toys...

this past sunday i thought i'd get a head start on the holidays by going ahead and picking two children from the angel tree at church. seeing as how i don't have children and haven't had "toys" on my christmas list for many years now, i chose the tags from the tree not really knowing what i was getting myself into.

let's rock elmo seemed simple enough, i'd had a tickle me elmo when i was younger so i thought it was a good pick. $60 later at target, elmo was mine. reasonable? no. since when is it okay to charge people $60 for a stuffed animal that sings? since never.

next on my list, i decided to go for something a little more educational so i chose the leapfrog leappad explorer. little did i know that a) this is basically an ipad for kids meaning it's $100 and b) it's actually $200+ because it's sold out e-ver-y-where so you have to buy it on ebay or amazon from people who are re-selling it to turn a profit.

so i'm just going to say it. you people should be ashamed of yourselves. how can you justify buying children's toys only to re-sell them to parents for two, sometimes three times the original cost? it's scrooge like. the economy is bad and parents are having a tough time as it is without you putting your greedy spin on christmas and gift giving.

what's more ... leapfrog, come on. how have you possibly run out of these before thanksgiving? get your act together so that i can find one for the original price and make this child's christmas happy.

the wave

how is it that a gesture as simple as raising your hand and moving it from side to side a few times forgives most traffic violations against other drivers? or, the absence of the wave can cause major road rage towards an offending driver?

i don't think that the wave holds as much power in other parts of the country as it does here in the south. take new york city for example: i'm not sure i could get away with cutting someone off and then simply waving a, "thank you," to them. i'm quite sure that they'd assume that any hand gesture is someone giving them the finger and wouldn't be able to understand the common courtesies that are a part of everyday life down in dixie.

i have to admit that when i let someone over in traffic and i don't get a wave, my road rage, which has become increasingly worse, swings into full gear. i somehow restrain myself from pounding on the horn, but i usually give them an extremely exaggerated wave in return, hoping that they at least took the time to glance into their rear-view mirror. i mean, how much energy does it take to raise your hand to the person who just did you a favor? for some people, the answer is, "too much".

a society gone casual

i would like to know how people decide that they're going to dress up to go on a date friday night and the bar saturday night but then when they decide to go to church on sunday morning, they're in jeans and a north face fleece. listen, i get it if you are in a financial situation that does not allow for the purchase of "sunday clothes," but the large majority of people who stroll into church sunday morning looking like they left the house to make a starbucks run instead of a respectful worship service, aren't in any kind of financial situation. one of the aforementioned culprits i saw last sunday was wearing jeans with holes in them and tory burch flats. honey, if you're wearing $200 ballet flats, go on back home and put on something without holes in it. how do you not know that of all the places you go, church is the place where you should be the most respectful and that includes dressing the part.

church isn't the only place where this happens, it's just the worst offense in my opinion. i was at blumenthal performing arts center last weekend for west side story and there were people there in jeans and sweatshirts. again, if you bought the $100+ dollar ticket to be in that theater, you can afford a dress.

while i'm at it, weddings at 6p.m. or later imply black tie. don't be scared to wear a floor length dress or a tuxedo.

the end.

how long is too long...

to continue wearing college clothes? i don't necessarily mean things i've had since college, but the style of clothing you wore in college.

now let's not get too carried away here. the "go out tops" have been long gone, replaced mainly by "go out sweaters" for the cold nights in jackson hole. the greek t-shirts were given away as well, as much as i wish i could still walk into a fraternity band party and have them think i was a student, sigh...

i'll first start with the clark's wallabees. i love these shoes. they're extremely comfortable and cozy and they go with almost every casual (very casual) outfit that i own. i have them on right now and i will continue to wear them until they fall off my feet. does my lower half look like i'm going to sigma chi derby days? perhaps, but i'm okay with that.

what about ralph lauren oxford shirts? preferably the original ones before they started making the slim fit. these are rarely worn but when i put one on i remember why i still own one in every color. they're comfortable, and go perfectly well with my wallabees ...

the face tattoo may have begun in my college days, but that's not something i'm giving up anytime soon, much to allan's chagrin. you can wear them to every sporting event and beleive me, i do. clearly i have a pack of T's for football season. i also happen to have bobcats face tats and while i don't have panthers face tats at home, i just love getting one painted on right outside the stadium. GO TEAM!

so the moral of this post is ... i don't care if i'm not supposed to wear wallabees, oxfords or face tats anymore, i like 'em all so i'm not stopping!