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Highlands Today

Don't Procrastinate, Go Shopping

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By Raleigh Whiteman | Highlands Today

Published: December 20, 2007

Sunday will probably be the busiest day with the stores opening at their usual times with a lot of "Johnny-Come-Latelys" looking for that last minute gift. Wednesday, the day after Christmas, will find many returns and exchanges and everyone looking for the after-Christmas price reductions.

And girls, don't buy your fellow a cookbook for the following reason:

Two bachelors were sitting and talking. Their conversation drifted from sports to cooking.

"I got a cookbook once," said the first, "but I could never do anything with it."

"Too much fancy cooking in it?" asked the second.

"You said it. Every one of the recipes began the same way, take a clean dish and ..."

Don't ask the price.

Remember it's the enduring gift that is best to give. Or a gift that the one you love wants, but would not buy for him or herself because it's too extravagant. There are so many things on the market today that are meant to be given to someone else. It's seldom that we would buy any of these things for ourselves, like a golf score keeper or yardage gauge or a best chef apron.

There are literally dozens of tools being sold today that are not in my toolbox because I have something almost as good and can get by without the fancy gadgets, but they sure look good on TV.

Parking Spaces

Getting a parking place is enough to ruin any shoppers day, unless you're willing to settle for a spot half a mile from the entrance to the mall.

I sat patiently waiting for another car to leave a parking spot and wouldn't you know it, he backed down my lane, blocking me. As he backed out of the spot another car shot in front of him and stole my space.

Now who wants to shop when you're put into such a bad mood?

New Year Approaching

In 12 days, counting today, we'll be celebrating New Year 2008. This past year has gone by incredibly fast for me and that is somewhat disconcerting with me coming up on my 73rd birthday.

I realize that many of you have managed to accumulate many more years than I and have done so graciously, without whimpering or complaining. Well, I'm not one to do that. I don't enjoy the aches I have accumulated and the lack of memory I seem to be getting. Maybe it's the memory thing but I have never been so busy getting things done and still having so many other things that need to get done.

Now Where Was I?

Oh, yes. I'll start to do something and on the way see something that is closer that I can do right then and go to work on it. I get that finished and can't remember why I came there in the first place and need to go back to where I started and try to remember why I went. It usually comes to me and I have to force myself not to do anything else until I get that done. I do it by repeating it to myself all the way back to the garage until I get it done.

A New Year's Resolution

There is so much good in the worst of us, and so much bad in the best of us, that it behooves all of us not to talk about the rest of us. Suggested by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Have a Very Merry Christmas.

Raleigh Whiteman, of Lake Placid, is a contributing writer from Lake Placid.
You can reach him on the Internet at rwwhiteman@comcast.net.

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