Window Shopper

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The gist of it is that we are in need of a new television set. We have tried for a few months now thinking that it would last a few more years but the fact is we are running out of time. The set is about to go down the tubes, so to speak. It has been in our family now for about 10 years. Not bad for a television that runs far more than it was meant to run. And, of course, the fact remains that in less than a year, the analog television will pretty much be history, at least for the purpose of getting signal without help from a converter.

Okay, so we should go out and get a new set. Not as easy as all that. For one thing, it’s Christmas time. The funds are going out for presents for the family, something I look forward to and dread at the same time. LOL! Nope. We do not have the money to be using on a television right now. But I had my eye on one that is really not that expensive. But then, you think about all the extras that we are probably going to get too. What extras? Well, our vhs player is almost shot too. Then, we could use a new DVD player. But what is really intriguing to my husband are those little boxes called HDMI switches. He wants one of those to make it all work together. Now, my idea was to keep it simple, right? Not these days. No way. You have to bring in the techoweenies to get the job done in a sensible way. That’s why my husband is fixing the whole thing when we do get the set and accessories, not me. I have no clue. So there you are.

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I have told you before about my family and their need for making lists at this time of year. And I have mentioned how impossible it can actually get if you cannot think of a thing you really want or that they could afford even if you did want it, whatever it is. Now that the biggest part of the buying is over, do you start thinking about what they actually got? Did you “pad” your list with those things that you secretly hope they will buy for you so that you don’t have to go out and get it yourself? Ah ha!

I think I really did do a bit of that but mostly I couldn’t think of too much that I wanted. It’s an amazing thing. You live your life dreaming of things you want, places to go, people to be around. But when someone starts to ask you what you really want, it’s freeze up time. It is for me, at least. There are people who would list half of the store if allowed.

Now, I truly want a new car, a house to live in for the rest of my life and a couple of laptops..one of me and one for my husband. They are practically essential to our making a living these days. THOSE are the things I really, really want. But it’s extremely unlikely that our family could do any of those things. Times are hard and dreams can sometimes be too far out there. But some day, I will have the things I want. I believe.

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I realize that the last minute gift ideas can be difficult to come by but this idea works especially for your resident sports fan. Now you can get your sports fan a dog tag that has the sport, the name of the person and/or an additional line on the tag. The symbols are for such things as football, basketball, baseball, soccer, bowling, hockey, stockcar and much more. As you can see in the picture below, I was able to get one for football since I’m a fan of the Dallas Cowboys. Go Cowboys!

(The name of the person was blurred out on purpose. The tag looks great!)

But you do not have to limit yourself to sports because the tags can say just about anything you like. Except for obviously things that are not nice, you can have what you like engraved on the dog tags. If you have a love interest and you would like to give him or her something that is very different, this is your gift. As I said, the sports fan will love the dog tag to announce to the world what they love. So, pick a tag, pick a color, pick the words you want engraved and you’re in business!

Now, depending on how elaborate you want it to get, you have your dog tag ready to ship. One of the coolest parts is that they’re not expensive! For some fun in your life, get the dog tag!

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Our webhosting service had some problems but we are back up and running again with a small gap in our blogging.

All of our thoughts have turned to Christmas. Have you noticed the date? Have you noticed how close Christmas really is already? I still have shopping to do. It’s sometimes difficult because what I want to get is usually hard to find. The online stores are great for the hard to find stuff IF I can think about it in time. I took a chance today and bought three things that I am not truly sure will make it here before the big day. And of course, there are a couple of things that must be sent out of town too. That cannot be good with only 15 more official shopping days left before Christmas. Obviously, we do not have nearly as much time for mailing things. Sigh. Sometimes it’s a real chore getting things to their destination on time and in good shape.

Have you had problems finding what you were looking for? I have. For instance, there are some movie titles that just are not available. But I did find a really rare title quite recently. It is supposed to be shipped out already but it might not make it here on time. Since our family celebrates a day early so that those of us who travel can be home on Christmas day, we even have less time.

I usually figure the cutoff time for shipping things, to be safe, is around the 7th or 8th of December. I usually do not order anything else that has to be mailed to me. After that date, I have to depend on the local (Hahahaha) stores. All that does is spur me on to getting my shopping done earlier in the year most Christmas seasons. This year was a tad late getting started because of money…yes, money again. It’s always about the money, isn’t it. But blogging has been a real saving factor this year. Because of our blogging for payment, we were able to actually HAVE Christmas presents. If we had not had this, there would have been a serious shortage for the kids and the adults. We are grateful that we can do this. And this is not the post to lambast the big g for what it has done. This is an upbeat post.

So, what is happening with you? Are you getting your shopping done or are you one of those who figure that it’s just as easy to shop at the last minute? Did you learn nothing from “Jingle All The Way?” Arnie was desperate and so will you be if you wait that long to buy your presents, especially for your wife or husband. Oh, not good.

