Consumerism and the Struggle of First World Economies

As a consumer I  believe we all have come to expect certain things. The power of the marketplace has switched from the business to the consumer. Any business living in the past will not last very long under this new system thanks to demands from consumers such as transparent business practices, ethical sourcing, and a steady supply of the things we expect each business to provide. ESPECIALLY when it comes to big business. Thanks to the power Yelp.com, TripAdvisor.com, consumer reports and a plethora of online review sites give us, we are now the ones to say whether a business is meeting/succeeding/or falling short of our expectations.

Yeah so there are a lot of small business' out there that can still get away with old business practices of the twentieth century but really, everyone should be shifting to the new role of finding out consumers wants and needs and how to best meet those wants and needs. Which brings me to a funny story...

Here I am, a consumer, 22 years of age looking for an inexpensive pair of sneakers to wear. I know that shoes tend to be pricey but regardless of price the shoes will be trashed within 1 year so I set my budget to $30 and head to the local mall which has over 41 stores that sell clothing, shoes, and more. Out of the 41, about 7 sell shoes exclusively. Now I know I won't be walking away with a pair of Chuck Taylor's or Nike's or even a pair of Sketchers. I just want a pair of flats at a reasonable price. So I head to H&M first seeing that they don't sell mainstream name brand shoes. I love the styles they have to offer but the largest they go is a 10.5 (I'm a 12, which I consider on the outskirts of standard). No biggie, there is still many stores to visit and the night is young. So I head to Aeropostale; they are having a sale so this should be great. No men's shoes. Next, Old Navy. No men's shoes. Tilly's? No men's shoes under $60. American Eagle? No men's shoes. You get the picture. So I give up on general clothing stores and head to the shoe stores. First Line, Off Broadway Shoes, Robert Wagne Footware, Shoe Palace, and basically everywhere else except the Crocs store.

I got smart and gave up looking and just asked as soon as I entered a store if they were selling men's shoes and if they had a pair of affordable sneakers. Nothing that I consider to be difficult to find considering I'm really not picky just have a budget to follow and money in my wallet ready to throw at the first person who can offer me a pair of clothe and rubber thingy's to put on my feet (maybe some thread too would be nice but not necessary if they slip on).

So I went through an entire mall looking for something that I guess doesn't exist. I would prefer not to buy online because I would like to try them on before buying. But I guess Wal-Mart gets my money yet again because they have exactly what I'm looking for... Is this the only business that can satisfy a want and need of basic footwear? Also, when did buying a pair of shoes cost over $100 if they aren't cheap and the cheap ones cost more than $50? This seems more frustrating to me then it needs to be.

To wrap things up, I think I could have spent my time doing something better like working, studying or relaxing to get ready to work and/or study. In a society advanced enough to have more than the basic needs (i.e. shelter, clean water and food) I'd consider this a tragedy. But this will only speak of the times we are living in rather than the blessings that we American's so often take for granted.

A Day in the Life of a Mihaylo Business Student at the Notorious California State University in Fullerton

Its starts in the dark

First creep of light comes through the bedroom window. You peek your eyes open to see that the alarm didn't go off but that's okay.

"I have over 3 hours before class starts", you say.

But wait, over 3 hours doesn't mean you have all the time in the world. 

No. 

3 hours means you only have 2 hours and 45 minutes remaining to look for parking. Oh the pain begins. You rush out of bed and grab the coffee (thank God you made it the night before). Forget breakfast; actually forget the coffee, with any luck you can find parking with just enough time to wait another 20 minutes for coffee at the local Starbucks (students need their caffeine you know). 

It's now 7:20 AM and the sun is now bright. 

It continues in the dark

Now you're telling yourself a bunch of stuff

"I'm just another college student looking for parking, it's OKAY, we are all heading the same place trying to get the same thing".

But then a 'kind-hearted' gentleman with his SUV of a Lincoln decides he is driving the smallest little car in the road and fits between you and another car with no signal, no warning, and not a care in the world. Wow, you know if he could fit there I could fit anywhere. With his guts I could run for an election but not to become president just to eat up the other candidate and not share any of my own policies or opinions. Now you just dated yourself, great. 

"I just need one spot, that's all". 

You're driving down the road now the next big decision of the day; Which structure are you going to choose? Don't choose wrongly because by the time you get to the next structure to look for parking it will already be full. The time is 7:40 AM and you feel like you have the guts of that driver from earlier. Let's head for Eastside parking structure. 

As if

Nice one Copernicus. 

To Narnia!

So maybe this is more of an inside joke but lots A and G I've always called Narnia because of the hardship and difficulty of getting to and from Narnia (a popular fiction by C.S. Lewis). So if you have a Fitbit you'll love Narnia because getting 10,000 steps seems like a walk in the park (Ha!). So you drive to Narnia because you gave up on the Nutwood structure along with your hopes of getting a college degree in a timely manner. You think for a second of how much you paid for a parking permit and the fact that you basically gave up Disneyland for a year to spend the equivalent amount of time looking for parking (I go to Disneyland a lot). But its best not to think about that... Just get to campus on time. 

On the off chance

So on the off chance you did find parking in the Eastside structure the story would look different. You work park, go inside of this beautiful building and wait the remaining 2 hours and 15 minutes for class to start. You'd probably procrastinate and write a blog or something.  

But more likely than not

You double park in Narnia and hand your keys over to a friendly attendant who you hope has a driving license. You wish you didn't have to hand your key over not because this person isn't nice but because when you get back here in 11 hours you want to just go home and now have to wait for your keys. 

You get your 10,000 steps in, get to the local Starbucks and look at this! The line is only out the door! This is actually good news because now its only going to be a 15 minute wait for coffee. You want to buy a breakfast sandwich 'cuz you're hungry too but also you're a college student and financial aid is for the lucky. So stick with coffee. You can have some water from the drinking fountain if you're hungry later. Or go to the local shop and get some foo... oh wait, later you're still broke. 

Then your classes begin

Go to class, takes some notes, get a B, C is okay too sometimes, and 8-11 hours later... go home. 

Good thing you only have 1 semester left (maybe two 'cuz you might not get the classes you need next semester; oh wait, definitely two semesters because you won't get the classes you need next semester). 

Some Stats:

Average wait time for parking: 25-35 minutes

Shortest wait time: 30 seconds (rare)

Longest wait time: 50 minutes 

Average distance drove looking for parking: 1.5-2.5miles 

In one semester I calculated that I spent over 20 hours looking for parking alone. The current price of a CSUF parking permit is $240

Perhaps I should just ride a bike... TITAN STRONG!!!