Amazon’s theory of Christmas is pretty much the opposite of Grist’s: The more stuff people buy, the happier they are. But it is pretty fascinating to see, via Quartz, what America buys en masse in its annual fit of consumerism: cheesy jewelry (proving we still have bad taste), fancy ice molds (proving the cocktail craze has gone mainstream), art sets (proving we want our kids to be creative, even if art classes are being cut), and FitBits (proving that we don’t move enough and sleep terribly).
And we’re actually pretty encouraged by Amazon’s most popular grocery item this year: the “Miracle-Gro AeroGarden kit,” which lets people grow fresh herbs like basil, cilantro, chives, and dill in their kitchen year-round. This says two things to us: People want to cook, and they want to use fresh food. Which means that, maybe, we’re winning just a little bit of ground against processed crap. Also, people bought more of these garden kits this year than K-cup coffee makers, which are an abomination of both waste and drinkable coffee. Progress!
