November 28, 2008 - People should be glad I'm not one of Santa's little helpers

Reading the coverage of Black Friday this morning, I was struck by the ridiculous logic some people have when it comes to spending and the meaning of Christmas.

I've never gone out shopping on Black Friday for one simple reason...Nebraska always plays a football game that day. And in my world, football comes before crowded malls. I don't see the need to circle endlessly looking for a parking space, ANY parking space. Nor do I feel the need to be up at the crack of dawn (or long before) to get a deal on anything. I'm sure there are some good deals to be had, relatively speaking. I mean, give me a 52" flat screen HD TV for $10, and I'll be there, but knocking a hundred bucks off just isn't going to cut it for me to freeze the ta-tas off while lined up on hard cement.

But it's not the whole Black Friday tradition that I think is dumb. If shopping is your thing, and you have the money to go out and blow a load in every department store you see, have at it. But if you DON'T have the money...if you're talking to a reporter about how you're having to leverage Christmas gifts against food for your kids...don't talk about how you're saving a hundred bucks on the aforementioned TV. If you're struggling to put food on the table, do you really need a 52"? I tend to think not.

I never realized as a kid that we were actually fairly poor. Both of my parents worked full time (in fact, my mom had two jobs), but I know now my parents struggled. And I can remember more than a few Christmases where I only got one larger than average present or maybe a few smaller things, but that was it. Our Christmas tree always had a lot of room underneath it, and I remember moving what few packages we had around to make it appear like there were more. A couple of years, I even wrapped empty boxes just for the allusion. I was always amazed by people who spent an hour or two unwrapping presents on Christmas morning because for us it usually took about fifteen minutes, tops. And that was IF I didn't open the present from "Santa" on Christmas Eve after we returned from church.

So I get not having the money to make Christmas extravagant, and I imagine that if you have a large family to buy for, it has to be especially difficult in this recession. So WHY are people out buying such ridiculously large items? What makes them think that they have to buy these crazy gifts for people? I wouldn't mind a nice big TV to replace the one that I've had since I was a sophomore in college (though it still works just fine and therefore doesn't need to be replaced), but I wouldn't even think to ask someone to get that for me, or even worse, be disappointed if it wasn't there on Christmas morning. Heck! I'll be surprised if there's anything under my pre-lit but not decorated tree (kittens and decades old ornaments don't mix) come December 25th. And that's fine because I don't need anything, and I'm not asking for anything.

I understand the desire and perhaps even "need" to buy things for kids. The joy on their faces is reason enough alone. But if you're an adult, and you're worrying about paycheck to paycheck, you should not be expecting anything, especially something big and ridiculous like a 52" TV. How do you put that under the tree anyway???

Random thoughts:

1. Normally the Nebraska/Colorado football game is either right before or right after the Texas/Texas A&M game. This year it's Pittsburgh/West Virginia. I don't know what's up with that.

2. I'd never had green bean casserole until last year, but now it's hard to imagine Thanksgiving without it.

3. I wonder...if you buy a headboard that doesn't have an associated footboard...can you just buy an identical headboard and turn it around??

4. Happy (belated) birthday on the 21st to Polly Cox, and Happy Birthday on the 29th to Cheryl Stachniak!

November 04, 2008 - There's an electricity in the air!

It's Election Day!!!

I'll admit that I'm a geek. I get excited for Election Day like some people get excited for Christmas or their birthdays. When I was little it was mysterious, an intriguing secret held by my parents. They'd take me to the polling place, but I'd either have to wait in the lobby or in the car (with the heater running...no need for that today when it was 75...). I always wanted to know what was going on, and as I got older, I was enthralled by the pagentry of it all: the speeches, the bunting, the waiting on Election Night to see the results. It's probably no wonder that I became a political science major in college and worked on a campaign in the fall of 2002.

I always get excited when an election rolls around, even the primaries, but this year is different. I really wasn't won over by any one candidate and in the end probably voted more based on party affiliation than an intense belief in one person over another. But despite that, this Election Day has been incredible because this year there's an electricity in the air, and it's not just me that feels it.

I'm always dismayed when after being excited all day long I sit down to watch results roll in and the turnout numbers are so low it hardly seems worth the effort and money required to run an election. But it's not like that this time. Everyone is talking about this election. Whether it's talking about the candidates or just paying attention, people have been involved. That's a rarity. And today it's become something incredible.

I don't ever remember an election where I've heard from friends and family who stood in a line to vote. Not just behind two or three people, but minutes, sometimes past the hour mark, waiting to cast a ballot. Every election is important, but it feels like this time people get that. They want to be involved. They want to be part of deciding the future not just of the country, but their states, cities, and school boards. They want to exercise the right that hard work has guaranteed for us. It's an amazing thing!!

Random election thoughts:

1. The Kentucky Secretary of State election result website sucks. It's way too hard to find a lot of results quickly.

2. It's 8:01 pm, and already NBC is calling 15 states. I'm not saying I want another 2000 election, but seriously...a 21 month race ending this quickly? A little anti-climactic.

3. How is "coroner" an office up for election? What is the criteria for that job? Does it require a specific degree? A medical license? And the bigger question...what kind of commercials would that race breed??

4. How does one get the job of painting in the states on the Rockefeller Center ice rink as they're called? I mean, I can't ice skate, but I'd sure learn for that job!