wandering into the store only with a vague idea of what I wanted, and it becoming more and more so the more I lingered. Only seems like it, though. I knew what I wanted, and though I didn't know how I'd go about getting it, it seems I got some of it, regardless. I'm quite pleased about that. I look back on how the year started, and think was that really this year? So much has changed. Some things, I gained clarity on, some I'm left even more perplexed about. I had some hell yeah moments. Took advantage of a couple of things just because they were good deals.

You know, it's a fool's game, going around acting on FOMO. After all, you're always gonna miss out on something. It's also pretty foolish not taking what you want if it presents itself to you. So best make the most of it.

I think some things, I paid for in full, in 2024. Either I was too impatient to wait for them to be on sale, or they're one of those things that cost the same all the time. Either way, they were worth it. Make sure you spend willingly, not begrudgingly, 'cause that poisons everything.

Others, I did and sometimes wonder if I should've done different. But then, maybe in some parallel universe, I did the other thing instead, and am thinking something completely different. You can't know. This year, though, I gave myself a lot of time on all the things that felt important in deciding. It's something I struggle with. I'm an impulse purchase girl at heart. So in 2024, I've been practicing taking a walk around the block to see if I really want it or if it's just I-don't-have-it jitters.

The thing I like best, though, is that I'm feeling more peaceful and more grounded than I did around this time last year. I get it. I see not being where I want to be (or is that just me being impatient for the next brilliant thing?), but I see it as a learning curve. As it all is. And it makes a difference in how you relate to the world.

This isn't really an end-of-the-year post. Not yet. Still a month to go yet, and so much can happen in 30 days, but it's a getting-there post. Slowly wrapping up and winding down.

How did you fare?