The ‘shopping mall’ fits the American archetype: one-stop shopping for anything imaginable, huge ornate spaces designed for leisure/time-wasting, and food courts that will fatten your belly as your wallet thins -- overall, a giant excuse to indulge in consumerism. They’re big and glitzy and they’re everywhere in the US.

But for all the American-ness of the shopping mall, it seems that many of the world’s biggest centers of consumerism are outside of our borders...

#8 – SM Megamall

Mandaluyong City, Philippines

Open since 1991, the SM Megamall in the Philippines boasts 3.6 million square feet in gross leasable area.  Besides shopping, visitors can enjoy activities like bowling, ice skating, movie-going at a 12-cinema theater, and several arcades.  The Manila clinic also sees patients here and several hair and nail salons operate within the mall.

#7 – West Edmonton Mall

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Open to the public since 1981, the West Edmonton Mall is the second biggest mall in North America but only #7 in the world.  The 3.8 million square feet of leasable area are filled with over 800 stores.  It also contains a water park, skating rink, casino, and amusement park rides.

Reinventing books as movies is a long-standing Hollywood tradition.  From the classic reinventions like this year’s Alice in Wonderland to the chick-lit-turned-chick-flick­ powerhouses from Nicholas Sparks, the fascination with works of literature coming to life on the big screen is staying strong.

This year, Twilight fans were treated to the movie version of Eclipse; women came out in droves to see Julia Roberts in Eat, Pray, Love; and Harry Potter fans are already buying tickets for the first installment of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows this holiday season.  But I discovered a handful of other great books taking their own turns in the cinematic spotlight, due out this fall. 

The American, releasing in theaters on September 1, 2010

Starring George Clooney

Based on the book A Very Private Gentleman by Martin Booth

Get the special edition “The American” at Amazon for $10.08!

These days, with an infant at home, I’m not traveling much.  Still, it’s nice to know that when I do need to book that rare get-away, Expedia is a great place to get big deals on travel.  I recently booked flights for a group traveling to and from a conference at my workplace, and my search for deals brought me to Expedia’s site.

As with many other travel sites, I had the option to book the flight, hotel, and car rental (or any combination therein) together for savings.  According to Expedia, booking the flight and hotel together can save you up to $450.  Unlike other sites, you can also book a Cruise or Activities.  Even though I didn’t need to book either of those things, I was intrigued…

The Cruise option lets you choose from top destinations and cruise lines to find a cruise you’ll love.  Plus, it will calculate the flight information from the city you live in to the departing port.  Having booked a cruise before (on my own) I know how difficult it can be to arrange a flight at the exact right time so you don’t miss your cruise ship.  Expedia takes care of that for you, it seems.

Activities are available to book in most major US cities.  I clicked on Boston, just to see what Expedia things are good touristy things to do in these parts. Six Flags, Blue Man Group, Beantown Trolleys, JFK Library tours, Boston Duck tours, and bike rentals were the featured activities, among others.  You could even book a trip to Plimoth Plantation or a Newport Day Tour.  The prices were reasonable and considering how much of the hassle this takes out of the vacation activity process, I can definitely see the value in such services. 

Shop Gap, Old Navy or Banana Republic Online today and get 30% off. Offer valid online, some restrictions apply. Gap, Old Navy and Banana Republic Coupon Codes available today only. You can shop across all 3 sites and get $7 flat rate shipping anytime.

Find more apparel coupons at ShopGala.com

My Shopping Experience Buying Furniture At Target.com        mmmmmI’m a big fan of Target and since there’s one nearby our house, I very rarely shop at their online store.  Every once in a while I search a friend’s wedding or baby registry online, since ordering online is usually easier than trying to find that exact dishtowel on the actual store shelf.

Another occasion to shop at Target.com presented itself to my husband and I when we needed new bedroom furniture.  I know, I know… furniture? Yes, actually.  Target has some very nice furniture (that we can afford) so we went for it and got a brand new, complete bedroom set.  Of course, it was an assemble-it-yourself kind of deal, but we’re handy.  We made it work.

I didn’t want to buy the furniture online. But I’ve noticed that Target stores have so much inventory, it’s hard to track down all the matching pieces you need from only one store location.  I could get the headboard at one store, but the nightstands at a different store, then drive over to a third Target for the lamps… you see where this is going.  The gas mileage alone would have made it pointless.  Not to mention the fact that our tiny Honda just can’t transport all those big boxes.

