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  1. I have now 250. There will be no buy buy here. I just hope to pay my utilites next month. Christmas is Christ. The only reason for Christmas. I have a free cell now. Had to cut my phone off. Internet will be next if I dont have a miracle. Im believin!

  2. All my shopping was done via internet and done by November 1st. Crowds of noisy people make me nervous. I was having lunch with a friend on a weekday and it was a noisy restaurant and I looked around and even older couples were on their phones. I guess they didnt have anything to talk to each other about. It baffles me at times. I know I sound old at 48, but I wish for the simple times in my day, in the 80's! Ha Ha.

  3. Rude is rude no matter how you put it. Children with cell phones annoy me. I believe they should be used for calls to the parents for emergencies only when getting out of school or going to school. Texting is ridiculous. I don't text. My poor cell phone has no camera and is not fancy. It makes phone calls and receives calls (we no longer have a land line) and that is it. As for people who talk on them in public, WHY OH WHY, must it be at the top of their lungs!!?!?! Shut OFF your cell phone in a restaurant, restroom or in a close proximity location in public. As for Christmas presents, we only buy the kids in our families presents – that extends to age 18. After that, a card is nice or if the adults want to exchange names. Our youngest children in the family are now 13 and 15. We give one present, NOT expensive, and that's it. The kids always get a gift from the other adults in the family and that amounts to just enough gifts to satisfy and not too many to pile up in the house. We always give our mother a gift as she is our mother, after all. Our father has passed on. I guess what I am trying to say is, adults don't NEED to have ALL of their WANTS satisfied. And, usually, if there is something we want during the year, we end up getting it for ourselves anyway. The "junk" reality shows on TV that show the likes of the Kardashians, (how is that a REALITY?) put grandiose ideas of need, need, need, want, want, want into youths' heads and they think they JUST HAVE TO HAVE IT to keep up with their friends. (Those are the parents I would like to smack – the ones giving their kids whatever they want to keep up with the Joneses.) I have few wants nowadays except to move from our present location and good health. Like the saying goes, "If you have your health, you have everything."

    Cate

  4. Brenda, I truly love your posts and agree with everything said about the shopping, the phones, and all that. It's weird to feel that someone we've never met in person could be considered a friend, but I do. I'm sorry you don't have a relationship with your kids.It must be hard for you. I hope you have a nice Thanksgiving and you feel better soon!

  5. I laughed pretty hard when I saw that and I wish I could do that to many people, especially the ones that talk in the ladies room. I take great pleasure in flushing the toilet over and over again, sometimes they get the hint and other times I believe they are too stupid to figure out what they are doing is not appropriate. I never go out on Black Friday because I don't think there's anything that important for me to wake up and leave the house by 4:00 or 5:00 am to get a "bargain." I order most of our stuff online in the comfort of our home and pay no shipping and sometimes no sales tax and that's much nicer than fighting the crows and I can even drink coffee while I'm shopping.

  6. When I was young, a million years ago, Christmas was so different. On Christmas Eve Day we would all end on our little Main Street. The street then still had lots of little shops and stores,and all were decorated for the season. Friends and neighbors were strolling around visiting, some looking for last minute gifts, but most just enjoying the time together. The of good will toward men was very strong. No one was talking on a cell phone, we just talked and enjoyed each other company. I wish we could have those days back again.

  7. I agree, people are no longer talking to each other? I do NOT go out or do any shoping on BLACK friday…no gift is worth that. Today people are obsessed with the "deal". I'm pretty much making all my holiday gifts this year. It means more to me and hopefully them too! Did you ever get my package…it never came back to me either? There was something really nice inside :-{

  8. Nicely said, Brenda. However, the adults in our family no longer exchange gifts, but i do enjoy giving gifts to my four grandchildren. They are still small and I love watching them open their presents and get so excited! I like Christmas, but it is no way my favorite holiday. It makes me crazy to see people lined up at those big box stores, camping out waiting for their "Black Friday" bargains. Talk about distorting the meaning of Christmas! And I also despise the name Black Friday. Cell phone, take it or leave it…They are a necessary evil these days. I also do not carry it on my person, therefore I miss a lot of calls and texts. Oh well…..

    1. I am so glad I found the link for you. It is funny and timely for your post today! I loved it. My cat jumps every time I laugh out loud at it to. Cheers.

