January Sales Come Early

According to the TV, B&Q's January sale is now on - which is a bit odd as it is still December.  Oh, hang on, apparently the Sainsburys' January sale is also on - they're all at, desperately trying to shift all that unsold stock from last year by 'slashing' prices, (in truth, I've rarely ever found a genuine bargain in these sales).  This apparent illogicality of starting a January sale in December, (why not just call them 'Winter sales'?), is all part of the commercial contraction of Christmas I was rambling about the other day.  By declaring that your January sale is starting in December, then you are effectively telling people that you think that Christmas is over and that they should stop relaxing and enjoying festivities and start spending their money instead.  Mind you, with George Osborne's phantom 'economic miracle' in full swing, (according to the Tory lickspittle press), you have to ask why retailers are so desperate that they are having to bring their New Year sales forward to try and get customers into their shops?  Surely it was 'spend, spend, spend' last year?  Surely their profits can't be down in an 'economic recovery'?

Politics aside, these sales with their 'spectacular reductions' never seem to come at the right time of year for me - especially this year.  2015 has turned out to be a 'year of renewal' for me, in that an alarming number of household appliances and furniture failed on me and had to be replaced.  Perhaps this is symbolic of some kind of change in circumstances and direction of my life.  More likely, it simply reflects the fact that I bought a lot of stuff at the same time and it has all expired at around the same time.  Anyway, over the past twelve months the hot water cylinder, my bed, my mattress, the flush button on the toilet, my DVR, my TV, even my watch, amongst other stuff, have collapsed and died on me, forcing me to buy replacements.  Of course, there was never a sale on for the appropriate item when I had to part with my cash for the replacements, was there?  About the only thing I replaced of my own volition this year has been my phone, or should I say phones, as I replaced both my mobile and land line phones.  In neither case was there a 'phone sale' on, although I did manage to take advantage of some one off offers in each case.   Still, if nothing else, a series of extended 'January' sales should mean that nothing else gives up the ghost on me - it will all wait until they are over.  Bastards.