How much would it cost to buy every single item in the song "The 12 Days of Christmas"? Let's put it this way, if you can afford a $4.2 million solid gold Christmas tree then these items shouldn't be a problem. On the other hand, if you're just an average Joe, the "12 Days" shopping list might seriously damage your bank account. And to make matters worse, the price of all these items keeps going up year after year! Makes you wish that the song writer stopped after just two or three days of Christmas. A Pittsburgh based hedge fund called PNC Wealth Management has put together the following estimated costs for each of the 12 Items.
- 12 Drummers Drumming – $2,775
- 11 Pipers Piping – $2,562
- 10 Lords-a-Leaping – $4,766
- 9 Ladies Dancing – $6,294
- 8 Maids-a-Milking – $58
- 7 Swans-a-Swimming – $7000
- 6 Geese-a-Laying – $210
- 5 Gold Rings – $750
- 4 Colling Birds – $520
- 3 French Hens – $165
- 2 Turtle Doves – $125
- And a Partridge in a Pear Tree – $205
Total cost: $25,430. Not bad right? Well there's one problem. If you follow the song's precise instructions, you are technically supposed to buy items consecutively on each of the 12 days. For example, on the third day of Christmas you are actually supposed to buy 10 Lords-a-Leaping, 11 Pipers Piping AND 12 Drummers Drumming. On the 12th day of Christmas you are buying all 364 items at once. If you follow these rules, the real price of the 12 Days of Christmas rises to $107,300!
The 2012 price of the 12 Days of Christmas is the highest in recorded history. What costs $107,300 this year cost just $55,000 a decade ago. That means the price of these items has increased nearly 100% since 2002. Are Turtle Doves going extinct or something? So what do you think, are you gonna go out and buy your true love every item from the 12 Days of Christmas? Personally I'd rather get the cash and maybe a steak dinner prepared by this girl:
What are you hoping to get for Christmas this year?