  9. Brenda this is a such a good post and very timely. I agree no black Friday for me and no holiday shopping. I am a introvert and just recovering from a broken ankle so I have no interest in crowds . I stay out of stores from November to January except for groceries. The entire holiday has been taken over by materialism to a absurd degree. Now that my Mom is dead my Brother and I do simple gifts like socks and a book. Its more about spending the day together and having a homemade dinner. My friends and I do not give gifts.
    I watched Momr for years stress over gifts she could not afford and spend the rest of the year paying them off. I think its all ridiculous. I would rather get together with friends over a meal after the holidays then give gifts or make a donation to a local charity in their name.

    Regarding the cell phones I agree. As I am the only person responsible for a mentally challenged Brother, I have to have mine on 24/7 and I carry it with me but more times then not its on vibrate. No need to have it ringing and it stresses me out to hear it ring. It is a very old cell so its not smart enough to do much on. I try not to talk in public . I have a very nosy landlady on the other side of my walls who likes to listen in so often I go in my car with the windows up to a park to make calls. But I refuse to do calls in public. My cousin gave her kids I-Phones for safety but they use them all. the time and do not communicate with anyone around them… I find that very sad. I saw the funniest example of someone in Germany talking on a cell phone in a doctors office and the lady next to her finally grabbed it and threw it on the ground. Its on U-tube and very funny. It is how most of us feel when we are subject to listening to private matters now in public. I think its very low class behavior to talk, on a cell in public.
    I wish I was near to help you out. Be careful driving and good luck in therapy. Staying in bed is a good choice for the day.

    1. Oh, I have got to see that! How many times I've wanted to do that very thing, but was afraid I'd get arrested or assaulted. Of course, if you're already in the doctors office, you'd get fast medical help!

  10. I don't think I can say it any better than you Brenda and all these other ladies have..and as for the Mother in the store promising her child a toy if they will just be good..You have certainly taught your child how to get a toy every time you are shopping..haven't you?

    1. Exactly. A child will not behave at all when they know if they act out enough, they will get a present!

  11. Great post, very relevant right now. I liked reading all the responses (what happened to Java Talk?).

    I agree with you on how monstrous people can be around the holidays in the stores, it's frightening and you know that I don't like crowds either but I'm getting better. For a few years I did just too much online shopping and I became really out of touch with the whole "giving" aspect of Christmas, I felt I was simply crossing names off a list. I get a lot of creative ideas when I'm out at the mall as well, and sometimes just a smile and a warm greeting from a customer or salesperson can make you believe in humanity again. Every year I try to keep the gift giving in perspective, I'm a born "giver" and I think it's my own insecurity (and possibly the memories of being a child and yearning for things I never got), that makes me go overboard with my kids. This year I am truly working on giving them a few gifts from my heart and nothing on a list.

    I'm not sure how I feel about the phone thing. I think there is a time and a place. Once my daughter checked her Facebook page on her phone when we were out shopping and I went through the roof. She'll never do that again. I do use mine for a multitude of things. I read my local and city news, check my emails, my bank account, etc. I use the calendar and "notes" section and as far as texts…my family does a lot of that as you can get right to the point if it's something simple and you have that privacy if you are out in public.

    Hope you're having a good weekend. Yes, it's pretty gloomy here but the temps are fantastic!

    Jane x

  12. I agreed with everything you said in this post. I always enjoy reading the comments, too, because other people feel strongly, too, about a lot of the issues you address. I had to stop in Hob/Lob yesterday, and it was a zoo! I won't be back. I agree with one of the commenters that the joy of Christmas when I was a child was the anticipation and the activities leading up to it. My family didn't have much money, and out gifts were mostly homemade. I remember one year our gifts (usually underwear and socks and PJs made by my mother) were wrapped in the Sunday funny papers and tied up with kitchen string! Our tree was decorated with construction paper chains and ornaments, and the tree itself was cut by my father out in the woods on one his hunting trips.

    What little shopping I do now is done online for the most part. I don't like crowds anyway, and the unbearable rudeness is just too much. I would never do Black Friday, I don't care if they were GIVING it away (whatever "it" is).

    We are not having houseguests this year which makes me very happy to tell you the truth! It will be simple and stress-free (I hope!)

    Enjoy your peaceful TGV with the pups.

    1. I've learned that blood is not thicker than water, certainly, in the past three years. And to enjoy my pupsters, because they are my family. They might as well just close all the stores and let people shop online. Would save everyone a lot of money on electricity and such in store fronts. Would be sad, but then no one would get trampled.

