The List

Every year the same thing happened.

At the beginning of November she made up her mind that this time,

for once, she would get her Christmas shopping done early.

She went as far as writing out a list - and there,

for several weeks, the matter rested.

At intervals she tried to pretend that Christmas Day 
fell on the 5th of December,

or, alternatively, that all her friends

and relations lived in South Africa

and that she had to catch an early mail;

but it was no use.

The feeling of temporal urgency cannot be artificially  reproduced,

any more than the feeling of financial distress...

Mrs Miniver knew perfectly well that Christmas 
was not until the 25th December,

and that all the people on her list lived in England.

From Mrs Miniver by Jan Struther

I remember when a Christmas list looked like this:

 bath salts

 handkerchiefs

pipe cleaners

 Black Magic chocolates

Princess Annual

notelets

rubber

*felt comb case*

*knit scarf*

 talcum powder

Everything could be bought on one exciting 

 dark, wet, shopping expedition

to Boots, W.H. Smith and Woolworth's 

and nothing had to be posted anywhere,

it just had to be well hidden in your bedroom,

(moved and hidden again,)

ready for wrapping on Christmas Eve.

How late do you leave it?