Online shopping is a great thing isn't it? I find something almost magical about ordering and paying for something online and then having it turn up in the post. Sites such as Amazon as well as the online auction sites though can be dangerously addictive and you do have to have some self-discipline because it's all so easy. Amazon for example is forever tempting you with recommendations based on things you've already bought from them, and once you've got an account set up it is very quick and easy to order from them. The ease of use of the site is very important when doing shopping online. Some sites will let you purchase without having to create an account (which makes life a lot easier if you're unlikely to use it again) while others insist on you creating an account even for minor one-off purchases. Also I have found some sites (especially American ones) won't ship to New Zealand, as though we aren't part of the known world, too far away and too small to be worth it. Still, there's usually someone out there who will sell you what you want and ship it to you. But do we really do our shopping on the internet? It reminds me of a radio programme I heard by British comedian Mark Steel about Leonardo da Vinci. He was talking about the so-called marvels of modern technology, with people saying 'we can do our shopping on the internet now!'. His response was no, you contact the shop via the internet and then they send round a bloke in a van - just like the 1850s when the grocer would send a lad on a bike, except there was less chance then of him saying ' sorry, I can't fill your order, my notebook's crashed'.

This has turned into a bit of a rave but then I am Shopping Woman aren't I, and in my travels I've learnt a bit about shopping online!