If you’re looking to start a new home improvement project, you probably head to your local Home Depot store.  That’s where we went for the paint and supplies to makeover our daughter’s nursery, the shelving units I installed in my office, and even the new grilling set my husband needed last summer.  I’d suggest if you’re in the market for new carpeting, tile, or lumber, you stick with the in-store route for purchasing these items.  It’s much easier to make those selections in person.

But for most other things, the Home Depot website is a great resource, and an excellent way to save money.  In fact, at first I was surprised at the variety of items you can purchase from Home Depot.  From playgrounds to plumbing, it’s all there. 

Of course, the first button I clicked on was the “Savings Center.”  How many online retailers have a special page for sales and deals? Right now, Home Depot is offering 25% patio furniture, a buy more/save more bath fixture event, 75% off lighting, lots of free shipping deals on select products in almost every category, a Maytag rebate, $100 off playsets, 50% off Behr paint supplies, and no interest for 12 months on a Home Depot credit card.  That’s just a sampling of everything I found there.  Add those to our Home Depot coupon codes, and shopping for a new washer and drier online might actually be cheaper!

Back-to-school shopping doesn’t have to be limited to pencils, pens, notebooks, and rulers.  How boring!  Instead, consider getting your kids up to speed on some of the latest tech gadgets that are fun (and useful) for the upcoming semester.  Some of these may be more appropriate for high school or college age students, but I’ll leave that choice up to you, Mom and Dad.

Here are my seven favorite back-to-school tech gadgets for the 2010-2011 school year:

Laser Tag Alarm Clock by Island Dogs

Need a better way to get your teenager out of bed?  This inventive gadget requires you to point a laser at the target to silence the alarm.  That takes patience, concentration, and open eyeballs to accomplish – so it sounds like someone will get up for school after they try to do this for five minutes or so.  Problem solved.  Get it at Amazon for $19.99.

G-Tech iPod Backpack

Shopping for back-to-school supplies can run up quite a bill, especially if you have more than one child headed to school this fall.  Backpacks are probably the single most important item you’ll buy for your child this year – they’re practical, necessary for carrying all of that homework back and forth, and they’re also a fashion statement your child will be making all year long.  When my sisters and I were younger, our backpacks were a big deal.  You had to have the right one to fit in.

So how can you appease your child’s fashion sensibility while also buying something durable, usable, and affordable? Choosing from these budget-friendly brands and buying from the right stores can help you rationalize the cost of this much-needed accessory.

JanSport Backpacks

This has always been a favorite brand of mine. JanSport makes fun, funky patterns for their backpacks in bright, eye-catching colors.  Or you can get one in plain black, if that’s your style.  What’s even better is their durability.  The fabric is lightweight but really sturdy.  I’ve even washed a JanSport backpack in the washing machine once, after an unfortunate incident involving paint.  Everyone survived… and I still have that backpack!

There is no better way to know a man than to give to or take away something he desperately wants…

Mass shopping can be like mass religion… what starts as a joyful experience can many times spiral into cold-hearted brutality showing the unfortunate soiled underbelly of mankind.  Sometimes it’s easy to forget that we are, at our core, irrational animals.  So the next time you consider getting that “hot new item” you just got to have, make sure you don’t become one of the headlines below.

Check out the following 16 Unbelievable Shopping Disasters and make it a point to be “nicer” to your fellow man this upcoming holiday season. The life you save may well be your own!

1. Wal-Mart Crowd Fights Over XBox 360s [Video]

Let’s not kid ourselves here; the Black Friday discounts for the Xbox 360 were a big deal.  Anybody that doesn’t condone this kind of reckless abandon… where grown men willingly swindle soprano-voiced pipsqueaks… obviously hasn’t played HALO 3 before.

2. Tempers Flare Outside A Florida Mall [Video]

How do you define your wedding dress? It’s breathtaking. It’s your fairy tale. It’s expensive.

It’s way too big for your closet. 

With a move pending, and my little one’s belongings now cluttering all storage space, I needed to find somewhere to put that beautiful ball gown I wore at my wedding.  It was gorgeous and does not deserve to sit in an opaque garment bag at the back of my closet, but that’s where it’s been for my first- and second-year anniversaries.  I needed an alternative, more compact solution.

Of course, some people don’t even keep their wedding dresses when the big day is over.  I did some research on alternative things to do with your dress: