Retail Fast Forward

We’re having a somewhat weird day for this late in June. Went out for a walk and the temperature hadn’t climbed above 60F. With the wind, it actually felt a little chilly. And there was no humidity to speak of. Cloudy with a few sprinkles of rain. Definitely felt more like fall than summer – almost like I expected to come back and watch some football.

I was still in my shorts and t-shirt with no jacket because I refuse to put on layers in certain months.

But it just struck me because we were shopping on Friday at the big box store with the red bullseye and they had already put all the summer/beach stuff on clearance. The spring/planting stuff was also on sale but that’s kind of expected because most of the stuff should be planted by now. But to move on from summer before we’ve even hit the first day of summer seems a bit silly.

I know they have to clear space in the “seasonal” section for the back to school stuff which starts soon but I was just thinking about the mentality. It kind of forces you to live in the future and think more about what’s ahead than what is right in front of you. Its like you had better have already planned out your summer and gathered everything you needed back in May because it isn’t going to available during the actual summer.

So how many people have already put their summer vacation in their mental rear view mirror even if they haven’t gone yet. Got everything all planned out and all the stuff we need so what’s the next thing we need to worry about.

I suppose there are good reasons for doing so. It can be hard to do things without advanced planning. Certainly if you want to go to a popular spot, you’re better off if you don’t wait for the last minute.

Oh and the store that sells the fancy candles and soaps we like was also doing a semi-annual sale and clearing out all the “summer” themed stuff. The “spring” themed items (mostly floral scents) are long gone since they all came out in January. Got to get you looked forward to the next season. In some ways, it isn’t bad. If you aren’t a fan of winter, then seeing the spring flower type stuff gives you some hope for the upcoming spring. But I do think it may also make it harder to appreciate the current season.

And I know it just means that some time in July (when it is the middle of summer), this store will bring out their “fall” line so you’ll get all the apple scented stuff and harvest themed items while everything is still growing. Again, I suppose it works for those who hate the current season and I’m probably only thinking about it because I want to enjoy summer and not start looking forward to fall in early July.