Recent reports on the rise of online spending are making headlines. This isn't a surprising trend. Online shopping allows you to browse, research, and price-compare without putting a mile on your car.

For me, e-commerce takes the "shopping" out of shopping. Shopping for me means wandering through aisles with my Starbucks green tea lemonade, flipping through racks, asking a sales associate if this Bluetooth headset will make me sound underwater or if this sweater really is machine washable. It's about half-consciously listening to the store's carefully selected soundtrack and planning for lunch with a friend after. I am a sucker for every marketing gimmick a corporation wants to throw my way. In high school I ate up those ripped and shredded jeans like they were god's gift to man.

Like many people out there, this full-bodied experience is just no longer within my budget. Buying is now much more targeted and bargain-based, which is the draw of the internet. But there is something about a Paypal transaction that is just not the same as a stroll through South Coast Plaza. Not only is there a lack of instant gratification ("7-10 business days?! You're located in Riverside!"), but all that excess ambiance and planning is cut out. A transaction becomes exactly that. Show me similar items with a $15 price difference on the second floor of Nordstrom, and I'll take whichever I like best. Show me the same items online- one with a big red slash down the middle of its price- and I'll take the cheaper one.

You also eliminate the social aspect. There's no trendy friend telling you what makes you look skinny. This is probably the thinking behind these