The Burrow

I have been stressed about this post for the past week.  I have absolutely no suggestions to give.  The whole topic is distasteful to me right now. It started when I realized that stores would be open on Thanksgiving Day... and yes, it counts as the day even if the sun has set.  It got me thinking about shopping in general and about a small item on NPR last week.  It seems that Governor Chris Christie revoked New Jersey's Blue Laws, saying that the post-Sandy recovery required it. And here we have a clear division among the denizens.  Those of you old enough to remember Blue Laws, or who live in New Jersey, know exactly what I mean.  Those of you who have always been able to shop on every day except Christmas (and, until this year, Thanksgiving) are scratching your heads.  Blue Laws, children, are regulations enacted to enforce a strict, religious standard. Can't buy alcohol on Sunday in your neighborhood?  That's a blue law.  New Jersey ...

I know a lot of talented women.  I am crafty at heart but lousy at execution; I've never knit anything that fit the person for whom it was intended. I have good handwriting, but calligraphy escapes me.  I am envious of those whose brains create items their hands can concoct.  I invite you to meet three women who fit in that category. Mei-Mei was featured last year, but her stuff warrants another look.  She spent some time in the hospital a while back, and came home with a suitcase filled with those comfy socks with the sticky patches on the soles. Wanting to give back to the medical community which tried to fix her problems, she made upcycled toys for the hospitalized children, and then she went to Etsy and began to market her wares . She made me a Lisbeth Salander doll, to celebrate my triumph over adversity. She'll make you a custom piece, too. Just tell her I told you she would. Know somebody who's going in for a knee replacement?  How about thi...

Thanks for waiting, denizens.  I took the weekend to put the past behind me.  TBG gave me a suggestion to improve my gait and I am now prancing around the house, lifting my knees and, miraculously, not rolling from side to side as I move. It's not fluid walking, but it will be. Now, on to my real life. ***** For the second installment of holiday shopping ideas, in an effort to get those gifts purchased, wrapped and ready before December rolls around,  I bring you the children of two of my friends.   I love talented offspring, especially those who are brave enough to strike out on an entreprenurial path.  I'm trying to stay away from suggestions which would send you to catalogs attached to international conglomerates; we're staying local this holiday season, trying to make a difference in small town economies all over America. Travel to Chicago with me, where Matt Bercovitz, playgroup member and wedding guest, has, among his other start-ups, create...

Welcome to the first of five shoppping guides, coming to you from the heart of Nannie, my gone-but-not-forgotten mother-in-law. She taught me everything I ever needed to know about creating the perfect holiday season; we started at her house for Thanksgiving and the joy went on through her son's birthday on January 2nd.  There were gifts by the hearth in the dining room when the kids arrived from the airport, and they were always exactly the right gift. She listened.  She planned.  She bought when she found it and stashed it in the closet until it was time to wrap.  She kept only-used-once-or-twice sheets of gift paper in the closet under the front steps; the massive rolls for holiday use lived in the sun porch.  Unheated, the bed covered with detritus of the season, the room offered a quiet escape when the festivities got to be too much.  "I'm going up to wrap," could buy me an hour of peace and quiet.  Nannie wrapped everything.  It to...

I want to go to each and every one of these places with each and every one of you.  Just look at all the fun we can have in Bloomington, Indiana  buying books at Howard's Bookstore  ( 111 W. Kirkwood)  and used ones at Caveat Emptor ( 112 N. Walnut) . They have no web presence; we'll have to drive 45 miles south of Indianapolis and visit in person  We could buy Little Cuter something wonderful at Goods for Cooks before we stopped for dessert at BluBoy Chocolates Cafe and Cakery .  The name alone has me drooling, and then I saw the pictures of the cakes made with locally sourced ingredients.  Thanks, Little Cheese, for these ideas. Traveling further south, just outside of Dallas we'll come to Flower Mound, Texas and Sole Groove Dance  Fitness.   So many great names, so much fun and excercise.  SEL suggests a class pass for someone who hates traditional exercise classes .  This is so totally within the spirit of the adventures po...

Yes, denizens, if you have been compliant shoppers/deciders/list makers your holiday gift giving needs should be well on track to completion.  This is the last post before Thanksgiving; our original plan was to be finishing up odds and ends by next weekend.  In that spirit, this post will be an eclectic mix. If you're uninterested in the tips skip on down to the last paragraph - I have a favor to ask. Before we get to that, let's talk about Brad's Deals.  I met them at BlogHer'11 and they offered me an Amazon gift card if I'd run their badge on The Burrow for a while.  Selling ad space on my blog was sorta cool, and sure enough they were right on time with the code for the gift card.  A company which pays its bills on time is a company with which I will do business.  There are all sorts of positive blurbs on the website, but I like their own description of what they do.   Every day, we sort through thousands of coupons, sales and promotions but on...

