I’d like to hear from readers who participate in gift-giving during the holidays… what are your plans this year? Either with your family or within the community, or both? Is the economy having a bearing on your plans?
There was an article recently in the Seattle PI about how local gift-giving plans are not really changing, despite the downturn. And, in fact, people are willing to spend more on “green” gifts (although one would hope that they are paying attention to “greenwashing” tactics). Folks commenting on the article aren’t impressed — they’d like to see money given to charitable organizations or at least see people scale back.
Not that it’s anyone’s business what other people do with their money, but I’ve never noticed a shortage of people willing to comment anyway. Myself included… somewhere in my deleted posts is a little rant about people who insist that the underpaid cashiers at Walmart wish them a “merry Christmas”, rather than “happy holidays”. I am pretty sure I mentioned child-sized Escalades in that post. Well, that whole “war on Christmas” nonsense still rankles, so… trailing off now…
Anyway! Plans! We are lucky to have a close-knit group of friends here in Oregon. The guys have all known each other since high school or longer, or are siblings (Mr. Wolf and his brother), and the wives are good friends. It would be hard for any couple to try to get gifts for all the other couples, but we all enjoy giving. Last year we drew names and did a straight-up exchange, and this year we initially thought we’d do a white elephant exchange, but sister-in-law Gigi had another idea. We drew names via Elfster, and we are going to give second-hand books. The books can come from either from a second-hand store or off our own bookshelves. I love the element of thought that will go into this exchange as we look for just the right book… and even if you have one in mind, as I do, it may be impossible to find at a used-book store, so you have to keep your eyes and mind open to the possibilities.
We plan to get together on January 1st to exchange gifts, taking stress off Christmas day.
As for giving within the community, I can’t decide where to focus. Is it better to spread a little bit around to many organizations, or try to do more for one or two families? (No, I know, there’s not really a question of what is “better”, just different choices and I need to decide.) And then, local or more far-flung? I’ve done a little in both arenas, but I’m thinking now I will work on a separate post about charitable giving and will talk a bit about it there. There are so many options… look for a nice long post in the next day or two.
I’m also working on some “shop local” posts featuring local artists and merchants, with some gift-giving ideas. Stay tuned!