This Christmas with the family is rather strange in respect to presents. It’s almost un-Christmasy.
My sister is still stuck in the nether regions of Florida (popularly known as Miami.) So it is not a true family holiday. But we are still giving presents.
The ones I’m giving to my parents are… selfish. I did not go out and spend money for them. I’m giving them old stuff of mine that I no longer need. In my defense they are still better than what they have.
I’m giving my mother my old iBook. It’s three years old, and she doesn’t have a computer of her own. Plus, it’s a Mac, the perfect computer for Mommies and Daddies. My father always hogs the all-powerful Windows laptop he has, which is frankly too large for a normal human being. And my mother is not going to be stressing its capabilities.
I’m giving my father a digital camera. It’s just slightly over a year old, and much further in technology than the five year old one that he has been happy with.
I also picked up some duty-free loot when I left Jamaica, so I am not a completely heartless son. The thing is, that we’ve almost all admitted what presents we are giving each other. No surprises.
I know one present that they are giving me because, due to their having a PO Box instead of an address, it was shipped directly to my place. I felt the need to “test it out” to make sure it worked. And, truthfully, it made it one of the best car trips from Edmonton to Calgary. It was an FM transmitter for my iPod. So I was not at the mercy of the radio stations and could listen to good songs for the three hours on the road. It made the trip so much better.
Now I’ve wrapped it back in the box, given it back to them, and admitted what I did.