I've been buying my dad Father's Day gifts for years, but never before have I made this dumb shopping mistake.

What is it about online shopping that makes us lose common sense?

If I had been shopping in a brick-and-mortar store I would have been much more aware of the size of the gifts, and I would have quickly realized that buying all of them would have required a huge box and probably cost a fortune to ship to my dad in Nebraska.

When I'm shopping online I lose my marbles.  Once I find a good deal on one item and realize it's connected to others as a set, I'm buying everything that coordinates   And the next thing I know I've got two huge tiered galvanized serving platters with flags on them, outdoor stars-and-stripes stemless wine glasses, and more serving platters with fireworks all over.  Plus I ordered my dad's favorite John Henry dry rub seasoning that he uses when he grills chicken and ribs.  He loves to his yard and his smoker, and he's getting plenty of barbecuing accessories for Father's Day.  If I can find a box big enough to hold it all without killing the delivery guy, that is.

I know you're about to ask why I didn't just ship all of this stuff directly from the store's website to Pop in Nebraska instead of sending it to myself.  Well, that would have been too easy.  The store divided the order into three shipments because stores are crazy like that, plus I had some of my own items in the order and there were coupons attached.  And the dry rub came from a separate store.  There was too much to streamline.

If your dad lives right here in the Treasure Valley, you are so lucky!  Enjoy lunch with him this Sunday and be glad that you can deliver the gift bag to him personally.  Next time, gift cards!

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