It's Veteran's Day.  I have a nice post I like to share, and I'll do that after we talk about what to send and how to send it. I'm starting backwards, with how to send it.   After lots of practice, I realized that it was easier to start with the box and fill it as I collected the items.  My house stayed neater, I had a sense of what else might fit, and it forced me to mail it when it was full.  I never had a spare bedroom filled with potential goodies.... at least that was the plan, So, to enable you to learn from my mistakes, let me suggest a trip to the post office (or USPS.com and does anyone else wonder why it's not dot gov? ).  A   Priority Mail APO/FPO Flat Rate Box stacks neatly and travels safely to all parts of the globe, and the USPS gives it to you for free.  If you order on-line you get a package of 10.... free.... no charge for shipping.   Take it home, tape the bottom securely, and open your mind to the opportunities.  ...

BlogHer sent me a container of body wash because I am a Visionary. Now that you've stopped laughing, I'll show you how that turned into this post.  I like this brand of body wash... in fact, I like it a lot.  It doesn't take much to work up a nice big lather, it doesn't have a distinctive odor which transfers onto my skin and perfumes my day, the top opens easily and closes securely and the bottle sits safely on the shelf without wobbling or falling over. I started putting together a mental gift basket for G'ma, based on this one product.  With this container, she won't be slipping on the dropped bar of soap, nor will she have to bend in half to pick it up when it inevitably falls to the ground.  In one fell swoop I've rescued her from a potential disaster.  I'll add a funky sponge or wash-mitt and several bottles of her favorite shampoo and conditioner.  A new soap dish for the sink, some pretty 3oz paper cups for her dispenser, and a new toothbru...

I was ready to plunge into the nifty tidbits my favorite little girl sent my way when the title stopped me in my tracks.   Skinflint  is an interesting word, or was to me, at least as I saw it up there on the monitor.  I'm always amused when my fingers do something that my brain doesn't recognize.  Reading the Phaedo  for class this week I'm considering everything in terms of recollection ; how did that get up there, anyway?  Saved, as always, by the interweb, I found the Online Etymology Dictionary   which quickly demystified the whole thing.   Sadly, it's just word soup.... someone who would skin a flint to gain an advantage.  Now, that  is being tight with your money. Many of us are feeling skinflint-ish these days, I fear.  It's hard to buy extras when necessities might be a struggle.  Random gifting, unnecessary trifles, the times call for more than that, I think.  Nurturing those thoughts but not sharing them,...

Sometimes it's just easier to do one big thing.  Friday Shopping Secrets understands this, and would like to offer some suggestions.  Just remember that little ones like something to open now ; I'll be appending ideas for those who cannot experience delay of gratification.  Never fear, denizens, I've got you covered. I'm a big proponent of experiences over products.  I remember holiday hikes more than what gifts were presented when the Cuters were 8 and 10.  The infamous Christmas of '96  is notable for the absence of appropriate batteries and the crushing misery which followed.  I suppose this counts as an experience; the feelings are certainly more memorable than the actual toy itself.  At least for me. For several years we instituted a walk through the open space between turkey and dessert on Thanksgiving.  We'd pass neighbors and friends and smile through the introductions of nieces and grandparents and sons-in-law-to-be and then we'd...

Today we will not feel the loss.  Today we will not say "last year I'd have gotten her....."  Today we will not look backward.  Today we will accept what is and we will smile. Smile with me as I suggest comestibles and experiences and no care goodies that will delight those who are marking the passage of time in the "I don't buy green bananas" department. G'ma used to say that she was divesting  instead of acquiring; her greatest joy was to send me Bubba's cut glass serving dish ("Be careful, sweetheart, I think it's leaded crystal.  I wouldn't use it too often, if I were you.") or Daddooooo's Shakespeare for Chanukah or my birthday or just because.   It didn't happen often; she wasn't a spontaneous gift giver.  But when UPS dropped off a thoroughly taped reused shipping carton addressed in her perfect printed penmanship I started to smile before I looked for the implements with which to cut through the brown and sil...

Paper Culture, our favorite vendor from BlogHer'11 , is loving us right back by letting me offer a $50 gift voucher for   holiday cards  to a denizen of The Burrow. How to win?  I'm thinking as I'm typing.  I'm new to this competition vibe.  So, while I cogitate, let's look at all the ways these cards can simplify your lives.  Why?  Have you all forgotten the reason for these Friday Shopping Secrets posts?  It's to encourage and enable you to complete all your shopping chores before December 1st rolls around.  If you have been thinking that you'll get back to them eventually you are missing the point. Feeling nagged, are we?  Paper Culture understands the kind of person who would nag about gift giving I have no one on my list (or in my life, for that matter) for whom this would be appropriate, but, perhaps, you do.  I think it's nice of Paper Culture to cater to all tastes. Having a Halloween party?  E-vites are fin...