It may have been the rain, the economy or that people don’t procrastinate as much as you’d think, but the streets of downtown Vancouver were relatively quiet yesterday given that it was the Sunday before Christmas.
Despite the not-so-busy malls and streets, some last-minute shoppers were out trying to get through their shopping lists.
Jessica Hurtubise was kept busy with exams at the University of Victoria and didn’t find time to shop until yesterday.
“Usually by the time you’re doing last-minute shopping, everything you want is sold out,” she said.
Last year, her dad wanted earmuffs with a radio in them, but Hurtubise took so long that they were sold out and she had to settle for an MP3 player.
“He opened it and asked, ‘Did you keep the receipt?’ and took it back and bought the earmuffs,” she said.
Tasha Lorenzen, 20, had set aside the day to shop for her entire family.
“I was (busy) studying for exams and working,” she said.
Lorenzen said she always shops last-minute, which usually comes at a price.
“I detest having to (snake) my way around a lot of people and wait in lines,” she said.
