Calendar Conundrum

I am looking at one of those desktop day calendars where you rip off the day once it is done.  This happens to be one of those learn a word a day types.  I can't say this is completely wrong, but I can't say it is completely right either.  I feel so conflicted.

I received the calendar as a stocking stuffer last year.  I appreciate the gift because it does, in fact, seem very suitable.  I am an English teacher, I like learning and I like words.  This last point is evident because I am writing a blog and I do crosswords almost every day.

There are two problems with this calendar, though.  The first is that I really don't look at it every day.  I look at it once a month.  I attribute this to the fact that it sits in the corner of my desk I am least likely to look at, or most likely to ignore.  I cannot, in good conscience, blame the calendar for this.  I could put it in a more conspicuous place on the desk, though no space seems to be offering itself.  The problem is that once the month is gone, am I gone to look through thirty or so words?  Most likely, I will rip off the stack of words until the day in question.  I might glance through them, but will study them?  I have used the word unlikely already, so I will answer that it is improbable.

The other problem is that most of these words are not new to me.  As I said, I am an English teacher who does crosswords.  Yes, I have learned a few (sanguine, for one, which really didn't mean what I thought it did) and I have come across words that I had no idea existed (October 16 was ailurophobia--and now Microsoft's spellchecker is rejecting it).  Will I remember these words?  Does glancing at them mean that I have somehow absorbed them?  Can I learn through osmosis (no, I didn't get that one from the calendar, but there are still two months to go).

Christmas is soon upon us, and perhaps I will get another one of these calendars.  While I cannot say I would reject getting one, I would say the idea of it doesn't thrill me.  As I gather up these papers and prepare them for the recycle box, I wonder if I should give one to the person who gave me this one.  Retaliation--that word was in the calendar.

The Gift Card Season

 

 

While I am by no means so organized that I am shopping for Christmas right now, I am thinking a bit about it.  Perhaps that is because is will only be another day or two before the Christmas decorations rear their pretty heads--I haven't actually been shopping, so it might have already happened.  This blog is not a rant about selling Christmas before Halloween is over, it just has a Christmas theme.

Family traditions are what they are, but lately, I notice that more people give gift cards rather than actual presents.  There are several reasons for this, and they seem sound.

1. It's easier than shopping for something.
2. The people getting the gift have given no hints (subtle or not so subtle) as to what they want.
3. They are likely to return your gift anyway, so this saves the intermediate step.
4. They can get what they want (though if they couldn't give you any hints, it probably means they don't know what they want.)
5. Gift cards are an easy fallback--and for all those guys doing their shopping on the 24th, what a great fallback it is.
6. Gift cards are easily re-gifted.
7. They are easy to wrap.  They often come with their own envelopes.
8. Transporting them is easy.
9. They've become so popular you can even get them at the gas station.
10. People, except young children, do not express disappointment in getting them.

I guess, I just miss the excitement of getting a gift.  Usually when people ask me what I want, I can give them about ten ideas.  I usually keep a list of things that I want, and when people ask me, I email it to them.  I have even gone so far as to point out which stores offer the best deals on that particular item (and yes, it is often Amazon).

I do not know what Christmas has in store for anyone in my family, but I am starting on my list today.  And to make it easy, I will even include some ideas of where I want gift cards from.

The Spirit of Christmas

There does seem to be a kindness in the air.  Though I, and some of you out there, might whine and moan about Christmas and commercialization, and the fact that Christmas displays start way too early, there is something to be said for the spirit of Christmas.

While watching YouTube today, several people (mostly Canadians working in Asia) noted that while the decorations in Asia were good in the stores, they felt an absence of the build up to Christmas.  They mentioned an absence of that Christmas feeling.  It made me think.

While shopping today (not for Christmas things--surprisingly I am done shopping for everyone and everything except for the present I am going to give myself.  That I will leave to boxing day or beyond) I noted many random acts of kindness followed by a "Merry Christmas".  Several people have also commented that complete strangers have paid for their meals at the drive through.

Huge, magnanimous gestures are always good, but I do find that small, personal gestures seem better. Thank you Christmas.  Thank you for rising above the commercialism and bringing out the best in people.

Merry Christmas everyone.

Psy Versus Justin Bieber

I heard that there was a huge competition this week between fans of Psy and Justin Bieber to see whose fans could get the number YouTube views over one billion.  Fans of either of these two performers would log onto YouTube and view the video, thus increasing the number of views.  According to the media, Psy was the first to reach one billion.  Psy was the winner.  I wonder, maybe it is YouTube and its advertisers that were the winners.

I am in favour of competition, and am not bothered by this.  It may not be the most productive use of one's time, but I can hardly condemn it.  I spend my time writing blogs that only a small number of people read (for the time being I hope...) so I can't complain.  Certainly, it is interesting to see how far social media has grown, and how much it can do.

I have enjoyed other campaigns. The one that pushed Betty White back into the spotlight was especially good.  She is a hard working actress and deserved to rewarded for her years of hard work.  Besides, she is actually funny.

I wish I could redirect more of this social revolution to solve the bigger and smaller problems in our world.  I wish we could get more people behind gun control, more people to exercise their right to vote, more people to clean up their neighbourhoods, more people to spread good will, more people to realize that they can make a difference.  I guess I am motivated by Christmas and the positive (though sometimes overly commercial) message it brings.

Funny how this blog entry worked out.

Careful Planning or Last Minute Panic?

