One Day Sales
One thing about New Zealand is that for a relatively large piece of land, they have a small population. Picture the UK minus Ireland, spread 4 million people around it, elongate it like a fish, and you have New Zealand. Which means the people have a highly developed sense of communication and travel.
One way this manifests itself, besides a really good courier service, is the internet culture. With so many people living far from urban centres, there’s a highly developed willingness to buy stuff over the internet. The Kiwis are addicted – and I mean addicted – to TradeMe, the eBay equivalent. They buy a lot over the internet. And they absolutely excel at One Day Sales. […]
It’s the time of the year again that shopping malls and boutiques become a danger zone. I avoid them as much as I can. I keep telling myself: Yes, many lovely pieces of clothing are dramatically reduced, but I’ve bought enough clothes this summer, thankyouverymuch. If I buy any more, I won’t be able to do them justice this year, especially since there is only another month or two of warm summer weather left. And for next year I will want to buy some items that are of the latest fashion then. 
I’ve seen various tweets and blog comments about giving books as gifts for Christmas or Hanukkah. On the one hand, it’s a brilliant idea. I keep a downright scary number of books around the house, but I don’t buy enough to support the publishing world or my favorite authors singlehandedly. Still, books are so subject to personal taste that I find it a little agonizing to figure out which ones would be the perfect gift for someone.