Hello again friends!
We…have been packing packing packing! Not the most fun of activities but a
necessary one of course. As we have our
primary home in storage, we (me) still managed to accumulate a lot that we (he)
decided we are not taking with us (rats!)
So we have proved it does feel better to give than receive…
We put all the things we are not taking, art, furniture,
games, pictures, china, portables, an electric bicycle pump, Alice in
Wonderland teapot and cups, frog figurines, mermaid figurines, tvs…all in the
front entrance way….and flash emailed our fire sale first come first
serve…and if you flash email it then they will come. And they came. People we have met and
befriended over the past 5-7 years in this neighborhood (we lived in the adjacent
neighborhood for 10 years before that…we had accumulated a lot!). And they were so happy – and we were so happy
that they were happy and so on and so on.
We had the most fun watching everyone come in and after the
first incredulous moment of really? I can have it? To digging right in and
leaving laden with packs and smiles, good cheer all around…to last through the
new year!
I always find giving gifts fun, although I will fret and
debate over just the right one.
Many will say oh no, that is her excuse—it is shopping she
likes best!
But that is not true.
Sometimes it is the thrill of the sale…who doesn’t want to get the best
price? But that is usually when I am out
buying a gift for someone! Certainly sometimes
it is to get clothes that I need …but I am not as young as I used to be and for
anyone who has had back surgery they will no doubt agree…a few on and offs and
that’s it whether I found what I need or not.
I was just reminiscing with my husband how, with my now 29
year old in a stroller as an infant my
friend and I used to be first in line at 6 AM at Macy’s, to get the after Thanks giving and Christmas sales. My son had
a blast. One year, to my never ending mortification, they caught the 3 of us on
TV.
I think many of us are the same way. We find one or two stores and sizes we are at
those stores and shop on line. You can
always return. I no longer enjoy being elbow
to elbow in the store, the standing on line at the dressing rooms, the clerk
knocking on my door when you just want to be left alone or the opposite, no
clerk when you need someone to help you with another size! Most places allow free returns or credit
toward an exchange or new purchase.
Otherwise call it the cost of convenience of shopping in your own home.
More recently that is done late at night for hours on line
on Amazon, Ebay and whatever other internet site I can find WITH free shipping
because on principle I REFUSE to pay for shipping that costs half as much as
the gift.
Ironically none of my siblings (3) have ever shopped on
line. This will not come as a shock,
they are even older than I am. We all
mistrust and doubt the technology that comes along with each age group. But
this is not new technology…so why not avail yourself of the wonders of the 21st
century?
I digressed, the worst part of finding that perfect gift on
line? When they do not allow you to a.
send a gift card or b. a gift receipt.
Then … you did all this work for nothing!
Or you have to email and say “hey, the package you are
getting is from me, do not look at the receipt unless you are returning it….”
knowing full well they are checking it out immediately because that is what you
would do!
But the right gift to the right person makes you feel at
peace and harmony.
We have a great niece who loves Mermaids. I was at a Fall Festival half paying
attention to the booths when…I found one booth with a leather chain, a pearl
and a mermaid charm attached. I could
not believe it! I asked a little girl
nearby if she would try it on for me…to make sure it was not too big for a 5
year old, and perfection! (There are no
returns at a Fall Festival!) I had my
Holiday gift without even thinking about what to get her! I was singing all day long…and today, got an
email from my niece how much her daughter loved the necklace. Today…will be a harmonious and good day no
matter what happens because things have clicked. Not in an alternative life way but in the pay
it forward way. When you get things
right and pay it forward…the harmony aligns and it will come back to you. I believe that…and whether true or not, it
certainly does not hurt to believe it is so!
While I am on my free wielding dialogue…technology.
I will be like my sibs with regard to driverless cars.
I will be the hold out not trusting them. A total white
elephant.
I was a prosecutor 8 years in traffic court and maybe I am
jaded. I only see problems.
When that big accident occurs, who will be ultimately held
responsible for damages? There is no
driver, the owner? The manufacturer? The insurer? Of which car? Will there be
clear cut liability? If someone needs treatment
and money for it how long will the case pend before they can access the money
for what they need? What if there is a
malfunction?
I understand it can change how we approach…well life! If we can do work or watch well a tv show in
the car while getting delivered door to door, then…being in a car a few hours
is not such a bad thing, and living further out is not a big deal. Right now we all hate sitting and driving in
traffic so it is a very big deal. And at
what age can they drive alone? We don’t
send kids alone now…but will we?
I know I would never have sent a single digit aged child
alone in a car. Yet my mother regales us with how she used to go at the age of
5 by herself on the bus in NYC. Will
that comfort level return? With all the
acts of terrorism I cannot imagine a parent allowing that…there are so many
situations a child is not equipped to handle.
I remember being horrified when a friend relayed her experience on a
flight from Atlanta to DC. There was
turbulence and the passengers were told to get in the crash positions. She said there was an unaccompanied minor
sitting by himself he could only have been about 8. The horrors that child must
have suffered. The chance of that
happening is so slim…until it happens to you and your child. Slim is too great a chance.
What impact will driverless cars have on uber and
taxis? If you call for your car and it
comes…unless you are out of town, what do you need them for?
So many questions, so few answers…
So I will resume packing, I must go into the black vortex of
hell aka my closet…then we will be off to a marathon house hunt—25 houses in 3
days, while staying at my mother’s.
This will be interesting….the excitement of the future with…the
past holding tight.
What a picture, right?
Until next time
Comments
Post a Comment