The First Week of New Choices

After watching and actually participating in the melee that was Black Friday, I've noticed we all now have hit a lull in the frenzy. There is this time right after that experience, that settles for a moment all things, right before we swallow hard and strap on our backpacks and head out again.

Except we don't have to.

Something, over the years, has caused us to go bigger, better, faster, whatever. We want that thing or this thing , the green one or the red one. Then, after the heroine is in the mainstream, we lose our craving and our desire for those things we were beating our drums to get. Of course, we had to buy the drum first-the red one.

I know, I know, its easy talk for a middle-aged guy to say. I've had my run. Get out of the way old man and let us have our shot at that 32 inch on sale in the meat department at Walmart. There is something terribly wrong with that picture. Its kind of like making that heroine deal in the dirty restroom of a old neighborhood gas station, only the rump roast is on sale.

What if the kid gets only three presents instead of ten? What would happen? What if your partner gets you a bag of socks and underwear-something we, as men, always seem to need but never buy for ourselves. What if everyone comes over for a game of yard darts and cinnamon rolls and really good coffee? I got to tell you, I can't remember last year's presents. I do remember one of my three kids was in a war zone.  Priorities.

What if, for Christmas morning, we got up and went for a walk-a long walk, maybe in a park, early so the morning colors were the most vibrant? What if the family down the street, whose single mother just had her hours cut, wakes up with a fully decorated tree on her front porch and not only some well needed presents for her kids under it, but something for her?

What if that kid at school you teach at wanted to buy a gift for his dying grandma, but didn't have the money and he comes in the next day and you give him a wrapped gift, tellingl him someone must have overheard his conversation because you found this in your mailbox with a note on it to give it to him (high school kids are pretty gullible).

Look, I'm not saying we shouldn't get caught up in the wave of free enterprise; we're 'Mericans forcrissake! But with that said, no one knows the true cost of where we live like us. We take care of the world and who better to take care of our own other than us? And here is the fun thing-you feel like you just won the lottery.

I don't know, maybe not. Maybe its all just a stage and we're the players. Oh, but what a play!

Just a Quick Note about this Weekend

It is Sunday of Veteran’s Day weekend and I’m sad-despondent-a little angry-whatever the magic word is for the three day weekend coming to an end.

I understand that I should be grateful about having a job, being able to earn money, have insurance, all that stuff. That’s not what I’m talking about. Anyone working would probably be having the same thoughts to some degree. The weekend, a calm, soothing, rainy weekend in Phoenix (sunny warm day in London or Seattle) with some soft music playing and two dogs laying their heads on your feet, kind of gives you a good feeling that you don’t want to go away. But there was something else.

Last year, our son, brother to my daughters, newly married husband to our daughter-in-law was not here. He was about one third of his way through his second tour of the Sand Box. This time, he was an advisor in Iraq’s beautiful city of Basrah. There was a lump in our lives that was missing.

This Veteran’s Day, he was home.

And we all danced.

There is a guilt feeling to not be happy, to not express happiness when so many families have lost so much or have people away. I had to think about this letter before I posted it. The answer was clear.

That’s why they went, so we could-dance. Americans are happy, caring, loving, sacrificial people who will give up their lives so some people can experience what we have. That-is called love by the way. So, it would be wrong to do anything else, to honor those veterans, living or dead, with anything other than a good time feeling, a party, a celebration, a quiet morning with a good cup of coffee and two dogs asleep on your feet as long as in the back of our consciousness, we know who wrote the check. My son and those like him purchased this day for us. It’s not about politics or 20% off at Kohls, at least not with these people.

So from now until the day we leave this planet, when we find one of these guys, thank them for the day, whether it’s a good day or not, it’s our day to make what we want with it.

Time to Start Running

Okay, Halloween is over and t'is the Christmas Season. Actually, according to Walgreen's, Christmas started back in August. I can't write much here because, well, I have to start running. I won't stop until the day after Christmas. That's just the way it is, but, I have made some decisions. See if you don't agree.

• Our family adopted the idea, a few years ago, to go out on Black Friday. Sure, it was fun once, maybe even twice, but now its getting up at 0-butt-crack of pre-dawn to go observe the Free Enterprise system at its annual birth. The Occupy's would crap baby kittens if they saw this. I said I can't write much because my new thing is to read the Black Friday press 'leaks' about what is for sale. Supposedly a big secret. Yeah, right. Hey, if it saves me ANYTHING I'm all for it.

• We are having Thanksgiving back at our house. Seventy-five hundred people are coming over. I'm thinking name tags would be nice, just on the grand kids. I don't give a hoot about the others. As long as they put the toilet seat down and take home the crap they bring, we're good. I do need to learn to 'let it go' so to speak. My motto at work is be the kelp-you know, ebbing back and forth with the tide. Go with the flow. Toilet seat, that is goin' with the flowin', oh, and don't miss either. Its a big target--hit it!

• This year, like every year, we are in charge of the turkey, I am forced--FORCED to buy a free range, organic free turkey from the foo-foo market. They're like three dollars more a pound then Jennie-O's. As a matter of fact, those bad boys are on sale for fifty-five cents a pound this week!! Why, tell me why, am I not buying one of those--I am this year. Yep! I saved the hand woven crate those free rangers came in last year and I'm going to put the Jennie in that and sneak it in the house saying so all could hear "HEY, HERE I AM WITH OUR VERY EXPENSIVE ORGANICALLY MASSAGED UGLIESTBIRDONTHEWHOLEPLANET. LOOK, I CARE WHAT YOU EAT SO I SPENT ALL THIS MONEY ON A THING THAT WE WILL ONLY BE EATING FOR 12-17 MINUTES BUT TAKES US SIX DAYS TO PREPARE."  Yeah, I timed it over the last few years. Thanksgiving, actual eat time, is only that long. That didn't even include dessert. That is right before the two hour clean up.

• That leads me to my next item, clean up. Everything is throw away this year. I don't care what the environmentalist say, paper products smeared with turkey and gravy decompose faster in the landfill. I swear. I want clean up to be less than one hour and only one run of the dishwasher. AND if you brought it, you're taking it home. There are just two of us living here now and I don't want your rhubarb pie. I don't want your homemade pumpkin pie either. Those are never as good as a store bought anyway. When you figure in time to make and then the applied eat time as listed above, the return is crappy. If it was a mutual fund, there would be a sell order on it.

• This year we, like last year, picked names in our family for gift exchange. We also shrunk the amount to spend, with a grand kid  exemption. I am bringing back the gift coupon idea which is always labeled as cold or uncaring. No, its perfect! Because if you buy actual stuff, your amount includes tax. You always have to count the tax-what is the final bill when you buy that pair of socks? $9.99 listed is not the final price. It's $10.87. You short your gift exchanger out of $.87 cents worth of crap. Bad form I say. Give the Gift of Pureness. Besides, you can get them on line.

These are just a few of my main points. You might have your own. The bottom line is to make a bottom line. Have some standards. Draw the line in the sand so to speak. But, just make sure you are nowhere near the entrance to Walmart when they open the doors at 3:00am. You might get trampled.

Ohhhh, that would be worth getting up and seeing!!