getting my second wind

After all of the hype, all of the anticipation, the shopping excursion on Friday was a let-down. Yes, I went out, but honestly, I left more stores with absolutely nothing than I did with purchases in hand. I did manage to get some of the “hot deals” - a 2GB card for hubby’s camera for $15, a new printer for me (since the manufacturer of my beloved printer decided that a 2-year old printer didn’t need to be updated to work with the devil’s new OS aka Vista). But really, most of my shopping was done online this past weekend. (Yes, I love the internet - I think the presents I’ve gotten so far, ROCK! I can’t wait to give them out.)

Speaking of presents, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about what to get people this year. Now, to those who know me, this will come as no surprise, I love to shop. Well, I love the idea of shopping and the physical act of shopping - I really don’t have to buy anything to feel perfectly content with the day out. I love the colors, the sights, the people-watching aspects of it all. It’s a chance for me to get away from everything that I know I should be doing and just be. When I’m shopping, I’m in the moment - not thinking about what’s left to do or what needs to be done. But, this year, it’s been a little more difficult.

You see, I’ve been feeling overwhelmed by clutter and everything that surrounds me. I know that for most of my family, it’s the same. We all have too much stuff that has no meaning behind it. And then there is the environmental effect. Yes, I am well-aware that I need to be much, much more aware of the impact of what I buy and the absurd amount of packaging materials that come with everything. I want to give people gifts that mean something not just be something that adds to the clutter. I’d love to pass off some of the projects I have in mind to them, but honestly, I’m not sure that for some of them it’s not just another form of stuff that will end up being stuffed in a box and eventually (after many years of being moved around with them) end up in a landfill anyway. So, this year, I’m going to spend more time trying to find unique gifts that I think will merge what I think is a good gift with what the recipient will think is a good gift - gifts that will make them smile, think or create or that will fill a void or heck that will allow them to fill their space with the stuff they want to…

Good thing, I love shoppng, huh?

Totally, unrelated - well, except for the pretty part - after almost pulling my hair out over the marketing committee’s ideas of what the save-the-date card should look like - I think we’ve finally finished voting on our top choice. I like it (which is good, since I designed it) - simple lines, clear text and great colors…

what do you think?