tIS THE sEASON

In my opinion, the holiday season (i.e. Thanksgiving through New Year) begins the week of Thanksgiving, not July.  My kids chuckle at me, but I think they appreciate that I refuse to decorated or shop for Christmas prior to Thanksgiving.  I also do not care what deals they throw my way, I absolutely will NEVER shop Thanksgiving Day or "Black Friday".  For us that is family time, and I would hope that retail establishments respect the family.  However, we do know that this is not true.  Many will miss dinner with their families as a sacrifice to shoppers.  God I miss the good old days.

I am also not a fan of shopping via the internet.  Call me crazy, but I have always loved going from store to store while shopping and enoying the decorations.  I grew up near Chicago, and one of the special things that we would do is go downtown to see the huge and animated Christmas window displays.  Every department store had a toy department and a Santa Claus to visit!  There was electricity and excitement in the air as we prepared to celebrate Jesus' birthday.  The generosity that can come out at Christmas is amazing!
It would be cold and snowy and Christmas Carols played everywhere, you know the old ones from Bing Crosby and Nat King Cole!  There weren't malls, you walked the sidewalks downtown, just like in the carols! And everyone wished you a Merry Christmas!

I respect the fact that everyone does not get into the season like I do.  I love to decorate and shop.  The shopping started for me this weekend with a trip to the grocery store to buy supplies for Thanksgiving dinner.  And, disappointment slapped me right in the face.  I was met by multiple people who were too impatient to wait their turn, and who threw darts at you via their eyes because you were enjoying shopping and taking your time.  I cannot tell you how many grumpy faces I saw, how many times I was rear ended with a grocery cart or heard a rude comment from another shopper or clerk. Sadly, it did not matter how nice you were, the joint was loaded with Scrooges.

Shopping in a crowded store can be miserable if you choose to make it so.  If you can, it is better to decide that hurrying is not going to do anything but frustrate you so you might as well resign yourself to the fact that this will take some time.  If you can't be pleasant, than maybe you shouldn't go out.  Why inflict your "Scroogeness" in the rest of the world.  Shop online, then you will not have to have any human contact whatsoever.  If you work in any retail business, I hope you like people.  Is there anything worse than an unpleasant or downright mean store employee?  What ever happened to customer service?  If you cannot be pleasant to your customers, then maybe you should consider another career.  Work in a business without human contact.  Do those of us who enjoy the hustle and bustle of the holidays, and stay home.  Let those of us who are crazy enough to go out with a smile and shop and speak to the people around us enjoy our season of insanity! 

Happy Holidays!  I use the term today to encompass Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year.  Don't worry, you will get the proper greeting from me as each day arrives!  Relax, try to enjoy the holidays and maybe change your perspective a little so that you can!