On Christmas Presents

As I said in my first post, this is where the thoughts that come to me in the shower go. Maybe it's all the cold meds I'm on (yes, sick for Christmas, a shame), but this is what I've got today. Here goes:

Christmas is like a story. As any middle schooler will tell you, a story needs to have a beginning, a middle, and an end. It starts as early as you please, sometimes as early as late summer when you see something that's perfect for a particular person. For the majority of Americans, it means Black Friday, that day after Thanksgiving when people wake up at ridiculous hours to flock to strip- and super- malls for prices that somehow turn a profit. Only in America.

The middle is that Christmas morning adventure, when little (or not so little) kids wait for their parents to OKay Santa not still hanging around to eagerly shred wrapping and tear at boxes and bags for their newest goodies. It usually lasts about an hour, sometimes 90 minutes if you're lucky.

Then the real test of a Christmas begins. Christmas doesn't end with no more wrapping to undo, or it shouldn't. This year, I'm taking a different route: the quality of a Christmas is to be measured by the longevity of the presents. That is, How long will I use each one for? I look at my ski stuff, some movies, a couple of quality books.... and say Christmas might never be over for me. Luckily for me, I can live Christmas for a good long while to come.

Merry Christmas! Probably post something about this decade coming to a close sometime next week. And my, what a decade it has been....