Alpha kitty and fancy kept woman Atoosa Rubenstein is too busy to shop for her Christmas presents in the real world: "I've got things to do, places to be, an online fashion series to launch on Friday." Cannot. Wait. In the meantime, though, we can follow Atoosa's clicking from one department store website to another via her 'Creative Consumer' column. The goal here isn't bargain-hunting, she explains: "I'd rather pay double whatever those early-morning shoppers saved to avoid the rush. Yes, it's a luxury even to make a statement like that. But this column is about just that: cyber-shopping the luxury market." Despite this stated cash-burning ethos, though, the 'Toos is not all about frivolity. "For a shopping site to get an Alpha Kitty Meow of Approval ... it really ought to have a charity (or at least a green) component."

Consistency is the hobgoblin of Atoosa's small mind, however: "Chic boxes would be a great add-on to their wonderful offerings," she later says of Amazon.com's packaging. That didn't stop her from buying her husband a Kindle, however. One Kindle has been sold!

But the holiday season isn't just about buying friends and family completely useless luxuries wrapped in gaudy packaging from sites with some sort of "green component." "Drumroll please. ... The U.N. Refugee Agency is where I did 90% of my 'shopping.' As an immigrant, I realize how lucky I am to be in the United States and to be writing a column about 'luxury online shopping.' Giving this as my main gift is a way of showing my gratitude." Showing and showing and showing, yes.