So is online shopping supposed to reduce stress, or should we all just go to the malls to catch the spirit?

Here we go, I ordered 6 items on December 17th. All were “Usually ships within 24 hours”.

I chose “standard shipping”.

It’s now the end of the day on the 22nd. I have received the one item that actually came from Crutchfield (an XM Roady receiver) That arrived on the 20th.

The stuff that actually is coming from Amazon hasn’t arrived yet. The stuff tagged as UPS 3-day select supposedly shipped on the 18th, but I don’t think it was until the 19th that the status actually started to show it in transit. It’s supposedly “out for delivery” today, so it might arrive today.

The item that supposedly shipped on the 18th via USPS priority mail, I have not received yet. Tracking shows that it arrived one town over from me though… so I might have that soon.

The other two items still haven’t shipped yet, and I can’t understand why. Amazon still lists them as “usually ships with in 24 hours, yet it’s 5 days later and they still haven’t shipped.

So much for saving time and reducing stress by shopping online. Now I hover over the package tracking buttons, bang my fist on my desk and swear all day. My productivity is shot because I’m consumed by this frustration. Sure, if I went to the mall, I’d deal with crowds and wait in lines, but at least there is Christmas cheer there.

Order Date: December 17, 2005
Order #: XXX
Recipient: Mark Sicignano
The following items will arrive after December 24, 2005.
Items shipped on December 18, 2005:
Delivery estimate: December 22, 2005 - December 27, 2005
1 package via UPS 3 Day Select with tracking number XXXXXXXXXXXXX

• 1 of: a paperback book
• 1 of: Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble - Live at Montreux 1982 & 1985

Apparently, I am not alone.