    2. your post brought back so many good memories for me. We grew up in poverty so there was little in the way of presents . We were more thrilled about the décor, the baking and the songs It was being together as a family that mattered and having a special meal. My Mom carried forth a tradition of homemade stockings, homemade ornaments we all made together while eating Xmas cookies,, oranges and a piece of coal in the stocking. You probably remember that, each has a significance, one of prosperity one the opposite. , When she was little her parents did the same and we would discuss how those items would be used by others and considered a great gift,. I remember making popcorn strings, playing Christmas music, baking cookies by my Moms side and being thrilled to sit down to her special dinner. That was what Xmas used to be to us, it was about family. and the reason for the season. Thanks for bringing forth great memories for me,.

  13. The stores can be dissapointing. We walked in and bling every where. Hard to find good quality pjs, candles for a good price etc. we like items that help us to enjoy the coming year. I will make one batch of candy and my daughter will make a batch of cookies. There may be a change in circumstances for the following Christmases and I will be alone a good share of the day. If so I will play Christmas music and make sure I have a good amount of fabric to enjoy the day sewing away :). Brenda, does it ever surprise you that you served family for years and now find yourself alone because of selfishness on their part. I am learning to accept it but it wasn't in my plan. Stronger than I thought I was.

    1. Oh, it doesn't surprise me anymore. I sent my youngest daughter a birthday card this month and never heard a word. Will send the oldest one hers this week, and I won't hear a word from her either. I'm not in their "life plan." They don't have time for me, and I've had to accept that they don't want any relationship with me. My oldest emailed me that she'd get a restraining order if I contacted her again. (She is newly divorced and was angry that I told her if she didn't get the help I truly think she needs, then I would be backing her husband to get the grandchildren I haven't seen in a year.) Wonder if she can get a restraining order over a birthday card?

  14. The degree of consumerism in this country is actually oppressive! (I also wrote about this on my blog post today). and our grandchildren are getting notices from Samaritan's Purse that a gift has been given IN THEIR NAME to a needy child (children) in a poor country. Two years ago we gave up on all the gifting. I'm not condemning anyone for giving gifts, but in our family, at least, everyone has everything they need. It actually started to feel 'icky' to see piles of gifts in front of a child who already has far too much. There is a hungry and dying world out there. We need to remember that.

    1. It truly is. You're absolutely right. To think of all the hungry children and then see the greed in the eyes of those here in this country. What a contrast.

  15. I so agree. I never shop on Black Friday. I dont go to stores after Thanksgiving. Actually hardly ever anyway. I have a couple of stores not in a strip mall , like in our village, that I might go to. I mostly shop by the internet. I like to support small home town people or those doing independant like Origami Owl, hah.
    My granddaughter got in troubles for having a celll phone at school. It didn't work. He uncle gave his old one. She is FIVE . Lol
    I think many of us feel the same way. Hopefully others will learn from us.

    1. Now why on earth does a five year old need a cell phone? It's just a gadget for them to get in trouble with.

  16. I'm right there with you Brenda. Yesterday I went shopping for items I needed to work on some of my projects and the stores were already full with Christmas shoppers. Ugh! I can't stand crowded stores and couldn't wait to get what I needed and get out of there. I felt smothered. An then there was a little girl running around and ran right into me while her mother just stood there and gave me a nasty look like I was in the way. I will have to avoid the stores until after the New Year.

    1. I'm not known for my patience. I've been known, years ago, to say to children running amok in stores: "Stop that running right now!" These days I'd probably be arrested

  17. I was at Goodwill on Friday and was amazed at a woman talking loudly on her phone saying the "f" word several times and discussing her new form of birth control. I stopped and stared at her when she walked by me and she never even noticed. There were several children in the store. I wonder what she would have done if someone would have taken her phone from her and turned it off. Patients are more interested in texting or talking on the phone then listening to instructions on medication or incision care, then when they get home call back with questions about the instructions your were trying to give them before discharge. It's just amazing.

    1. Well, I know I would not be able to hold myself in. I'd be saying: "Turn your phone off and listen or I'm not going to fool with you." Of course I'd probably get fired! But oh, how good that would feel! I can't imagine your frustration with these idiots.

  18. I leave my cell phone in the car while shopping. My family knows and they know I will get back to them when I get back to the car. Since shopping causes anxiety for me anyway, I don't need to add to it with the ringing of a cell phone. I think a lot of people love it when their cell phone rings (i.e. my husband) ….. me, on the other hand, I get a surge of anxiety when I hear mine. Not pleasant at all!!

    1. Which is why mine is never turned on. If there's something someone needs from me, I recall the old days when I would get home from being out and listen to my little recorder. I can contact them then. We managed to live then without all this constant communication.

