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Lisa's |
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She drags herself out of bed each morning for the long day ahead. The workweek consists of six, seven, sometimes eleven days in a row, before a long awaited respite. Although her husband earns a good living and the mortgage on the home has been paid off years ago, she must work like a crazy dog. After all, there’s a habit to support: INTENSIVE SHOPPING. Meet Dee Purchaser, the woman addicted to the
local mall. And the not so
local ones, too. Every
evening after work she goes shopping.
Her few and infrequent days off are spent spending, as well.
She confidently exits department stores clenching numerous
packages containing wide varieties of items, however, all merchandise is
not created equal; clothing and accessories belong to the favored
clique. And they’re
spoiled rotten. As far back as I can recall, Ms. Dee Purchaser
has been excessively compelled to spend money to a degree that is way
over her head. Shopping
sprees are commonplace and she’ll compulsively buy garments almost any
worthy place. The exquisite
“must have” beaded gown she impulsively bought would indeed be
perfect to wear at a top-notch wedding; getting an invite to one should
only be as simple. Even without a cordial invitation to some classy affair,
charging five hundred dollars on her credit card was a well-deserved
treat she rewarded herself with after satisfying the previous
hundred-dollar balance in full. When choosing gifts for family and friends, D.
Purchaser does so thoroughly and with precision.
Whereas the average person would be fit to be tied, she easily
spends several hours examining seemingly identical belt racks or a few
shelves of standard picture frames.
No detail is too small to be scrutinized; her right eye
moonlights as a well-trained magnifying glass while the left one
searches for perceived character flaws.
And she’ll whimsically purchase not only three or four pairs of
shoes for herself, but also, a few pairs for her grown daughters…well,
just because she’s no high heel. D. P.’s bedroom closets are filled solely with
shoes (how appropriate) and matching handbags, as one cannot fox-trot
without a partner. All her
clothing live in the finished basement; each article waits its turn to
greet society. Room is
becoming scarce, as the selection grows faster than soon to be stubble
on freshly shaven legs. She
never bids farewell to has-been pieces of apparel; they collectively
welcome the newborn fashions upon arrival.
Some garments may never be worn, as they remain month after
month, year after year, securely attached to their price tags,
maintaining their youth by avoiding wrinkles. The woman knows she’s out of control and often vows to
begin and adhere to a balanced diet.
However, the foolishly constructed frenzy remains generously
overfed. Compulsive shoppers are not given the
consideration and attempted intervention that other brands of addicts
are. Most everyone shops;
the frequency, duration, and monetary amounts are the factors that vary.
At a quick glance, it is not clearly visible to see the
difference between the shopaholics and the well-seasoned, walking,
talking, fashion statements. Only
through further examination can we identify and label who’s who.
When out of control spending is the detrimental
result of habitual shopping sprees, we must recognize the reason(s) for
such senseless behavior. If
the objective is mainly to fill a void in one’s life, then red flags
are frantically flying at full mast every which way.
The shopping itself cannot be honestly enjoyable when it holds
the power that causes individuals to become workaholics assigned to
serve their material masters. With
much needed vacation time accruing, Dee Purchaser is looking forward to
traveling the world. There’s only one major problem besides figuring out how to
pay for her dream vacation. She has nothing to wear.
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