Gifts From The Heart

If you have access to the Internet today (and, if you're reading this, you must have SOME kind of access), you're likely aware that today is known as "Cyber Monday". It's my understanding that Black Friday is when the really organized, super-saver, highly-motivated (and more than a little bit crazy) types get most, if not all, of their holiday shopping completed. Cyber Monday was mostly created by accident, when retailers realized that a large percentage of the gift-buying population actively avoided Black Friday and instead focused their gift-buying over the Internet, and tended to wait until they'd returned to work post-Thanksgiving.

While Lloyd, Janet, Frank and Beth were discussing their various Thursday feasts and sharing stories about their crazy cousins around the water cooler for an hour or so, Craig and Ellen would jump online and get five or six names crossed off their collective gift-buying lists. Now granted, retailers are also responsible for continuing the trend, providing price reductions and free shipping deals that are good for today only. If you've had an email address for more than two years, you've likely received more than a few "don't miss these deals" and "price slashing galore" notes from retailers you've shopped from ... or from partners of retailers you've shopped from.

This may be the first year that I'll actually create ... and stick to ... a physical gift list. Partially driven from an economic standpoint and partially from a "do NOT forget to send a gift to this person", it means that I'll likely feel that I've let some folks down in the gift category, since I tend to go overboard. This is not my fault. I blame my parents.

As adults, my sister and I would beg my parents to stick to a budget or a "just this number of packages" parameter and each year, the haul under the tree would get more and more absurd. They got around the "number of packages" suggestion by wrapping multiple items in a larger box. I once received seven separate items, each wrapped, because my father had them placed in a box that he'd had some Model A tires in. (Yeah, I tried to keep a smile on my face when I read the side of the box ... "wow dad - dunno what to say, yanno? I've never really received tires for a vehicle I don't own as a gift before.") My mother got around the budget suggestion by having the cats and dogs go shopping. ("I can't help it if Ginger felt she had to give you this coat from Nordstroms, hunny. And Puff saw these slippers and just couldn't stop herself.")

And I'm not joking at all about that "pets giving gifts" thing, either. It doesn't even seem strange to me anymore - to make sure that I buy a stocking for each canine member of the extended family. I even address cards that way ... in fact, the Halloween card that was sent to my parents home was addressed exclusively to Hershel, the "youngest member" of their family, and commonly referred to as "my" dog. (This is true because while I was in the process of moving, I lived with my folks and Hershel was a terrific companion for me and my constant shadow. My father believed I was trying to turn his dog against him but I just have a soft spot for "Hershey". After all, he came home on his first trip while sleeping in my lap and I even named him - sparing him the indignity of being called "Cocoa". I think he still appreciates it.)

But this year, my gift giving will be specific to direct family and a few others. I'll try to use retailers who will ship items for me, and most will do so at no cost, especially on Cyber Monday. It means that I'll have to spend extra time to think about the gifts I give, and allow time for me to write more than just "happy holidays" on cards that I send. It's eye-opening to me to realize that being on a budget means I may put more thought into what I do for the holidays.

I just got an email from an online pet store with a deal on dog toys. I wonder if they'll ship extra-large bones ...