Christmas shopping...

I think I've been on record that I get a little grumpy this time of year. I LOVE Christmas. I enjoy giving gifts. I enjoy seeing the excitement on the kids faces when they get what they have been dying to get (until they see a commercial on TV for a new toy). I enjoy the food (Lord, I do loves me some Christmas goodies).

What makes me grumpy is that everything is crammed into a short period of time right in the middle of hunting season. We have 4 family gatherings, not including the one Shelly prefers to have with just our little family. There is always a Christmas party or so, and there is shopping to be done. You also have the big mess of dragging out all of the Christmas decorations from the attic, decorating, then stashing the empty boxes back out of the way (ours are still in the entry hall, but by golly, the tree is up and decorated) There are not enough weekends to do it all while still fitting in a hunting trip or 3.

This year has worked out pretty well so far. I'm in a MUCH better mood because Shelly allowed me to block out 1 weekend between Thanksgiving and Christmas to hunt without pressure of other events. I don't play golf, watch stick & ball sports on TV, etc, so she has given me a hall pass a couple of times to get my hunting out of the way. We've even managed to get all of the family gatherings grouped into just 2 weekends to make the getting back and forth to each of them a little less hectic.

NOW, all that's left is the shopping. I like buying toys and stuff for the kids, but sometimes there are some real idiots in the stores.

Case in point, Monday night, Shelly asked me to run by Target on my way home to get a particular toy for Jonathan. Easy enough, right? Nope. It is a Duplex Blocks deal, sort of like a Lego set, but appropriately sized for a 19 month old. It was cold and drizzling outside and I managed a decent spot right off the bat. So far so good. I grabbed a buggy and prepared to run the gauntlet.

As I reached the toy section, all was good. The place was not overly crowded and there was still a decent selection left, so it's looking to be a nice "grab-n-go" type evening. That is until I get to the Lego aisle. There SHE is. This woman was straight in from the backwoods of East TX. You know the kind. Lives several miles down a dirt road. Lots of cars up on blocks in the yard. Sher's standing SMACK in the middle of the aisle. One of her kids is sitting on the floor at the other end of the aisle playing with toys (opening them & playing with them). The other kid is pushing the buggy back and forth on the aisle, with no regard for anyone else being there..

The woman is dressed in flannel type pajama pants and Crocs. She is large as you would expect, and she is loudly talking to herself. I tried to go around her on both sides, but she refused to budge. I finally abandoned my buggy and went in without it. This woman is standing in the middle of the aisle, talking quite loudly to no one in particular, complaining about the selection & pricing. She was complaining about the cost of a $20 set of Legos. Her complaint that she kept going on and on about was that a similar set was cheaper at Wal-Mart and had more pieces. Then she started complaining about another set, which again Wal-Mart was better and cheaper.

What made this scene so insane was that Wal-Mart happened to be right next door to this particular Target store. In the time this lady spent complaining about the prices and selection, she could have walked her happy butt next door and bought what she was looking for.

I guess in the end, I did get what I was shopping for with little trouble, and I did get some of the entertainment I've come to expect from my shopping trips.

More shopping to come, so look for more posts in the next few days.