sample sales: I am writing an article in my school's newspaper about spending habits. What do you think so far? It is 8:30 on a Saturday night. You are getting ready for the crucial third date with your roommate鈥檚 cute cousin from Brooklyn. What should you wear? You know you bought a new pair of Valentino pumps at the sample sale last Thursday, and they would look amazing with that one shoulder dress you bought with the money you were supposed to be saving for the new blender. Oh well, date night is more important. As you rummage through the closet, you find the shoes. Wait, those aren鈥檛 the shoes; yours didn鈥檛 have that little scratch on the toe, and the heel didn鈥檛 look as damaged when you originally purchased it. Oh, there is the receipt sitting next to the box it came in. You sigh and place the shoes back in the box. Great, you think, I spent three hundred dollars for that? Every day we make purchases like these without even realizing it. You go shopping knowing that you are going to spend your gift card on the coat you have been eyeing for weeks. But as you walk through the stores doors and see all the fabulous merchandise surrounding you, you now see ten other things you want just as bad. Without giving it a second thought, you grab whatever you can get your hands one and head for the checkout. A mere shopping trip has turned into you spending half of your month鈥檚 salary. Well, you could always give up your heating.|||Wow, that's vapid. What exactly is your target audience? WASPs? JAPs? I'm feeling queasy now.