Christmas Shopping

Christmas did not start well in the house. I got sick about a week before the holiday, and did not want to recreate the laid low aspect of Thanksgiving. (Perhaps holidays make me sick. I would not be a bit surprised. Although I believe that my wife thinks I fake it. I am not sure how you can fake bloody mucus, but it sounds like a useful skill to cultivate.) So I went to a “Doc-in-the-box” to see if there was anything they could do.

There was not. I got some antibiotics as a consolation prize (Here, take this amoxicillin! IT will be good for you.) I also bought some Cold MD, some expensive placebo that seems to do its job well. But I got over it.

We are getting each other a big screen “tv” for the holiday, so I only had to worry about small gifts for Doreen. Two were quite easy – books from her wish list. And she seemed to like them, as well. Good for me.

But for her birthday I had to venture into the bowels of consumerism, and attend the Galleria. Yipes! I was smart, though. I had read that The Galleria was opening early on the holidays. Sweet! So I just went into work late one day, and stopped by the Galleria at 9:00 AM on the dot. No problem parking, no traffic.

And, unfortunately for me, no stores. Yes, the Galleria itself was open, but none of the stores inside were. So I had to go back later that day.

I went in at 2:00. I got back to the office at about 4:00. All that time was just horribleness. From the traffic, to the parking, to the purchase, to the departure. If I had not had a specific gift in mind, I would have baled. But as it was, I made the effort. I think it was worth it.