I happen to work in an office next to one of the nation's largest malls, the Mall of America. It's nice because I can shop there if I need to pick up something, and I can do it during my lunch break. (Plus, there's a never-ending collection of restaurants and food courts to eat at.) However, this experience from last year is still why I really dislike shopping at malls.

So, last year I was getting my sister a Christmas present, and she specifically asked for a scarf and a hat from a major clothing retailer. I wanted to keep the present at $20 to $25, mostly because that's what we usually do in our family. So, I went into their store and could not find what she wanted. After a while, I found a matching scarf and hat that was similar and I thought she'd like. However, the hat was around $25 and the scarf around $20.

This brings me to the first thing. My idea of fashion clothing for myself is a $20 pair of cargo pants from Kohl's and a $20 T-shirt from a rock band I like. Everything else, actually including the pants, is purchased on a "That looks decent and the price is right" basis. I think my last had was around $8, and well, I guess I'd buy a scarf if The Day After Tomorrow happened. I guess I see very little reason to go to a fancy name-brand store when you can get the same thing at a discount clothing retailer for half the price.

Anyways, because I only have an hour lunch break, it actually took me a couple days of lunch breaks pondering over what I wanted to get her. I thought about getting the scarf or the hat by itself, but that seemed to be a bit of a cop-out. Finally, a day or two before Christmas, I decided I should just pony up the $45. It might be expensive, but it's my sister and she's worth it.

When I get up to the counter, the woman rings me up and tells me the total is $26. WHAT??!! I kept my composure, but I totally felt like smashing her head into the checkout counter. Darn it, if I had known this stuff would only cost me $26, I would have bought it three days ago! I would have saved hours and hours of mulling over what to do! I tried to calmly pay my $26, and I left the store cursing under my breath.

On the way out, I noticed a poster by the front door that, in neat little letters, said "Holiday Sale. 40% off everything". Ohh, so that's it, is it? From now on, I'll just stick to the discount stores where I pay the price on the tag.