This particular list was found around the holidays last year. It was folded up and next to the customer service desk at Target, and well, when I saw it I just had to snatch it up without anyone noticing. What was this person doing at the customer service desk? Well, let’s let the list decide.
The first three-quarters of this list is for presents. Six names don’t have anything listed next to them, while four of them do. Bryson is getting a puzzle and a movie. Sydney is getting a Monster High doll and a DS game. Mom is getting a Nook, cute flat boots (or shoes) and a spa. Dad is getting a tiller, white shoes (size 8 ½) and a tie (brown or red). Seems like a rather ordinary Christmas list, doesn’t it? However, what strikes me is that next to every name, on the extreme left hand side, is a number ranging from 30 to 150 which I can only assume is how much this person is going to spend on the other person. Adding this all up, we have roughly $690 in presents already, which doesn’t include Zendra who has no presents or number beside her name.
Also interesting is what used to be there. Bryson is no longer getting Connect Four (Though since he has $150 coming his way, you think he could get that too) and Mom has something called “lace front” crossed out which might be either a shirt or a… Let’s hope it’s a shirt. Next to Dad something is crossed out that I can’t quite make out and the number 10 is crossed out because obviously this person thought that their dad’s feet were bigger than what they really are.
The bottom fourth of this list are ingredients based on food, which would constitute the family dinner. Marked off in a box on the right hand side are names of who the probable guests are for said dinner, to give the author an idea of how many to cook for. Several items are not checked out for the food, so I hope that they did end up getting them. I’d hate to think that my taking this list (or the owner leaving it behind) would deprive someone of their Christmas brownies.
At the top of this entire this on the right hand side is circled “17th”. This would be the date for the big feast and probably also when they are exchanging gifts (or most of the gifts any way, maybe a smaller family get together on Christmas Day)
While most of this is pretty standard stuff, the one distinguishing characteristic of it all is that the Dad has a shoe size of 8 ½, making him a somewhat small man. I almost want to say the author is Asian because of that, but it seems doubtful with all other clues. Everything about this- with the names being DeWayne and Dre, right down to the cornbread- screams overworked middle aged African American mother. Her parents are getting good gifts for being in their later years, while the rest of the names are probably her kids, siblings and their kids.
The fact that this list was mistakenly left behind at Target also shows me that whoever wrote it was quite busy, but who could blame them since it was getting closer and closer to December 17th every day when I found this. And if you have any doubts about this woman being anything other than African American, just look up the name DeWayne. Asian people aren’t named DeWayne.
I don’t have the slightest clue what this woman was doing at customer service. Gift cards can be obtained at the registers, Target doesn’t have layaway (Not that this woman would need it) and it seems odd for her to being doing like a raincheck, return, exchange, etc. The only out of the ballpark possibility is that maybe she bought her dad a size 10 and needed to exchange them for 8 ½. Otherwise, I’m going to have to take the easy way out and assume she was at customer service for the same reason why 99% of shoppers visit customer service at Target. Something she purchased said it was on sale for less than what it rang up as at the register. This is one of Target’s biggest flaws in their systems and probably makes them millions of dollars every year. Those thirty cents to three dollars really do add up over time and in bulk.
Merry Christmas, anonymous shopper!
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