We can talk about this after Christmas and share what we got, okay?

Happy Christmas Shopping to all and to all a good night!!!

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Every year, our family wants us to think of all the things we want and post it online in a list. Then, when everyone starts buying things for others, it really is important that no one gets someone else the same present. For one thing, that’s less returning to the stores who are getting to be a bit more picky about holiday returns.

The problem I have is that when I get some of this list of already purchased items, I tend to forget it almost as fast as I heard it…at least selective items…and always the wrong ones. It is such a pain. The worst part is that I can fix the problem by simply writing it all down. What a concept!!! Sigh. But I do not do that. Mostly, it’s because I get this information over the phone, sometimes when I’m already doing something else. Yet, if I would just write it down on something, it would save a lot of hassles. Why? Because there was duplication this year. And it was all my fault!!!

I will not go into details because my family reads some of my blog. So, I will only say here that it would be in your best interests, if your family does such things, to have a handy spiral notebook to write these things down so that they are not forgotten. See, between my sister and myself, we are the keepers of all the family holiday secrets. If one knows, the other one usually knows too. And I forgot!!!

So, one of the holiday shopping don’ts is to make certain that you have an original idea before purchasing that big gift. Another thing is to check to make sure that whatever you want to buy will be available by the time you go after it. Too many times, we have seen that product on the shelves all the way up to the last week before Christmas. We got the money together, went into the store and……it wasn’t there. We usually had wanted that particular item to be the BIG GIFT but they ran out. And it truly is bad that this particular store no longer handles lay-a-ways. Sigh.

For a wonderful holiday gift giving time, make sure there is no duplication and check the store for availability before you count too much on that item.

Happy Shopping!!!

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As I have said before, we live in a rural area of the Ozarks in what used to be a retirement village but these days it’s really more of a retirement and family village. Quite often, especially in the summer time, we will see the moving vans bringing new families and retired folks here from other parts of the country. They are from such varied places that they tend to form clubs or groups of people from a particular state.

Also often, we see the bigger moving vans that bring people who have a job with large companies that relocate them here for the purposes of starting up new offices or stores. It has happened once in a while that a family will come here because of a corporate relocation, meaning that the company will find and arrange for a place to live. I rather like that companies are willing to do that.

The main thing is that our area is growing pretty fast now. It will take our village many more times the number we have living here now to fill up but some day that will probably happen. Right now, you can still see wild life in your front yard on certain days. Not bad.

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At this time of year, we turn our thinking to Christmas and giving. While this subject should be thought about all year long, I did want to bring up one particular organization that is so great that I cannot go without telling you about them. I am talking about Car Angel Ministries. If you have not heard of them before, this is the time of year to be blessed with seeing what they can accomplish.

The folks at Car Angel specialize in helping a person donate their car to a needy person or family. For instance, when my husband was about to get a new job with computers, he needed a car badly but could not afford one. Unfortunately, no one was there to help him and he lost the opportunity to have the dream job he wanted.

Today, Car Angel could help with just such a problem. They are there to help teen mothers, single parents, homeless people, teens and adults in rehab and many others who cannot afford such a familiar item as a car. If you have an extra car, they can help you help others. They take care of everything for you! These folks are looking for car donations especially at this time of year because it is heading into winter and families need the transportation. Won’t you help?

Here for your enjoyment is a wonderful children’s song.

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Now that I am older, I do not have to spend as much time in the bathroom in front of the mirror putting on makeup or trying to do so. There were times when I thought that the makeup itself was out to get me. A confession needs to be inserted here. I was never very good at putting on makeup anyway. Maybe if I had bought more makeup mirrors, had them in my room, in my purse as well as the bathroom, I would have done better but I doubt it. It just was not in me to have a load of makeup on my face to start with.

Growing up, I was not allowed to have makeup on until I was seventeen. That sounds excessive these days but back in the dark ages (the 60s), it was more appropriate to wait until a person started to grow up a bit before having all those so-called adult things. The makeup was only allowed at special functions like dances and dates. And I was okay with that. It was a different time.

Currently, I could care less if I have on makeup. YEAH!!! I’m free, I’m free. And I realize that women everywhere are asking themselves “what is wrong with that woman??” and my answer would be that I never really liked all that stuff on my face so I rarely used any of it. Please do not comment here what a heathen I am, please. I think women with makeup on are beautiful. I just don’t want to spend the money on that anymore.

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So, how well do you know them? Frankly, I thought I knew more than I did. Of course, one of the movies was one I have never seen so that sort of changes things. But where are you on the trivia expert list for Disney movies? Want to find out? Here is a quiz that will help you along.

And since it’s in the middle of the buying time for Christmas, I suggest you look into the whole Disney collection for the whole family. We have enjoyed many movies made by Disney. Most are a total hit, regardless of age or gender. Everyone loves Disney movies.

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