The Covid Grinch

Today the Prime Minister of Canada said that a normal Christmas is off the table. I had already decided that and informed my family a couple of weeks ago.

Normally by now, I would have already been to my first Christmas house party. I'd have a lot of my baking done, and would even have received my first Christmas card. Soon we would have a major Christmas event in our village with people coming from far and wide to take part. None of that is happening this year. Exchanging presents with my family is also off the table.

Pandemics change the way the world works.  People are working from home, shopping more often online, wearing masks when they venture out, and keeping their distance from those they meet. Shopping for gifts is much more difficult this year. Normally I wander the stores hoping to find something that will make me think of one of my recipients. I seldom know what I'm after until I see it. I ask for lists but never get them so they just have to be happy with what I find.  This year I have not been in an actual store except for groceries since March. The second wave of this nasty virus is upon us and there are more cases than ever so I'm not about to start shopping now, at the time of year when the stores would have even more people.....or worse still, lineups to get into the stores where I'm not even sure I'd find something.

As for shopping online, it helps to have a clue what you are looking for or you could be scrolling aimlessly for months. For me, there is an even bigger problem than that. While many of you are lucky enough to have things delivered to your door, I live where you have to go to the post office to pick up a parcel. There are lineups there already so you can imagine what it will be like as the big day draws closer. Only a couple of people are allowed into the building at a time so everyone else has to stand outside at this time of year when the weather is also about to get worse.  I'm too old to stand for long, freezing temperatures or not.

I finally faced the fact that I just couldn't do it. I have told my family not to expect presents this year.  Instead, I suggested that they take the money they would have spent on us and go buy something they want for themselves if they care to. Unlike me, they can get packages delivered to their door. It might be nice if they could show us in pictures or live video on Christmas morning and we would still get a surprise, and delight in their choices. That's right, we can't even be together for the holidays. 

What I want most from Santa is a new bed, and that is one thing I know can be delivered here without a problem.  I just won't be able to test out any in the shops, but that's okay as I used to order my mattresses from the Sears catalogue. I will miss getting together with my loved ones, but I am actually relieved not to have to try shopping for presents under the current circumstances.

The Grinch has stolen Christmas this year. He came disguised as Covid-19 (or maybe me), not the Prime Minister.

Kitchen Gadgets for Christmas?

Christmas is sneaking up on us again this year, and it's harder than ever to find the right gift for those on my list. Every last one of them is male and they are less than helpful giving hints as to what they might like. Women are much easier as, while men generally like something useful, women want beautiful things they would never buy for themselves.

My hubby informed me early on never to buy him tools. He likes to pick his own. Likewise, I'd rather not get things that would be useful around the house as I would consider those gifts to be for the house and not for me. But just in case you are need a few hints as to what might just become the most useful gadget in the kitchen, and still not something she would buy for herself, I have decided to show you some of my favorite kitchen tools.

I got this handy little grater, that fits right onto a non-slip container at IKEA. Everything goes neatly into it's own bowl so there is no mess to clean up.  It even has a lid so that if you grate more cheese than you need, for instance, you can put the lid on it and put the freshly grated product right back into the fridge. I use this a lot, and often wish I had a second one.  They are so cheap, it's just silly not to have two.

I have a food processor, but sometimes you just want to make a few bread crumbs or mash a banana, or chop up just a bit of nuts or something and the food processor is really too big for the job. I found a mini processor at Canadian Tire, and I use it so often that I don't even put it away anymore. The big one hardly ever comes out of it's storage spot.  I know I paid about $7.99 for mine several years ago. I'm not sure Canadian Tire still has them but Walmart has something similar.

The third thing I wonder how I ever got along without is a gravy separator.  You poor the juices from your roast pan into it. There is a filter at the top to sift out impurities and after the fat floats to the top, you pour what you need to make gravy back into the pot. Only the good broth comes out of the spout. All you have to do is watch and stop pouring when the fat decides to follow. But by then you have what you need anyway. My grandson says I make the best gravy ever!

None of these gadgets costs more than $20. But all three are worth their weight in gold.

And for those of you who fill stockings for adult women, go to the Dollar Store and find a mini whisk. I do have two of those as they, like the mini food processor, get used way more often than the full sized model.  I see Amazon has them too.

This year I'd like a garlic press, if anyone is listening.

All these things are kitchen gadgets she doesn't know she needs, likely wouldn't buy for herself, but will be so glad to have. Happy shopping.

Present Dilemma

I promised not to do the Bah Humbug thing this year when I was incapacitated last year and couldn't do all the usual Christmas chores. I found myself stuck on the couch with a bum knee and all I could think of was all the things I wanted to be doing. Things I normally complain about. Christmas is a lot of work, and though I'd finally managed to get out of it, somehow I longed to do all those things that make Christmas merry and bright.

So this year, with all the pressure back on me, I'm trying to just do it and be happy about it.  But you know what?  Even just buying presents isn't as easy as it once was.

I have two grown sons. Each year I ask them for a Christmas list. The younger one usually likes to challenge me to find some obscure music.  This year he wants clothes. But then he says we are not to buy them for him as he says they will never fit. I'm having no luck in finding out what store he buys from, either, so I'm even afraid to go the gift card route.

The other son gave me a list of possibilities. They are more likely impossibilities. This year he has done his brother's thing and is sending me on a hunt for strange things like DVD's of 60's concerts and CD's of 90's surf music that sounds kind of 60ish.  As strange as that may sound, I can find the CD's, but they are either way over budget, or not available for delivery in time for Christmas. I'm not wrapping up a parcel that promises something is coming. Last time I did that, it kept getting back ordered, and didn't actually arrive until August!  I may have to buy a couple of t-shirts but they would have have some sort of classic rock band or character on the front, according to his list.

I can't get a list out of my grandsons at all. The youngest has Pie Face as a top priority though, and the older one wants more expensive things like a new IPad, or a hover board. Pie Face isn't coming into my house.  Nope! I can just imagine the whipped cream flying everywhere! And last time I checked that was an apple tree growing in the back yard, not a money tree, so his big brother is out of luck for his wishes too.

It used to be you could go out and buy kids toys and they were thrilled to unwrap them and play with them. It kind of made Christmas more magical to see the kids so happy playing with their new toys. They were even happier if you played with them. Now they are more interested in electronic gadgets. They happily download games when gifted with ITunes cards but the most interaction I can get from that is when the older one asks me to sit beside him while he plays, and just watch what he'd doing. I'd like to play too.....even if I have no idea what he's doing. For some reason, he never lets me.

I can usually think up something to buy my hubby, but I'm always afraid he will be disappointed.

Lots of people say, "Just buy a gift card," but I feel that if I give you a gift card, and you give me a gift card, then we might as well just keep our own money and go buy something for ourselves.  Oh, I did have one friend who had a deal with her hubby that they could each spend a certain amount on things for themselves. They still had to wrap up their purchases and put them under the tree. It was only the spouse that the gift wasn't for that didn't know what was in it until it was unwrapped. I could go for a deal like that myself.

Christmas isn't all about presents, I know, but it's still a big part of the tradition around here. At the moment I'm still struggling to find some appropriate gifts. Some things have been purchased. Some things have even been wrapped. Other things are coming in the mail.....soon, I hope. And yet others have not even been dreamed up yet. A real list from everyone would be helpful. At least I'd have a clue.

Go write your Christmas list for those you love, to help make their shopping easier. That might just be the gift they will be most grateful for this season.