A Curious Statistical Anomaly

We had to go out and run errands today. I needed to get to Michael’s because I had a coupon for 20% off entire purchase but the sale ended at noon. I bought yarn for a sweater, some felted boots (I’ve had the pattern for a while), and for 3 pairs of socks. Now that the Christmas yarn is here I need to really buckle down to the knit part of my plan.

I don’t usually buy many gifts for Christmas. Throughout the year, if I see some small thing I think will be nice for one of the people on our list, I pick it up. I guess I should say that over the years we’ve cut down on our Christmas list. We now buy for my mother, my husband’s mother, and my son. That’s it. No nephews, nieces, cousins, brothers/sisters – in-laws, aunts, uncles, or second-cousins-twice-removed and reattached. They all get Christmas cards and a Christmas letter.

I feel Christmas is out of control. People spend more than they can afford in an effort to express something: love, friendship, control(?), obligation. When I hear from my family, extended family, and friends. I’m happy to know they’re fine and doing okay or to commiserate on bad luck, illness, or whatever. It’s family that’s important on the holidays not how much you spend. Love can’t be measured in money only in time and caring — and that’s better expressed in deeds than gifts.

So, I’ll knit love into my gifts with every stitch — thinking of the pleasure I get in making something with my hands that they will enjoy wearing and using. It’s my way of extending my love to their daily life even when I can’t be there.

I know I’ve read about this on some other blogs, and I had a long discussion the other day with my Mom about it. But, what happened to Thanksgiving? Here in Maryland we had Halloween, and now we’ve got Christmas. The only nod to Thanksgiving were a couple of pilgrim statues and some posted pictures of colorful turkeys at the local grocery store colored by local children. Of course there are turkeys in the store and the fixings, but if you didn’t know Thanksgiving was this week you couldn’t tell from all the Christmas decorations in all the stores.

For me, Thanksgiving is a time when families and individuals should be sitting down for a few quiet moments to think of all they’ve done this past year and all that’s happened in their lives and give thanks for what they have. I know that I have a lot to be thankful for. I have a loving husband, a home (it needs lots of TLC but we have one), a son who is healthy and mostly employed, friends who have been there when I needed them (and who I hope think I was there when they needed me) , and I’m still cancer free after 8 years post surgery. So, there are problems … who doesn’t have problems in their lives; but, in balance, there’s more good than bad.

Taking some time to appreciate the good that has happened to us over the past year sets us up mentally for Christmas — which to me is more about family, friendships, and giving than it ever was about getting. Perhaps, we all need to remember this little holiday that comes between candy (Halloween) and gift-getting (Christmas). Just maybe actually thinking about why there is a Thanksgiving holiday can help more of us realize that life is pretty good, and if it isn’t, then take some responsibility and start the steps that will make things look brighter next Thanksgiving. I’ve learned that it not Pollyanna-ish to recognize that no matter how bad things are for me, there are probably a lot of people that have problems that make my set of troubles look like blessings — it’s all about attitude. Set goals and look up. It is true that no one ever got anywhere only looking at the bad in life — how depressing is that anyway?

Guess that’s enough ramblings for this post. Did you know there’s only 34 knitting days until Christmas — and I’ve got a sweater and some socks to finish.

We had a bit of excitement this morning. Just about 2 minutes after my husband left for work, I heard a big thump sound that was very reminiscent of the thump of the trees that came down during Hurricane Isabelle a few years back. The problem was that at 7am there’s not that much light and it was pouring out with a fairly stiff breeze.

About 30 minutes later, I looked out all the windows again and thought I saw a dark mass on the road below our driveway. So, buttoning up and bring my heavy leather work gloves, I set off down the drive. About 50 feet from the end of our driveway several branches had come down out of the trees. The trees here in Maryland are tall, I mean they’re really tall, most are taller than our 3 story house — just for reference. So when a branch comes down in a storm (and today’s storm was pitifully weak) they often shatter and break up. I cleared off a lot of the smaller branches and bits and pieces but some of them were 9 to 12 feet long and about 6 inches in diameter so there was no way I could move them off the road. I called my husband and explained the situation to warn him when he came home.

Now a bit of explanation, we live on 5 acres about a quarter mile from the main road. The road the branches came down on is a dirt farm road that connects the four houses on it to the main road. This dirt road doesn’t get plowed, doesn’t get garbage pick up and is usually one of the last fixed if/when we lose power. So, since the branches only meant that the people in our house and the one just a bit farther up couldn’t get home until the blockage was cleared. My husband was at work, and the neighbors usually left about the same time he did — so I assumed the neighbors were gone too. Me, I work from home.

Bit later I hear a car out front, look out, and see the neighbor’s car backing into our drive to turn around to head back to their house. Hmmm. This might be a problem since the HE neighbor always goes in earlier, this must mean the SHE is stuck. So, I’m dithering about walking up to her house because I think the two of us might be able to clear the blockage but then,  it’s also possible that she’ll just take a day off — so dither, dither. Then the car comes back down the road, and I hear the door slam and a chain saw.

Well, a chain saw — I wouldn’t have dared try starting ours; they scare the heck out of me. But, I bundle up again and head down to see if I can help. It turns out, HE had a late day today. She’d already left for work. So, he cut the chunks up, I moved the smaller ones, he got the bigger ones, and in about 5 minutes it’s all cleared up.

Hubby comes home expecting to have to chain saw his way home and clear for the neighbors to find it’s already been done. So, it was a nice neighborly day of mutual help and cooperation. I really love living in the country — even if the trees throw their branches at us. Now if I could solve the falling leaf problem…