 

What's better:  Planning your Christmas shopping and getting it done calmly and efficiently in the months, possibly several, leading up to Christmas or leaving it to the last minute and finishing the shopping in an adrenaline fuelled last minute scramble ending just as the store is closing?

Let us analyze.  Planning your shopping and executing it makes for a worry free Christmas.  It also probably means that you were able to stick to your budget and even if you didn't, you won't be facing a huge post Christmas credit card bill (like most of us).  You'll miss the crowded stores, the panic buying and dealing with salesclerks who've heard the same Christmas carol CD 20 times a day for more than 15 days in a row.  You will also have the ability to gloat whenever your friends, family and colleagues speak of their future shopping trips.  Of course, you don't have to gloat.  You could just smirk inwardly.

If you choose the last minute option you will have compacted the time you spent in the mall to a bare minimum amount.  You will have saved a lot of time to use for other activities (like procrastination) and used a lot of effort over a short time rather than a small effort over a larger period of time.  You will also have received the aforementioned adrenaline rush.  One other thing that must not be overlooked is that you will have spent the Christmas season in a place that was decorated for Christmas, full of people doing stuff with Christmas in mind, and lots of music to remind you that its Christmas.  Outside of church, where else could you find that?

I guess I would really like to be the first person, but am more like the second person.  I know it is more effective to decide what to get each person, then leave the house and go get it.  In a perfect world...... (hopefully you can finish this sentence)

Wrapping Conundrum

Unwrapping is more fun than wrapping.  Okay.  No surprise there.  I am basically stating the obvious that people have known from time immemorial.  I just had to get it off my chest.  I also needed some way to start this blog entry.

It is the Christmas season, and with it comes presents.  This year I was tasked to buy a lot of stocking stuffers.  That was the easy part (I mean, can anyone say dollar store--though, there seem to be fewer and fewer things there that are still one dollar).  I had no problem amassing all the required items, and, if I do say so myself, managed to avoid anything too crappy or too tacky.  The only problem was what to do with the stuff--to wrap, or not to wrap.  Since the actual gift exchange was going to work somewhat differently, I decided to wrap.  I guess I feel that unwrapping is a fundamental part of Christmas.

When I lived in Japan, whenever I bought somebody a gift, I always asked the store to wrap it up.  This was great and it was free.  They did it easily, and it always looked great.  The best part was that it only took one piece of tape (usually a store sticker) to wrap it up.  One piece of tape.  Amazing.

If only I could do that.  Usually I have to fumble around, hoping that I have cut off the correct amount of paper, though I have either cut too much, or too little, or the angle is so askew that nothing will line up.  I usually have presents that look like they were wrapped by a guy wearing oven mitts and dark glasses in a dark room.

Normally, nobody complains, and the unwrapping takes mere seconds so any evidence is long gone.

On an environmental note, one person wrapped their gifts using recycled newspaper.  They looked better than mine, and saved money.  Kind of wish I had thought of that.

Irony (or something like it)

It isn't hard to find irony in life.  I am probably using the definition incorrectly, but I care little.  People call it ironic, so that's good enough for me.  If it has become cliche, too bad.

I started watching the first season of Game of Thrones, and like all good TV shows it has its own tag line--"winter is coming"  Nothing wrong with that.  It's probably good for the show, and good for people watching it.  It would bother me less if they didn't say it every ten seconds. but that's television for you.

The irony is that I just started watching it on Friday night, and I have only gotten through the first four episodes (six more to go). "Winter is coming.  Winter is coming."  Of course it is, and that's why I woke up on Saturday with a yard full of snow.  I guess winter is here. 

I don't recall anyone calling for snow on the weather forecast, and I certainly didn't read about it in the paper (and that includes the horoscope section).  Granted, I wasn't really paying attention on Friday morning--last day of work for the week, black Friday nonsense, and all that.

I really shouldn't complain (though I didn't get all my raking done).  The stores have already decorated for Christmas, so why shouldn't the planet get in on the act as well.  Dress it up for the holidays.  Christmas is only one month away.  If only there was hockey on TV.

Christmas in October

It happened on the weekend.  It caught me by surprise, though you would have thought that I would know better.  I saw my first Christmas display.   We haven't even gotten to Halloween yet, and already the Christmas decorations are out.

Now don't get me wrong, I love Christmas, but shouldn't we tackle things in some sort of chronological order?  It seems a little premature to be getting ready for Christmas when you're busy looking for a costume.  (and based on the advertisements for costumes, Halloween is not a particularly holy occasion)  As a Canadian, we've already gotten Thanksgiving out of the way, so we're doing our part.  For any of my other readers, you've probably got other holidays or celebrations before Christmas, but I am sure the decorations are already out.

Again, I love Christmas, and when my shopping is done, I love all the store decorations, Christmas music, and wholesome TV shows (Maybe this year we can get a Dexter Christmas special).  I am happy that so many people go to the trouble to brighten up the world, talk about goodwill, and promote happiness.  Sadly, I am cynical and believe that some of this is more target at the quest for greater profits than the greater good.... but it still does look nice.

I have heard, though not actually seen, some people have already started turning on their Christmas lights.......... sorry, but that's just wrong, regardless of how beautiful it looks.  I am impressed if you have already hung them (or still have them up from last year), but there really is no need to turn them on until we are much closer to the holiday.  If I were a Member of Parliament I would introduce a bill banning all Christmas displays to stay packaged up until at least November 15.  If I get my message out, I might actually win on this promise alone.