A Few Ingredients For A [Mostly] Stress-free Christmas

There are acquaintances of mine that go all-out at Christmastime.

They max out their credit cards. They get their kids all the things that they want. They go above and beyond what is 'enough' as far as gifts are concerned. And the 'Trying to keep up with the Joneses' thing, well, good luck with that.

[If you aren't familiar with the term: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keeping_up_with_the_Joneses ]

My kids aren't that bad when it comes to what they want for Christmas. My daughter may circle every other toy in the Christmas catalog, but when it's all said and done, they are pretty satisfied after opening their gifts, and usually forget about the things that they had asked for, but didn't get.

For me to tell you that Christmastime is a commercial goldmine for retailers would be wasting my breath. You already know that. I work in a retail environment, and it can, and has in the past, sucked all, or at least most, of the enjoyment out of the season, which in turn makes me sometimes totally oblivious to why we are celebrating in the first place. My colleagues usually feel the same way.

So, I'm just going to list a few things that we could do differently this season. If you already have a stress-free Christmas season, good for you, keep up the good work and leave a few suggestions if you'd like.

Without further ado...

-Spend quality time with your family, especially if you have young kids. You can then relive your childhood Christmas memories through them, all over again, and create some special new ones. There's nothing like a child's joy at Christmastime. In fact, it's not the same without it.

-Remember the real reason. Not going to preach, but let's take a moment this season and reflect on where we would be without that amazing event that took place over 2000 years ago. And...let your kids know, if they already don't; you owe it to them.

-Don't be in a hurry. Slow down and breathe. Take in the season and all of the things that make it wonderful.

-Only worry and fret about the things that really matter. Put the other stuff aside, or let someone else worry about it. Here's an idea: delegate if you have to. You'll be glad you did.

-Enjoy the company of friends. Laugh a little, or a lot, whatever the case may be.

-Give to a charity that gives to the needy. It'll warm your heart. And someone else's...

-Don't spend a boatload of cash on gifts. I know it's cliché, but it's the thought that counts.

-Show 'goodwill to all men'. The rich, the poor, the sick, the dying, the lonely, the needy...go out of your way to be nice, or more so than you usually are...open a door, call someone that needs it, let common courtesy abound...it makes the world a better place.

There are probably tons more things I could have said, and maybe even some obvious ones. But simply let this be a Christmas different from others. Do things for others. Give out of the goodness of your heart. It will change Christmas for you, forever.

L8r

J

PS - If you want a PDF copy of 'CREATING A STRESS-FREE CHRISTMAS!', let me know and I'll email it to you. I got it free, so I'll give it freely.

Growing Old Does Not [necessarily have to] Mean Growing Up

When you take a look back at previous generations, the words 'work ethic' simply meant that you did the task that needed done immediately, and you did it with all the effort that you could muster.

Oh, and you never complained. Ever. Even if you walked ten miles to school, each way of course, through a blizzard, in 6 feet of snow, and uphill both ways. Heaven forbid if you complained a little bit.

Our grandparents, and even perhaps our parents, did not take it lightly [according to various reports that I have received] if you maybe wanted to wait a bit longer before doing the assigned chore or job. In their eyes, it more than often meant that you were either a) lazy, or

b) procrastinating, or c) exhibiting both of the preceding traits that 'all young people possess'. 'If you don't learn to work now, or get a job, or stop playing all day, you won't amount to a hill of beans.'

Does any of this sound even a little bit familiar?

Well, speaking for myself, I 'grew up', and I got a job, and bought a house, got my licence and a car...I opened a bank account and got myself debit cards and credit cards...I got married and started raising kids...that is generally, more or less, how life manifests itself, in varying degrees and in no particular order, to each and every one of us.

To me, the fact that I am getting older [and much faster than I am comfortable with] in no way

translates into me having to surrender the things that I enjoy now, which is more than likely a variation of the things that I liked when I was younger. The things that I enjoyed to participate in when I was younger has formed my personality and has helped mold me into the person I am today, for better or for worse, like it or lump it.

