Holiday Cheer?

Christmas time is the most wonderful time of the year. Isn't that a song or something? Christmas time is great, not only because of all the COOL presents you get, but of being with family, enjoying time off, eating large meals, relaxing, getting away from a routine, no homework, traveling, time off from school, and whatever else can be added to the list (there's a lot!) Time with family has got to be the best part. Between school, sports, and homework, there really isn't much time that I can be with family (I'm going to assume here it's the same way for you, reader.) Sure the presents are cool, and nothing feels quite like admiring an iPod Touch, but nothing can compare to being with your family.
BUT - Here's something for you to chew on. Have you ever played the game Would You Rather? It can bring up some weird ideas - here's an example.

Would you rather...

1. lose your keys three days in a row
2. have your dog eat your birthday cake

This "Would you rather" is kind of off-subject, but it shows what the game is like. One person questions the other about which unpleasant choice they would make, faced with the situation. Here's my question, and I think the answer tells a lot about people and their values.

Would you rather...

1. loose all your Christmas presents from this year but get to see all your friends and family
2. keep your presents but spend the holiday alone

What's more important to you? Is it the time spent with friends and family, or the material things we all received for this holiday. Has Christmas turned into a time of "get more stuff," or have we not forgotten the true "Christmas spirit?" I heard somewhere that December 26th is going to turn into something like Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. How can people really be thankful on Thanksgiving when all they're thinking about is the great deals they're going to get the next day? Will Christmas turn into just another reason for the department stores to have sales? Will businesses decide that they're just losing too much money by closing on Christmas day and make unfortunate employees work on the holiday itself? These are the things we (as humans) have to start thinking about or our society will turn something so much less than humans are capable of. We will turn into a people who is so financially driven that stores can't even take one day off, out of 365? Will Christmas turn into a time of nothing more than getting "stuff?" Or will we be able to step back and think, "What is it that is happening here? Isn't there something more important than stuff we'll never see again when we leave this earth?" Think about what your priorities have been this holiday season, and change them if they need to be changed. One person may not be able to change the world with a single stroke, but one person cannot change anything if they don't start by changing themselves.

The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese!

I have this book that is a giant collection of random stories, interesting facts and anything else that can be fit on a page or two. One of the best pages I've found is one with a collection of great bumper stickers. Here are my favorites:

• 99% of lawyers give the rest a bad name
• I feel like I'm diagonally parked in a parallel universe
• Remember: half the people you know are below average
• Plan to be spontaneous
• Always try to be modest, and be proud of it!
• If you can read this, I've lost my trailer
• When everything is coming your way, you're in the wrong lane
• If we quit voting, will they all go away?
• It is as bad as they say, and they are out to get you!
• You! Out of the gene pool!
• Earth is the insane asylum of the universe
• A committee's just a mob without the passion
• TV is gooder than books
• Come to the dark side: we have cookies

I always like a good laugh and these gave it to me!

Christmas time!

This post will be something I'm going to start as a really short one, but add onto it as time goes by and I have more to say! Here's something I wrote a while ago but I never published.



A While Ago:
Christmas music - it's great, but do they have to start playing it the day after Halloween? The department stores are playing it for your "enjoyment," and some radio stations have started playing "Christmas music" too. I continue to be amazed at what people can pass off as good music. One lame song I heard consisted of the computer enhanced repeated phrase "Everybody's comin' home for the holidays," about 100 times with a cheesy pop beat in the background.

December 7th:
Everything is starting to look like Christmas again in Appleton. With a couple more layers of snow and temperatures in the single digits the city seems to be hunkering down for another frigid season! The Packers lost again today - it was a good game but I'm glad I wasn't there! I think it's hovering at about 8 or 9 degrees Fahrenheit with a wind chill making it feel like zero today...brrr...