Merry “Giftmas!” ‘Tis the Season for – Shopping!! … Sunday Musings
The holidays are upon us! The Holidays Are UPON US! Yikes!
Here’s how we knew the holidays were here. We walked into a local store two days before Halloween and the Christmas decorations were up. Holiday music was playing! I ran around picking up last minute things muttering, “I’m not ready…I’m not ready!”
The problem I have with “Giftmas” is the relentless game of electronic “top this!” Yes, we have a capitalist society underpinnning our democracy. People and corporations need to make a living, and we do that partly by producing and selling stuff. But me thinks we’re out of control: we don’t toss electronics because they are broken, we’re like little kids, tossing them because we’re bored and a new one caught our eye. It’s planned obsolescence to the 9th power.
Some think they need a new cell phone every time a cooler one comes out. PC users get new computers almost yearly. We toss printers, laptops, clocks, iPods, CD players, and electronic toys of every stripe with reckless abandon. We have forgotten or ignored that there is no “out” — where do things go when you “toss them out?”
Christopher Jordan, renowned photojournalist, has chronicled our electronic and other waste. The GreenGuide printed some of his photos.
Seeing those photos made me think hard about the holidays.
Sure – I enjoy shopping for a special person (and for myself!)
I’ll be more circumspect about it this year.
Many of you know I’ve been a part of the World’s Biggest Blog Party for the past couple of months. The photos from Christopher Jordan and the WBBP blog started by Tim Richardson has given me a couple of ideas. I blogged about it at the World’s Biggest Blog Party Site.
I’m thinking a donation to a couple of my favorite charities along with a small memento of that charity might be, in the long run, more meaningful and more useful for many of my loved ones. (Quick, tell me what you got last Christmas!!)
So I’m looking for little animal ornaments — easy to mail, one size fits all. Then I’ll donate money to either PACC911 or DreamChaser Premarin Mare Rescue in their names.
There are also a few books that I’ve enjoyed throughout the year (those are those flat paper devices with a binding on the left side – kinda like the old fashioned ‘how to manuals for your electronics only bigger.)
Books are easy to mail, unbreakable, easy to carry. Many booksellers (including me*) will mail them directly to your loved ones with a note from you.
I challenge you to think outside the box this year — the electronic box that is. Be more mindful of where the old electronic toy is going if you must replace it. Find a local vocational school that teaches electronic/computer repair and give them your old stuff to work on. Or find a charity that collects used cell phones to distribute to people who just need one in case of emergency (911 works on all cell phones even without a hookup to a carrier.)
Give a gift of love this holiday to our environment while you are out shopping. Your great grandkids will be glad you did.
Happy Hunting!!
Beth
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Beth Terry is a Certified Speaking Professional and Trainer who travels the world conducting training programs and speaking to conventions and conferences. Her high energy and humorous programs are filled with common sense, practical, memorable and do-able tips and tools. Topics: How to handle crazy times and difficult people, Overwhelm, Stress, Change, Difficult Customers, Difficult Employees, Difficult Bosses. Contact Beth for customized programs. [To avoid spambots, here’s the address for you to type in: BethContact @ BethTerry dot com]
Her books, Walking in a Crowd of Angels * and 101 Ways to Make Your Life Easier are Great Ways to get your loved ones motivated and inspired over the holidays and into the new year. Order today!!
© 2007 Beth Terry Seminars, Inc
* While supplies last. We are down to the last box of our First Edition copies of Walking In a Crowd of Angels. This is the book that was distributed at the Pentagon to families who lost a loved on in the attack of 9/11
