A stereotypical scene plays out in many cultures, both in real life and comedy. A wife and husband go shopping in a mall, a bazaar, or a big retail store. The wife wants to touch and examine every item on display. The husband just wants to grab something, pay for it, and go home.

Some of us like shopping much more than others do. Fortunately, online shopping is an individual action that can occur literally at any time, day or night. As long as there are two or more Internet-connected computers under a roof, the shopping styles of all the people sharing that household may coexist.

Buying and selling on the Internet will bring you into contact with people in places you never knew existed. Most of the contacts will be brief and pleasant, and you may never hear from them again. Yet, you may rediscover an interest in geography and in the history of places as an offshoot of creating mailing labels for your packages.

Sometimes, you will find a favorite seller. Sometimes, a buyer starts counting your auctions as one of their favorite stops. From these encounters, long-term online friendships can develop. Romances and marriages have evolved, as well, from human connections at online auction sites.

The Internet and the World Wide Web may be shrinking the planet, but they are also helping you connect with a much wider world of people, places, pasts, cultures — and things worth having and selling.