Some people love to shop (me).

Some people hate to shop.

Some people think they love to shop when actually, they just love to buy.

A person who goes to the mall only when they need something specific, then purchases the first one they find and then goes home, is not a shopper. That’s a buyer.

A shopper will browse and look around to find that specific item on sale - even if it means visiting a couple/few stores. In fact, a shopper must visit more than one store to justify the purchase because if they had bought from the first store, then they’d just be a buyer.

See, shopping is like hunting. And finding the item on sale is part of the chase. Buying the first one you see is like shooting a lame animal. There needs to be a chase to appreciate the kill. And paying less than retail for an item is the kill. The bigger the savings, the larger the kill.

Taking it a step further, shoppers don’t go out only when they’re looking for something specific. Shoppers will go out anytime - on the hunt for a good bargain. A good bargain on what? Doesn’t matter. If it’s on sale, it’s a score.

A buyer will pay $2 for a $1 item that a buyer needs.
A shopper will pay $1 for a $2 item that a shopper doesn’t need.

After years of observation and training from my wife, I have learned the art of shopping. Shopping doesn’t mean you’ll always find a good deal. Like everything else, there are good days and there are bad days. Some days, a shopper even comes home with nothing. gasp!

A man goes fishing all day and comes home empty handed.
His wife says “You spent all day fishing and you come home with nothing?”
The man replies “That’s why it’s called fishing and not catching”.

A shopper goes shopping all day and comes home empty handed.
A buyer says “You spent all day shopping and come home with nothing?”
The shopper replies “That’s why it’s called shopping and not buying”.

And men, you too can learn the art of shopping. Just like I did. It’s not difficult and in fact, is kind of challenging. It does require some patience on your part and it does give you exercise. But best of all, you get to create your own look instead of dressing like how someone else wants you to look. After all guys, if you let someone else buy your clothes, you might as well have them lay out you pants, shirts, and socks on the bed for you every morning because that’s what you’re allowing to happen.

Give a man an outfit, dress him for a day.
Teach a man to shop for his own outfit, dress him for a lifetime.

Oh, here’s a tip. If you’ve found something on the sale rack but just can’t decide whether you should buy it or not, whatever you do, do not put it back on the rack. Hold on to it like was your firstborn. Then walk around the store with it and contemplate the purchase. After lugging it for some time, you’ll come to your senses and remember the ol’ shopper’s adage: Just buy it - I can always return it later.

I love The Honolulu Advertiser Sunday edition. Besides the feature articles and news stories, I look forward to the ads - especially the supplements.

But what really gets my goat (haven’t heard that one in a while, eh) is the big box stores that advertise an item on sale, but have only a handful in stock. And of course, by the time I get there, the stock is gone. I’m not talking about days to get there, I’m talking about hours.

Now, either the employees are buying them before the store opens or the store is playing the ol’ Bait & Switch game. If the ploy is to lure the customer into the store, then might I suggest that the store have a good inventory available once in awhile? Otherwise, the customer will wise up to the store and not even bother going there, knowing the store’s M.O.

So in yesterday’s ad, I see a memory card on sale for a good price. I stop by the store around 3:00 and guess what - they’re all sold out. Aauuuggg! I get desperate and ask the clerk if they have any more, hoping he’ll say yes and go in the back, but he says “Sorry, all sold out”.

So does that make me want to hang around the store and buy something else? No. It pisses me off and makes me storm out of the store, kicking myself for wasting my time thinking they’re going to have it in stock. When will I learn?

Check out the Honolulu Advertiser’s Photographic History of Aloha Airlines. Take a little trip back in time.  Perhaps you recall some of the airplanes or uniforms.

Just click on the picture!

My first real job was a “lot boy” at Windward Volkswagen in Kailua. I started working there as I began my sophomore year, earning $2 an hour. I worked from after school until 6:00 PM, Monday through Friday, and 9:00 AM until 6:00 PM on Saturdays. I hated that job. When I started working, I didn’t even own a car- I rode my bicycle to and from work for the first year. During the summer, I’d start work at 8:00 AM and work until 6:00 PM, Monday through Friday and 9:00 to 6:00 on Saturdays.

This went on all though high school and even while I went to college. Needless to say, I took part in no extracurricular activities for school. It was just work.

And the thing was, I hated that job. Hated, HATED, HATED! it. Detailing cars (inside and out), new car prep., filling gas, playing cashier, filling propane tanks, and everything else under the sun including doing landscaping work at the bosses house. The only part I liked was when we got to drive brand new cars back from the distributor in Mapunapuna to Kailua. Otherwise, the job was hot and sweaty and dirty and sucked big time. I hated it.

And as much as I hated it, I worked there for 5 years - which doesn’t sound like a long time now, but think about it - my whole high school life and half of my college life was spent working there. In student terms, 5 years was a long time.

btw, did I mention that I hated that job?

Some of my friends worked at the cannery during the summers. I almost feel like I skipped some sort of rite of passage by not “working cannery” - especially when I’d listen to them talk story about working there.
They’d talk about how they’d buy brand new shoes at the beginning of summer, but by the time summer was over, the shoes were all stained with pineapple juice and all those little gnats would fly out of the shoe whenever it was moved.
Or how they’d shove pineapples back up the line and jam the Ginaca machine so they could take a break while the mechanics cleared the machine.
Or how they worked the swing shift and got through work close to midnight, and whenever it was Jon’s turn to drive, the ride home always consisted of a least one pass on Hotel street with a return trip on Pauahi street - to view the “scenery”. Jon still thinks those were girls.

And the money they earned during the summer would have to be budgeted to last them through the school year until they can “work cannery” again next summer.

What was your first job or jobs - whether it was just seasonal work or if you were dumb enough like me to stay at a job that you hated for 5 years.

Okay, little slow on the blog scene today. Questionable or boring topics perhaps? Let me throw this one out there and see if it sparks some responses.
Finish the phrase “When I was you age…”

• We had only 3 1/2 television stations.
  • Channel 13 came in all snowy so only counted as 1/2 a station.
• Not only did we have to wash and dry the dishes, but we also had to set the table.
• Burgers used to cost 25¢ each or 5 for $1.
• Soda was 10¢, 15¢, and 25¢ for small, medium, and large.
  • Remember those old green/white striped cups with the little stars in the white stripe?).
• When I got punished, it meant either “the belt” or “the slipper”.
• I used to hear words like “Oh for crying out loud” and “Criminy sakes”.
  • To this day, I still don’t know what they mean.
• A girl danced only when asked by a boy.
• Summer vacation was 3 months long.
• The new school year always started the day after Labor day.
• Cartoons were on only in the early morning and afternoons on weekdays. And Saturday mornings on weekends.
• When the TV went bad, we took out all the tubes, went to Wigwam and tested them one by one in the tube tester, replaced the bad tube with a new one, and put them all back into the TV.
• JPOs would salute when ever a policeman drove by.
• And finally, When I was your age, I had to walk 2 miles to and from school - uphill - both ways.

Your turn. When I was your age…