*Oh Mr Postman, give me a sign!*

The Holiday season this year has been highly disrupted with slushy snow, "arctic" temperatures and angry travellers. This year, I have decided to stay in London for Christmas and New Year's eve, to prepare for the lovely January exams. But for Christmas I decided to take a day off and join my best friend's house.

The Christmas preparation is actually going well, we have decided upon the way we wanted the turkey to be cooked, the Yorkshire puddings, the vegetables and other sides (and of course the millions of well-hidden snacks!). The Christmas tree is beautifully up in the corner of the room, with pretty shiny and colourful decorations and the lights are on almost every night (energy saving!!). Our Disney DVDs are all lined up for Christmas morning, as well as other classic Christmas movies (Miracle on 34th Street, It's a wonderful life, Jack Frost, etc.) Everything is READY!

Buuuuut wait a minute. Something is missing, right? Something that most of us would pretend to be "secondary" to Christmas, but really can't go without at Christmas. Where. are. the. presents?
This year, it seems like everyone around me decided to shop online. In appearance, it seemed more convenient: I simply refuse to fight my way through  the hassle of Christmas shopping for a pair of gloves.

Shopping online, removes all the undesirable "store effects": rapid stock depletion, huge crowds on Oxford Circus, longest queues in the world and irritated staff. For instance, in the case of Amazon, the products are stored in a massive warehouse, or are sold by individual sellers across the world and the only interaction between the seller and buyer is virtual, completed with a succinct online payment and rapid shipment of the products.
The most convenient part of this whole process, is that Mr Postman delivers it all to your doorsteps. However, this year, Mr Weatherman and Mr Postman are in a mood with each other. Planes are not taking off, trains are stuck, cars are not moving. What is this madness?

The sheer disorganisation caused by heavy snowfalls in Europe caused Supermarkets to fully stop online food shopping 2 weeks before Christmas. Many online stores - like ASOS who promised "next day deliveries" - are still facing heavy transport disruptions. They are helpless, and our anger is not groundless: evidently these events will be reflected in plummeting customer satisfaction rates. So, really, who should be blamed? Should fingers be pointed at anybody?
In the U.S, UPS forecast December 22nd to be their busiest day of the year, with 24 million parcels promised to be delivered across the world (Source: Wall Street Journal). Christmas temps and volunteers have been hired during the busiest time of the year, between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and 37,000 people were hired. UPS is one of the very few companies who would go out of their ways to deliver: "best services and lower rates". The UK's Royal Mail has a LOT to learn from private mail and package delivery companies, but also from past experiences; fair enough, we have not had this much snow in over so many years. Still, planning with contingencies, especially for a Holiday season that is always expected to be busy can only be beneficial.
Is the blame only on these companies we always rely on? Not really, maybe we should plan ahead when shopping online for our loved ones. However, in a time when airports have been turned into camping grounds and people are stranded thousands of miles away from home, the spirit of Christmas feels even more jeopardised.
Here's hoping that everyone gets home safe and warm; Christmas is nothing without the ones you love.

Image: ShopsLand.org