With time running out shoppers converged on the Logan Valley Mall and other local stores Sunday to try and find the perfect last minute Christmas gift.
"We are here for last minute things. With five kids to buy for, I am missing some things. You have to even out the piles to be fair. If there is a dandy bargain, it doesn't matter what it is. I like shopping," said Stephanie Bumbarger, Olanta, while enjoying a massage chair at the mall.
"I am doing last minute shopping. I am a procrastinator. It would be silly to lie about it. This year I waited until the last minute for a lot of stuff. I am just about done," said Wendy Pfahler, Altoona.
Pfahler isn't the only procrastinator.
"I haven't even started yet. I have a daughter and three sons. This is the first trip to a store we have taken. We are professional procrastinators. We will have this done today. We wait until the last minute for everything," said Dana Shuta, Duncansville, who was shopping with her husband, Joe.
Proscrastinating can have its advantages.
"I take my grandchildren shopping every year. We always wait until the last minute. That gives their mother and my wife a chance to get stuff wrapped and gives me time with the kids," said Larry Schuckers, Reynoldsville.
Roger Hoagland of Bedford was shopping for his grandchildren.
"I am not done yet. I hope I get it done tonight. I've been too busy working," Hoagland said.
Edna Maines of Allport relaxed on a mall bench while her four granddaughters - three age 13 and one age 11 - did their shopping.
"I don't shop. I give them the money and they buy for themselves," Maines said.
Not everyone at the mall was shopping.
"I am here just to look at things and see what is on sale. We like to be with the crowd. We don't like to sit at home too much," said Zilla Wagner, Huntingdon.
"I am here with my brother and sister-in-law. I like to people watch. That is what I enjoy. I am done. I made most of my stuff this year," said Tonya Guzman, Mount Union.
Bob Johnson of Altoona said he was the chauffeur for his wife.
"I am not shopping. I have it easy. I only have to shop for my wife. She does the other shopping and I pay for it," Johnson said.
Mirror Staff Writer Walt Frank is at 946-7467.
