Mar 29, 2009

Discreetionary: panic buying

panic buying

panic buying [PA·nick BUHY·ing] noun 1. A behavior done by a person in places for socializing near their closing times, characterized by a lowering of that person’s standards for interaction. etymology: from the economic concept of panic buying in which the connecting idea is that of a buyer’s perception of shortage or an expectation of reduced market supply.

When I first encountered this term in the PLU context, I immediately understood what it meant. Although the real economic panic buying means that people buy lots of stuff and the PLU version does not at all mean getting lots of guys, both concepts are similar in that there is an expected shortage of supply (i.e., the bar or club is closing soon). This is especially true for guys who haven’t scored yet. You can observe this all the time in bars, clubs, bathhouses, and even in gyms!

Unless you’re a really lucky person, I’m sure you’ve felt the urge to engage in panic buying even if ultimately you retain your pride and decide to remain scoreless instead of lowering your standards. I guess the motivating factor behind panic buying is that there’s an expensive entrance fee to a place and that your goal is to score and you haven’t scored yet. If your goal in going to a venue is different or the entrance is cheap or free, then there would no panic buying at all.

I’ll admit that I’ve done my own share of panic buying. Hehehe. :-) If you want an informative discourse about panic buying, check out the latter half of this conversation between McVie and his friend.

6 comments:

. wrote on March 30, 2009 at 12:43 AM:

Hate it when i do panic buying, it only means I had a bad party night. In my case may opposite yan.

It's the five-minute bingo. Hahaha.

 
TerRENCE wrote on March 30, 2009 at 2:43 PM:

This is just one amusing post. It flashes back some of the scenes particularly happening before my eyes at some point and it’s just for most a bit pathetic. Ok I admit of having the “urge” to engage in panic buying but I’ve never really went that far of actually lowering my standards just to keep count. I understand for a fact that if ones primary-foremost-ultimate (to the highest!) goal is to score for the night (or day perhaps), and in some cases even breaking the bank for it, it gets really frustrating and pushes even the discerning dude to panic buy. For me personally, it’s downright turn-off if I smell even from a distance a desire on the brink of desperation or a smack in the face desperation with the capital “D”.

To Mugen: 5-minute bingo! Hahaha. It pays to wait dba?. You’ll have it when you least expect in and turns out to be more exciting than the ones you’ve exerted effort on. Bingo Bonanza ang ending!

 
Vince (Discreet Manila) wrote on March 31, 2009 at 10:35 PM:

Mugen, yeah I hate it when I panic buy too. You mentioned your 5-minute bingo before. I think I'll have to try that one of these days. Hehehe.

TerRENCE, I hate desperation too, especially when I do it. :-P

 
Anonymous wrote on April 8, 2009 at 11:11 PM:

this is a dilemma. i was a club freak who would stay in clubs until the sun comes up. olive, twilo, etc etc. by then the club would be populated by the REAL party people. the hardcore hedonists. the interesting people.

then when i moved to bars like bed and government, staying until the sun came up means it's "panic buying" time. not being able to break this force of habit, I'd just be there.

On those three instances I tested this out (alone) I'd stay until near closing. i'd get "bought." of course i wasn't interested, but that didn't stop people. Let's see, some guy attempted to rape me in the john, some guy forced himself in my cab when i was going home, some guy started humping me out in the light of dawn.

sayang naman. i'm probably the only guy who enjoys gay clubbing with booze and dancing as the only incentives in it. kaya pala parang ang lulungkot ng tao at that time. lol.

so THAT's why no one wants to stay too long in a (gay) club.

hnh. get drunk. mating call in an hour after arriving, and then get laid. Sorry pero sayang yung effort na pumunta sa club only for this.

i am SO naive. or virginal. Whatever. Maybe I should stick to Embassy.

 
Vince (Discreet Manila) wrote on April 12, 2009 at 11:14 PM:

elassar, I agree that you should stick to Embassy. If your aim is to drink and dance to club music and not to hook-up, why bother going to Bed and the like? (Unless you're going with friends, of course.) At least in Embassy, it's unlikely that guys would make a pass at you (girls maybe, hehehe).

 
Anonymous wrote on April 14, 2009 at 3:33 AM:

OR here's an epiphany. Maybe i'm unconsciously panic... er... selling! :D

Now there's a new point of view. Discreetionary: Panic Selling.

keep writing my man.