Not matter how hard you try to be prepared, more often than not you’ll find yourself braving the chaos of the Christmas Eve last minute shopping spree, either in order to pick up that essential festive gift for the dog or another jar of gravy powder.But before you dash off to the local garage to buy that special someone another chocolate orange, bear in mind that if you've already left your Christmas shopping a little late, you risk paying up to 50% more than those people who are – how shall we put it? – a little better organised.
A survey of Christmas shoppers conducted in 2013 revealed that 16-24 year-olds are actually the most organised when it comes to getting the Christmas shopping done, with nearly 44% of them buying their festive gifts in, or even before, November! Those aged 45 or older are the ones who are more likely to leave it to the last minute with almost a third not even starting on the seasonal shop until the week before Christmas.
The good news is that it's not too late to purchase a copy of my new book Christmas Explained: Robins, Kings and Brussel Sprouts and for it to be delivered in time for Christmas in the UK (which is also true of YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks).
And if you do happen to find a copy of the book for you under the tree this year, please consider adding a brief review here. ;-)
The seasonal significance of the winter solstice is in the reversal of the gradually lengthening nights and shortening days. How cultures interpret this is varied, since it is sometimes said to astronomically mark either the beginning or middle of a hemisphere's winter. Though the winter solstice lasts an instant, the term is also colloquially used to refer to the full 24-hour period of the day on which it occurs.
