We didn’t have much wrapping paper to throw away this Christmas because the presents were quite small. With a daughter in college, we’d planned a low key Christmas. When the furnace went out, we downgraded to frugal. The day before Christmas when Hiram’s chain saw breathed its last breath we ramped lower, to practical gifts only.
There were advantages to such a Christmas. Expectations were low. Like I said before, there wasn’t much mess to clean up after we opened gifts. I don’t need to buy paper or bows next year because there are plenty left. And all three of us paid more attention to stocking stuffers that made practical gifts.
Anne wandered through the house last week hunting for fingernail polish remover. We didn’t have any, at least until she emptied her Christmas stocking. She couldn’t find a Sharpie marker either, so guess what Hiram and I got? When Anne’s at college, Hiram’s constantly asking me to read the fine print on packaging which I can’t see any better than he can. So the magnifying glass that caught my semi-blind eyes as I searched Target for cheap, practical gifts ended up in his stocking.
Hiram remembered our last bout without power and the mad scramble to find flashlights, none of which worked. So he got me two new ones, complete with batteries. That’s a pretty neat trick. When we have working flashlights we don’t lose power, so we’re set for the rest of the winter.
To prove that we have flashlights, Anne snapped this picture of me on Christmas morning. Which brings me to the last practical gift possibility. Between my expression and bed head, anybody who reads this blog has potential blackmail material which could fund future Christmases. But you might as well wait to blackmail me until after the bills are paid. Unless, of course, you need flashlights. Then you can contact me right away. I’ll fork over the flashlights and get directions to your house so we can move in with you when our power goes off.
Don’t worry, we’ll make ourselves useful reading all your fine print. The magnifying glass is already packed.