  19. I don't go out shopping on the day after Thanksgiving. I do not call that day "Black Friday," either. Ugh, it sounds like a satanic holiday. Which it seems to have become, with people running over each other in the mall parking lots and stampeding in the store aisles!

    1. This herd mentality, which was phrased above, just amazes me. It's like they turn into monsters without a thought in their frantic heads! Why don't stores give their employees the holidays off? Well, of course I know why. Greed.

  20. Very wise. I do my shopping for Thanksgiving on Monday and will not go back into a store until after that entire week. I would never fight a crowd for a gift. I buy most of my gifts online now anyway. You know how I hate crowds too. I really hate to see kids on devices at restaurants and even the older folks. Awful. My Quinn still has a little bag with colored pencils and stickers for making little pictures and books. Only in very long waits like maybe the doctor do I ever let her play a game on my phone. I try to keep her like my other kids and that is learning to occupy oneself simply.

    1. As I've been saying for years, you are a good mother, Elaine. Keep Quinn occupied with things where she can be creative and amuse herself for as long as you can!

  21. the herd mentality on black Friday is just amazing to me. I haven't seen enogh savings to make me want to be the target of frustrated, angry, rude people. I'd rather pay full price and live to tell about it.

  22. Just discovered your site and what do you know–your talking about what "The Mr." and I were discussing at dinner. The rampage, often doing harm to others, for a stupid TV or whatever they've been told "they must have" this season. The stores that will be CLOSED on Thanksgiving, will get our $ for Christmas shopping in DECEMBER.

  23. Hi Brenda…I have an iphone but never am I on it when I am out n about…and people who are are just plain rude!!I AGREE with you totally about Christmas also..kids do not appreciate things today..when I grew up if we got a new pair of socks we were in heaven…kids expect it all today…AND THEY GET IT! we loved to sing Christmas songs and help the elderly in the bursing homes when I grew up…or went outside and ice skated…those were the good old days! Carol

    1. Yes Carol, those…were the days my friend, I thought they'd never end… Now I've got that song in my head.

  24. I'm not a shopper on Black Friday because of the ridiculous crowds. Instead, that day is spent pulling out the Christmas decorations. I usually stay home too because the traffic is so bad. We do buy for our kids, but on a strict budget. I don't feel that we go overboard. I've certainly seen the outcome of over spoiling your kids through others that have bought theirs a brand new car when they turn 16 etc. Kids become arrogant and think they are more entitled than others. I do dread the over commercialization of the holiday on TV and in stores too. Everyone is out to get more and more. I find I want less and less the older I get. Some of that may be due to the fact that I've already acquired what I need. Now, I'm just left with a few wants. I find that I even decorate less each year. I don't feel the need for massive amounts of holiday décor dripping off every surface. And regarding your "plugged in" all the time question, I agree that it's sad to see no one interacting together in person while they're sitting together! We go out once a week but we try to have real conversation and save the phone for later.

    1. It is sad. The over commercialization. Which is like offering alcohol to an alcoholic for all the people out there that have a spending problem. And there are MANY.

  25. I love making gifts (with a few purchases) for my family and friends at Christmas. I knit or crochet all year to have something for everyone.

    I never thought I'd be so attached to my smartphone but I certainly am. My smartphone has made me stupid. ha I can't recall anyone's telephone number or appointments or anything else. I have it all spelled out for me at the touch of my finger. I only talk on it for a doctor appointment but I send and receive texts all day. I mute it for certain hours in the day and from 9 PM to 5 AM. I like my quiet time.

    1. I like my quiet time too. There was once a time when I could go into a store on a week day and just browse in silence. It was heaven. Now that's a thing of the past. Now I have to hear a bunch of people talking at once. And that sends me straight home!

  26. I get slightly annoyed at people carrying on full blown convos in any store…Go out side or in your car to finish the conversation, thank you. We try not to over do it with our kids and really try to promote giving to others less fortunate then they are. They are finally at an age where they are getting it and understand the need to give to others. Hope you have a nice thanksgiving. you are not going to be alone are you? we will be staying home and starting a new tradition with each kid being responsible for one part of the dinner. This should be interesting. Too bad you live a distance away, we would have you over!

