The Day After

I am thankful for good friends. I’m also thankful for a cooked turkey in much less time than anticipated.

We Americans sure like to celebrate being gluttonous. After a day filled with more food than most of us eat in a week, many of us spend a ton of money on worthless crap because it is on sale. I mean, where else do people gather together and give thanks for friends and family and a few hour later push, shove, trample and do everything humanly possible to get that “great deal” advertised in the newspaper the day before? I don’t know about you, but I have only ever ventured out into the abyss known as Black Friday once in my life and that was because I had spent the night making music videos with my cousins (because that’s just what we used to do) and were all planning on leaving to go shopping with most of my aunts and grandma so I tagged along. It was a nightmare.

Then, just for arguments sake, I’ll take the other end of the spectrum and say that the day after Thanksgiving when you work retail, as I did for nine years, was crazy. I’ll have to admit that it was kind of fun watching a stampede in progress filled with some of the most ghetto people who couldn’t be bothered to dress in regular people clothes or do their hair racing towards you in a panicked frenzy to grab the latest Elmo or pick over pajama sets. Sometimes you just gotta know when to step aside and let the craziness happen. After all, most of these people hadn’t been to bed in days so they could save a couple bucks.

I’m not sure if it is because I’m already a bargain hunter to begin with or if the idea of being trapped with a bunch of strangers in a building where there are only one or two exits and the sheer amount of people well exceeds fire code and my claustrophobia might cause be to have a panic attack, but shopping on Black Friday doesn’t appeal to me. Especially since it is simply a day to get most big box retail stores out of the red, as in debt, and back into the black, as in profit. Alas, if I had the money, I’d do my shopping tomorrow instead on Small Business Saturday. I would feel much better spending money at a mom and pop shop then at an evil corporation made with evil parts for the sole purpose of committing evil.

Christmas Reflections

Just when it seemed that this year will end up being the worst Christmas we’ve ever had, due to multiple factors, things started looking up. In fact, this has already been one of my favorites.

With the tree decorated and presents beneath it, the North Pole Village out on display, stockings hung on the fire screen and cards galore gracing the poor excuse for a fireplace mantel while Brenda Lee sings Christmas songs, it certainly feels like Christmas Morning. As crappy as this year has been for our household, I’m glad we didn’t let it ruin Christmas. After all, there is more to life than owning a home, even if it is one that you’ve grown quite attached to over the years. Besides, it has so many problems that need to be addressed they probably won’t be able to sell it without having to put at least half of what the house is worth into fixing the issues, and that brings a smile to my face.

However, even though I tend to hold grudges for much longer than a regular person, take my unapologetic stance on The-Store-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named, I have a feeling that the lessons we’ve learned this year will help us for the better. We have an incredible support system of family and friends and are so thankful for all of them.

Alas, this is Christmas Morning. And while I sit here blogging, drinking a hot cup of Starbuck’s Christmas Blend coffee from beans I found in my stocking this morning, it is Christmas and there are presents to be unwrapped. So with that, I bid you and yours a Merry Christmas with a hope that it is filled with magic. Let Peace, Love and Hope be with you all!

Take Time to Say Thank You

Too often we get so wrapped up in our busy lives, we forget to thank those who’ve helped us along the way. It’s not that we don’t appreciate the help, it just seems that saying so has almost gone by the wayside. On this day of love, why not take a little time out of your day to say, “Thank you.”

Thank you, Sarah and Rob, for being the best friends I could ever want.

Thank you, PJaye, for all of the challenging Scrabble games and sometimes letting me win.

Thank you, Stacey and Michele, for always thinking of us when you make plans, whether they be at your home or when you’re going somewhere.

Thank you to all my brothers and sisters, Ryan, Brandon, Ashley, Ryan, Kassidie and K.C., for giving me the best memories of childhood a person could have, and for there being so darn many of you to make mine last so long!

Thank you to my parents, Patti, Jess, Ruth and Dan, for providing me with a wonderful childhood.

Thank you to 84% of my extended family, which I won’t even try to name all of them, and you know who you are, for always being there.

And last of all, thank you, Greggy, for being everything I could ever need in a partner in life.

I love you all so very much, even though I don’t always say it, and am so very blessed to have you in my life.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Cory