Last-minute shoppers try to get in, get out, go home

Monday, less than 48 hours before the gifts come unwrapped, Westfield Shoppingtown West Park and the streets around it were packed with area residents rushing to cross the remaining names off their shopping lists.

Forget holiday cheer and goodwill toward men -- last-minute shoppers were focused on getting in, getting out and going home.

Unfortunately, as Cindy Willis of Perryville, Mo., found out, it rarely works that way. Hundreds of other people are trying to do the same thing, and by waiting until the last minute, many stores are low on inventory.

"I've got four people left to buy for," Willis said, glancing down at her wristwatch. "It's so busy, and the stores are out of almost everything I was supposed to buy."

Willis said she normally has her holiday shopping done weeks in advance, but working long hours has prevented her from doing so this year.

Wendy Blakenship and Kasi Thompson, both of Jackson, said they've been away at college and haven't had a chance to Christmas shop until now.

"We're college students, so we're poor, but we just keep buying," said Blakenship.

Some last-minute shoppers , like Rebecca Seabaugh of Jackson, make no excuses for their delay in purchasing gifts.

"I simply put it off. It's typical, I'm always a procrastinator," said Seabaugh.

cclark@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 128