  27. I hate going to the stores between Thanksgiving and Christmas so I will be shopping online for my daughters and grandchildren. We try to have a simple Christmas. Being with family is what is most important to me. I really look forward to just catching up with my daughters and reading to my grandchildren. When we go out as a family the phones are put away so that we can just be together. xo Laura

  28. Since I'm recovering from back surgery this holiday season I definitely won't be out in the stores shopping. But I found the last couple years anyway that shopping online is the way to go for me. I'm a true introvert that can't stand crowds, too much noise, and the overall rudeness of the general public these days. I also don't understand the need to be plugged in at all times…..people are missing so much of the beauty in life, and quality time with their kids. I wonder what society will be like in another 20 years. My adult daughter thinks electronics will be our downfall as a society and I totally agree with her!

    1. I agree with her too. Children are bullied and sexually harassed by other children through social media. One reason I don't do that stuff. I too am an introvert, and since I had ankle surgery less than 3 weeks ago, only place I'll be going is to physical therapy

  29. I'm the odd ball here. I use my smart phone all the time to read newspapers from towns where I used to live, read books, do crosswords, make shopping lists etc. What I rarely do is talk on it. But I do find it it very helpful when I am out and forgot to ask mum's nurse if we need more bed pads. Or when i see a new product, I can look it up to see if it might interest me.
    Why people feel the need to scream into them is beyond me. But then why do people insist on discussing life's intimate details with their friends in market lines where we have to hum to ourselves or sing out loud so we don't have to hear their revolting tales. Don't want to hear about the color of the postoperative discharge from someone's husbands rectum.
    No stores for me until after the new year. It hurts me to say this but I find the children's greed, demands and sense of entitlement very disturbing.

    1. I really don't care if they're quiet about it. It's when we have to hear everything that it is so revolting! Like you said: Who on earth needs to hear what color the discharge from someone's husband's rectum was? I bet he'd be horrified to know his rectum is being bantered about in a crowd of people!

      And I agree with you, seeing the childrens' greed just makes me so sad. You see mothers in the store promising a toy if they'll just be good. My goodness, how many toys must they have by now?

  30. Hi Brenda! It's going to be crazy at the mall down here in Sydney today, not because of Christmas shopping crowds, but we're expecting a wind from the desert to arrive later this morning which means a temperature of about 97 deg so we'll all be seeking out the free air-con 🙂

  31. I don't like the crowded stores and do as much as possible to avoid them. When we were kids about the only time that we DID get toys was Christmas and our birthday and having a few new dresses and a purse and shoes for back to school was a big deal. So that sea of presents under the tree was awe-inspiring to my sister and me though it really wasn't that much at all..it just seemed that way since it was so very special. I think that feeling is what we are all after at Christmas…whether through giving to little children or exchanging. But when I was young the main part was the build-up…starting with Advent, and Christmas carols in church, making the cut-out cookies with icing and sprinkles, etc. So basically the gifts are just one part of the season…it's the doing and making memories and following traditions or starting traditions that are the biggest part. My DIL went on a missions trip to the Dominican Republic in November of last year and then explained to the kids that THEY were getting less but would go shopping with her for really poor kids ( and she was / is not rich by any means ) so right there, she started a tradition and a good one 🙂

    Those phones : I have a smartphone because If I didn't my children would not communicate with me, lol. I don't use the Net on it nor have apps…just use the camera for food shots sometimes quickly in the kitchen and then it comes in handy when the kids text. "Running behind " "Do you need anything from the store" " Do you mind if you keep such and such child a bit longer so I can get an oil change" or sometimes it is " I am broke down on the side of the highway can you text me the AAA number "

    1. Well, you're right. It was all more important due to the build up. Though my family (great-grandmother) really didn't go in for holidays, so it was very muted. As for the phones, Triple A sent me a sticker with their phone number to put on my car window.

      I don't have much of a family. But no one will communicate with me if they can't use real English and who brutalize the English language. I am NOT going to text. I know I'm an old fuddy-duddy, but that's just fine by me.
      Brenda

  32. Brenda, I hate to see families with everyone staring at their phones and not talking. I also have NEVER seen a bargain that was worth the craziness I see in the stores. Too much WANT for sure. I enjoy giving but I like to find things that have meaning and will bring enjoyment to friends and family. My daughter and son in law limit what everyone can give Tiger so he doesn't get too much. He enjoys the new toys (and usually lots of books) and that is fun. He mostly gets toys that use imagination instead of batteries! Me, I'm just happy to watch my kids enjoy a few new things!

    Linda

    1. I'm not against the children having a wonderful time at Christmas. I have just watched some people go so far overboard, and then have a huge credit card bill they can't even pay off by the next Christmas, that hordes of presents just turn me off.

