Christmas Already?

When in Sydney, Australia I saw a huge "Christmas Store" that was filled with shoppers. Given that Christmas is still four months from now it is a surprise. We have several Christmas themed stores that survived the hurricane or were damaged, repaired and are now open. I also see as much Christmas merchandise in some stores as Halloween (which is Oct. 31st) items. People are buying this tiff too. It isn't just a case of browsing. So, no...'tis not the season yet. But Santa is coming to towns here in the U.S anyway.
That's right. Santa needs sunscreen now, because all summer stores have been selling Christmas items. In my local T.J. Maxx (a clothing and home furnishing chain store) I have seen Christmas items sell as fast as they are displayed on the sales floor. I read a stat from the National Retail Federation that says that 1 in 7 Americans start buying Christmas decorations, gifts and furnishings before September 12st. Supposedly, 15% of all Christmas sales are now made in July and August (when retailers start displaying Christmas items) And the stores do not advertise those things. It is all impulse buying generated strictly from shoppers.
But I ask myself "why"? Maybe our lives are busier now and we are trying to organize ourselves to keep ahead of the pace. Perhaps we are a little depressed with the real world and want to escape earlier into the fantasy of Christmas. Or maybe shoppers (like me) who hate malls and crowds just want to beat the rush and shop while there is no Christmas frenzy in the air. Sigh....or maybe the retailers are putting out their Christmas items to subtly steer us to buy on impulse. We buy and buy the Christmas stuff, and then find our houses are full of what we really never use. Anyway...it may be too early...but.....Merry Christmas.
Men and women seem to forever debate which sex is the worst driver. Now there's a new entrant into the debate...dogs. That's right. I am righting about doggies at the steering wheel after a woman in Hohhot, the capital of north China's Inner Mongolia region, crashed her car while giving her dog a driving lesson (according to the official Xinhua News Agency). No injuries were reported although both vehicles were damaged, it said.
The woman, identified by her surname, Li, said her dog "was fond of crouching on the steering wheel and often watched her drive," . "She thought she would let the dog 'have a try' while she operated the accelerator and brake," the report said. "They did not make it far before crashing into an oncoming car."
No word yet whether or not the dog was one of those crazy a female dog drivers who puts on her make-up and chats on her cell phone while motoring down the highway.