I admit it: I'm a late shopper

I'm toying with a radical idea.

For the first time in my adult life, I'm thinking of attempting to complete my Christmas shopping early this year.

I'm talking way early. I am actually considering braving the day-after-Thanksgiving crowds on Friday and muscling my way to some bargains. (I know my column picture doesn't look too intimidating, but I'll survive. I've been working out.)

This may not sound radical, but it's quite a departure from my holiday spending tradition.

My wife handles pretty much all of our Christmas shopping, but even the small amount of slogging from store to store that I do is agony for me.

I hate trying to figure out how much my wife is going to spend on me so I can match it and not look like a cheapskate on Christmas morning.

I hate elbowing my way through malls teeming with shoppers.

I hate it when I realize I could have saved myself time and trouble if I had planned in advance and ordered something from a catalog. Every year, my wife clearly marks with dark circles the items she wants.

Inevitably, my shopping dread leads to procrastination. And procrastination means I end up in the mall on the last Saturday before Christmas, trying to find items that are probably sold out or available only in the wrong size or color.

But apparently I am not in great company when it comes to procrastination.

The National Retail Federation says 40 percent of holiday shoppers started their own personal drudgery before or during October. Then again, almost 65 percent of respondents to the survey said they had done only 10 percent of their holiday buying as of last week.

According to the American Express Retail Index, the number of early shoppers for this holiday season — defined as those who started buying right after last year's season ended — nearly doubled this year to hit almost 11 percent. American Express also said 40 percent began holiday shopping some time between January and the end of October.

Further, 31 percent will shop in November, including 10 percent on Thanksgiving weekend. Just 28 percent will wait until December to start their shopping.

The International Mass Retail Association also did a survey, and it shows that 30 percent of holiday shoppers plan to finish by the end of November.