We don't do Christmas gifts here. Back when we had a lot less money, we tried to buy something for all the appropriate people in the family The only way we could do that was to use a credit card, which never got paid off completely. We finally told our relatives we only wanted to buy gifts for the children, which made it much more affordable. At some point, we even opted out of that, since all the grandchildren were grown.
So when Black Friday comes around and my email is full of invitations to buy things at rock-bottom prices, I've looked for things that Cliff and I could use while their on sale. This year for the first time ever, I couldn't even find one thing I needed or wanted. I did look at toasters because the one we have gets one side done while the other side is barely toasted at all. But we've learned the hard way that all toasters these days are junk, and as I read the negative feedback on two or three of them, I knew I was wasting my time. We bought a toaster oven once that did a good job on toast, but it took up too much room on the counter to suit me and I got rid of it.
So here I am, no longer wanting to buy the latest gift or gadget. There's nothing I want or need that money can buy.
We had a happy Thanksgiving shared with the family of our oldest grandson's Significant Other; their tribe blends very well with ours.
Cliff's late brother's oldest son joined us Thursday, along with his wife. They invited us to their Thanksgiving celebration on Saturday (tacos!!!). Cliff took them up on it; I wasn't all that excited, simply because there wouldn't be that many people I knew and I am not very comfortable in that situation. Honestly, I don't want to go anywhere these days, especially when it's cold. And the nephew lives an hour's drive away in Peculiar.
But now I am SO glad we went.
Cliff's brother Don died a few years ago. They were eighteen months apart in age, and had a very close relationship all their lives. Cliff still says he misses him every day. All three of his sons were there, absolutely overjoyed to see their uncle, and he was thrilled to see them. We see Scotty, the oldest, quite a bit, and Bryan maybe once or twice a year. But we hadn't seen the youngest, Shawn, for a long time. He's the one who, from a distance, resembles his father a lot; he even walks like his father did.
I told the three to get together so I could take a picture, and they wanted Cliff to join them in the shot. I agreed. The picture doesn't do any of them justice; Cliff hates how he looks in it (he said to me, "I guess I'm just ugly"). I actually took four shots, but this was the only one where they were all looking at the camera and Cliff had at least a little bit of a smile.
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| Shawn, Cliff, Bryan, and Scotty |
Their mom was there, so I had a good visit with her.
This is what I woke up to Sunday. I'm ashamed to say it, but I didn't go to even one of my two churches. The thought of getting out of my pajamas and warm robe, then going out in the cold and tromping through snow, was just too much. I will pay for that omission all week, because when I don't go to church on Sunday, the week literally feels like it will never end.What have I become? I used to put on Carhartt coveralls twice a day and go milk my cows. I wouldn't even skip going for my walk in winter. Now I don't even want to stick my head out the door.
Peace.