Just to throw something else in here, my generation read comic books and played video games and played cowboys and indians and shot each other with invisible guns...maybe we were given a little more elbow room to actually be kids and behave like children. Having chores and responsibilities as a child teaches them and prepares them for adulthood. I do not at all deny that. But as much as some may think that kids were 'lazy', etc., in my generation, maybe parents of previous generations were just a wee bit narrow-minded when it came to envisioning what being a kid should entail.

I am a big kid at heart. And to the chagrin of many, I do not plan on changing that part of me. It is deep-rooted. It is a large part of who I am. To want me to lose that would be comparable to asking me to cut off a limb, or two, and continue on with my life as if I had never had those limbs to begin with. And I don't believe that analogy is extreme.

Take a minute and reflect on your childhood: remove every experience and interest that you had when you were growing up, and, just for argument sake, place yourself in a situation where you are a child growing up in your grandparents' home 20 or 30 years before. How would that have changed what kind of person you have become? I am not at all saying that you would have been worse off, or anything like that...I am just making a point that these things shape the person that you become.

So, I don't plan on changing that much. I still enjoy the occasional comic book, video game and 40 years from now I hope to be listening to the exact same music that I like now. I don't like the idea that I have to conform to something simply because it is the 'status quo'...I guess that is what makes me 'different', and to tell you the truth, I'm glad, and I am proud of it.

So the next time someone tells you to 'grow up', allow yourself a smile. Stay young and stay free-spirited!

L8r

J

Random tho'ts...What Would The World Be Like If We Treated Everyone The Way That We Would Like To Be Treated?

I try to keep an open mind with people, and attempt to give people the benefit of the doubt. Everyone is human, and we all make mistakes. Sometimes we lash out, and very often it is those that are closest to us.

But those times that I pushed my cranky old self out of the way, and treated someone the way that I would like to be treated, 99% of the time I was treated with the same courtesy. Of course, some people just don't get it, and you could treat them like a king or queen, and it still wouldn't matter. But a majority of humanity, I believe, appreciates being treated with common courtesy.

So, I'm off to work to spread some cheer...we'll, maybe later...after all, it IS 6:41am...:)

Just a random tho't...

L8r

J

Whatsupwiththat? Canadians paying more for goods than Americans

We as Canadians can't seem to get a break when it comes to paying higher prices for things than our southern neighbors. At a time when our dollar was worth more than theirs, there have been countless reports of Canadian shoppers going south to shop and being amazed at the savings. I even heard one report saying that a Canadian couple went and bought a high-end vehicle and saved almost $30,000 off of their purchase compared to if they had bought it here. $30,000! That's not chickenfeed, as they say. That's a hefty chunk of cash. So I thought I'd do a little research to see what kind of explanations the experts were offering.

One man said, "We've spoken to people at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, the BC Chamber of Commerce, and we've talked to people in the community. Everyone identifies it as an issue. We just can't come up with sort of what would make sense as a concrete plan of action."

No duh. A very concise, and helpful, explanation.

He continues with, "We don't know if we can take it much further. [It's] A high-level, complex issue with so many road blocks. I've come across no one... that just don't buy stuff, which is a pretty simplistic answer."

Seems like what he's really saying is that there is absolutely nothing that can and/or will be done about the situation.

After all, this is the U.S. of A, a kingdom unto themselves, at least as far as the government and the economy is concerned.

Different reports that I read said an average of 20% more was paid here in Canada than in the 'States' for the same items, and as high as 30-34% more!

There were numerous Canadian retailers that claimed that the price difference was due to higher duties and taxes and that the higher cost, in general, of doing business in Canada. But what about the 30+% differences?

Another explanation was that 'The American market for consumer goods is quite simply more competitive than in most other countries, Canada’s included.'

It sucks to be us, then.

