retail therapy doesnt work for you, but home improvement therapy does...... you are a strange bird.
The thing is, when I improve my home, it is usually with the smallest possible financial investment (without sacrificing quality) plus the sweat of my brow (and a lot of help from my dad.) And that improves the lives of my spouse and children, so it's justifiable.
I do like to shop, I guess, as long as it's not for myself. I love nothing more than going out and blowing $500 on toys for my kids (even though they've got tons of stuff and we're running out of places to put it). I just don't like buying things for myself.
Yeah, like I said, deep-seated psychological damage. You guys should see my birthday wish list; it contains a can opener, some cutting boards, and a gift card to Home Depot. It's kind of pathetic, but I don't know what else to put on it -- there's nothing I want that I could reasonably expect other people to purchase for me. (I'm not being Beefy; most of the stuff I really could use is in the $500 - $3000 range. Who spends that much on an adult's birthday?)