Shop Less, Spend More

Over a month since I have blogged, yes I guess it is time I revisit this site and try to stick to consistency. 

A night off of work and I find myself lying in the living room amongst the Christmas tree, the warming fire in the fireplace, the candles on top of the mantle and the television. I guess I haven't written in almost a month because I don't really care to reflect upon the things that are happening.  

Well last night and into today about 5 inches of snow fell from the sky leaving an ample amount to go sledding late night tonight! Christmas is less than 9 days away and my shopping just began. The mall was surprisingly easy to get through, but finding 'the perfect gift' was a bit more difficult. I'm sure the pressure of 'the perfect gift' sits upon everyone around this time of year, but in the end is it really about the gift? Is it really about the materialistic things that we give our loved ones, or is it about the time we spend and the moments we share? 

We could waste our entire holiday season pa-rousing the stores and catching the sales, but are you taking time away from being with your family? Just think, as you stand in line in between many other shoppers, holding your basket of gifts and mentally going through your checklist, could you be at home helping your family or visiting with a grandparent? I thought about this as I stood in line at Kohls. As I jumped from store to store looking for things and picking up a little treat for a special someone, I thought how those 2 hours of shopping and inevitably searching, but not succeeding could have been spent side by side, sitting down visiting and learning about someone I greatly love. 

I know it may sound corny or cliche, but aren't the holidays about friends and family? How are they about friends and family as we cruise the mall, get frustrated and buy something that we inevitably feel just isn't enough? 

As always, thoughts that just breeze through my mind and I find landing on a page. A whole day off tomorrow, it could be spent up at the mountain or in a quaint coffee shop fulfilling my deadline for the Champlain Business Journal, I guess we'll see.