Choices

Am I wrong? Are there too many choices of just about everything these days? Rather than being helpful, I find the vast number of selections to be very confusing.

For instance,
Toothpaste: In the toothpaste aisle there are so many choices that it’s mindboggling. How does one know if you should to buy a tube of Colgate Cavity Protection or Colgate Total Whitening? Maybe Colgate Whitening with Stain lifters would be better? Or a completely different brand, Crest 3D White, Crest Pro Active Defense, Crest Complete or Crest Herbal Mint? How about trying Sensodyne Full Protection or Sensodyne Deep Clean? How can one decide?

Deodorants: The choices are roll-ons, powders and sprays. They come in all sizes and varieties. There are numerous brands all vying for the purchaser’s attention. Dry Idea unscented roll-on, Speed Stick Irish Spring Antiperspirant, Old Spice Extra Fresh or Old Spice Deep Sea with ocean elements? Then there’s Dove, New Degree, Secret and Right Guard to consider.

Shampoos: To get your hair squeaky clean, you can select from a plethora of brands, Clairol, Suave, Pantene, Dove and Tressemme products, to name only a few.

Sunscreens: Here the choices are endless. Not only do you need to select a brand to buy, but then you have to pick the strength of the protection which range from 15 to 100+. You can choose between Banana Boat, Neutrogena, Hawaiian Tropic and many, many others. These sunscreens come in lotions and sprays also. There are also brands made specifically for children.

Cereals: Here the aisle runs almost the full length of my grocery store and from top to bottom. Let’s look at just two brands…Special K and Cheerios. In the Special K section, one can find Special K Probiotics, Protein, Cinnamon & Pecan, Red Berries, Original, Vanilla & Almond, Fruit & Yogurt and Chocolate Delight. In the Cheerios section, you’ll find the regular flavor, Multi Grain, Oat Crunch, Honey & Nut and Very Berry boxes.

How about something as simple as buying a quart of milk? In the dairy case you will have the choice of Oat milk, Soymilk, Almond milk, Lactaid milk, DHA Omega -3 milk, or Whole, Fat free and 2% milk. Then there’s chocolate milk, of course. Anyway, do you see my point? Variety is nice, but are so many choices really necessary? I think definitely not. There are too many selections, and they intimidate and confuse me.

Last week I sent my husband to the drug store with a short list of things to buy for us. Shampoo, deodorant, and toothpaste. Do you know how many times he called me from there as he stood in front of the shelves, aghast at the selection? He had no idea what to buy, so he came home with a large bag of Tootsie Rolls and some cheap cologne. I should have been annoyed, but I wasn’t as I completely understood his frustration.

Remember the days when you went to order an ice cream cone. “I’ll have chocolate, please.” The only question you were asked then was “Do you want it in a cone or a dish?” No more, now you have to be very specific and order sugar free, low fat, no fat, or carb free etc. Having that many options take all the pleasure out of the experience.

Life is difficult enough. Can’t we save the choices we have to make for the really important ones, like where to live, what job to take or should our children attend a certain school? Speaking for myself, I don’t want to waste another minute pondering the pros and cons of deodorants or weighing the value of one toothpaste over another. Life is too short.

Until my next inspiration…ciao.