  33. I do not do Black Friday. Went once to a Toys R Us, and saw over 30 people in one line for ck out and said, No thank you, I'm outta here! Just not worth it! Our Christmas will be a quiet one, just the three of us.

    1. Before I had so much arthritis in my hands from a car wreck, some years I would hand make every single present. Back then, I don't think it was anyone's cup of tea. But it was more special to me for having done it. And why do they call it Black Friday anyway? I never have known.

  34. I had to go to the store this morning to pick something for my mom. Never again until the new year. ( I'll stop in on a week day before work). I was never so happy to get out of there. I am not a shopper anyway and it drove me nuts to try to get through the aisles. Lets just stand in the middle of the aisle and have long conversations, run people over, etc. I don't do Black Friday, I would really go nuts, couldn't even handle today. 🙂 People are just rude. Around here it is called deer hunters widows weekennd. While the men are up noth hunting the wives are shopping, going to stripper shows, etc. Then you have to go out on the streets. Think the stores are bad….? I will stay in my house the rest of today and get some sewing done. That is fast enough for me. 🙂

    1. I cannot imagine being one of those people who wake up at dawn and go shopping. What on earth could be important enough to rough house with the crowds? I've never done it, and I never will.

  35. Brenda, When you think of the horror of black Friday, the past few years..it is insane. Nothing material is worth a life. I am amazed at the on line shopping people are doing now…That really saves a lot of stress. I wish I lived near by Brenda…I would come check on you or bring you something to read or eat. Bless your heart, xoxo,Susie

    1. I called my doctor's office yesterday and told them if I didn't drive myself, I probably wasn't going to get to PT very often. So they said I could. So that's what I'm going to do.

  36. We love our holiday season, I think it helps us get through a cold, dark winter. Yesterday while getting my car's oil changed I was in the bathroom when a lady came in, went into a stall next to me and called her friend. She talked about what she had for lunch all while she was doing her personal business. Geeze… isn't that a private moment?

    1. You would think so. I think the things have done something to their brain to do something so silly. Be funny if her phone fell in the toilet!

    2. I just have to add here — once I was in a gas station restroom when another woman came in and talked on the phone while doing her business. She was telling another relative all about her upcoming court hearing and how much time she could end up spending in jail. Then they discussed another relative and how much time he was going to spend in jail. I did wonder just how someone could discuss such personal business in a public place. But, I figured that cell phone etiquette was about the last thing on that woman's mind! I hurried up and got out of there before we had to meet up face-to-face at the sinks. I didn't want to be in a position to have to identify her in a police line-up someday!

  37. Oh Brenda you put into words what I've been thinking for the last month. Do they really need it? Most of time the answer is no. I have a friend always complaining about another friend that's always on Facebook who has 6 kids. Then when I'm around my friend she's always on her phone and on Facebook and I think mom's used to raise their kids without those silly phones getting in the way of everything.

    1. Yes, we did. And sometimes our car got a flat tire, and we lived through it. There's lots of debate on what it truly does to our brains. But I don't think anyone really cares! And to let children, who's brains and bodies are still growing, have them? I frown on that. But then who would care?

  38. I couldn't agree more, Brenda! My mother, being the frugal soul she is, asked us many years ago to please stop giving her gifts she didn't need. Instead, we take her out for dinner on a random Tuesday or all chip in together and do a home improvement project for her. This year for her birthday I gave her a year's subscription to the newspaper and she was thrilled beyond belief. Our gift to her this Christmas is to have a monthly potluck dinner at alternating homes so she can enjoy all three generations of her family several times a year. In fact, it's a gift we're all excited about!

    I just came from getting a shot at the doctor's office this morning, and I was the only one in the waiting room not on a smart phone. Even small children had some type of device!I guess I'm old-fashioned–I brought a book to read.

    1. Well, then I'm old-fashioned too. And I don't think old-fashioned is a bad word at all. I did when I was young. People of all ages use these devices and say the darndest things that they wouldn't probably tell anyone, but they tell a whole store! Sometimes I stop my cart and stare at them, but they just look up for a second and don't get it at all. Back to chattering they go.
      Brenda

    2. It is really sad! I just went with my 7 year old daughter to the pediatrician this week and every child and parent had an electronic in front of them. REALLY weird. Or: we go to a restaurant and in the waiting area all five family members are waiting and staring at an electronic device. Where is the communication? I am old fashioned in that way, even though I LOVE my iphone (I love to message with my family in Germany for free).

    3. If we'd known 20 years ago how the American family would look today, what on earth would we have thought?

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