BMO Capital Markets’ deputy chief economist Douglas Porter says that “Companies and firms will do whatever they can to keep prices in check in the U.S. and for that reason it is a bit of a shopper’s paradise in the U.S. where prices versus the rest of the world tend to be lower.”

So, there you have it. All the answers that you've been looking for, concerning all the questions you've been wondering about regarding our north-to-south price discrepancies. Feel any better? Not me. It's like a big brother making his little sister pay through the nose for something he's getting a lot cheaper. Hey, maybe that happens all the time...

L8r

J

Here's some sites that may be of interest to you if you cross often to shop:

http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/prog/nexus/menu-eng.html

http://www.crossbordershopping.ca

For a bit of official insight from the government of Canada, here is a link to a study done by statistics Canada regarding 'Do Canadians pay more than Americans for the same products?'

http://dsp-psd.pwgsc.gc.ca/Collection/Statcan/11-624-M/11-624-MIE2004006.pdf

If I didn't have to sleep, I'd stay up all night...

It's not a new revelation to me, because I have realized this for years now, but I am officially an information junkie. I was an info junkie before the internet, and since then, KAPOW!, all of a sudden, anything I've ever wondered about is readily available and ready to be absorbed. It's amazing, really.

I used to go through encyclopedias -- not from cover to cover; I wasn't that hard-core -- and just try to understand and process what was in front of me. Some stuff was easily processed, other stuff, not so much, but that didn't stop me from exploring the hundreds, even thousands of pages of knowledge that I had readily accessible at my fingertips.

Of course, magazines were a quick fix, too, but some topics that I wondered about often weren't in magazines. The topics were quite often touched upon, though, or a sister topic was printed, thus fueling my craving for knowledge and briefly satisfying my curiosities.

Sometimes now, in the evening, I'll find intriguing capsules of information, and that page may link me to another topic, and that topic to another site, to another page, etc. At times, I'll become so immersed in the influx that I just almost hate to stop and go to bed!

I even love 'useless information' or 'useless trivia', as it is often referred to. I'll never ever use the info in any situation in life, but I may make someone go 'hmmmm', and I'll be creating a contagion!

Now if I could just find instruction on how to develop a photographic memory, I'd be all set...

L8r

J

The Cost of Living is going up, but My Paycheck is Staying Pretty Much the Same...

I will get quickly to my point, as time is of the essence:

Strange how our government and our employers go about their business, allowing price hikes, and in some cases, drastic ones, while we, the little guys, get our 'cost of living' raises which is supposed to, in their eyes, and in the end, equal the price hikes which are skyrocketing out of control...if you can figure it out, let me know, because I'm becoming frustrated with the whole situation...I'll finish this little rant in a future post.

Thanks for listening,

J

Just a Few of the things that I am thankful for...

In today's society, & with the pace that life is passing us by -- second by second, minute by minute, day by day, and even year by year [where have they gone?!?] -- it is all too easy to get caught up in the shuffle, to find yourself wishing for a better house, a newer car, a healthier bank account [!], and totally and completely neglect to reflect and be thankful for all of the 'blessings' and gifts that have been presented to us each and every day.

Without further ado...

[A Few Things That] I'm Thankful For:

A Great and Mighty Savior in Jesus

My wife

My son Zachary

My daughter Olivia

The Air I Breathe

The Songs I Sing

To Be Able to Get Up In The Morning

My Health

Family

My Church Family

My Home

My Job

My Car

My 'Stuff'

My Talents And Abilities

Friends...

Another Day To BE THANKFUL...:)

CHEERS! AND BE THANKFUL for today and for the ones that follow...

L8r

J

Random tho'ts...

I believe that 'we', as a society, have been lulled into a false sense of security, world-wide, and our gov'ts and media are forcibly shoving our collective noggins into the sands of oblivious ignorance...too few people actually have the desire and/or the wherewithal to lift their heads up and take a stand against the blatant tyranny...

...just a tho't...:)

J