On Christmas shopping

One thing that can spoil Christmas for me is the the social obligation, forcing us to buy presents en masse. I think that giving someone a present should be unasked-for, a special, personal act. It takes time and thought. Christmas forces you to give presents whether you like it or not -but giving something when you really feel like it is much more meaningful. Personally, I end up spending a lot of money on several small semi-decent presents, 90% of which are unwanted, impersonal, overpriced, consumerist products. I would love to give a friend a nice present, but I simply can’t afford to (especially since I’m forced to buy everyone a present at the same time!). A  present needs to be personal, well chosen; and that requires time you do not necessarily have when you have to buy so many presents in one go. So for me, Christmas makes gifts feel (and be) less special, turns us all into mindless consumerists and stresses the hell out of me when I’m trying to figure out what to get everyone.

So this year, I thought I would relieve my Christmas-shopping stress by starting with the easiest person on the list: me! Don’t hate or call me selfish: I’m giving myself something well-chosen, personal, and unsolicited -just because I felt like it. Exactlly how a gift should be. Which is probably more than most people will get from me this Christmas; not because I don’t love (some of) them, but because I’m terrible at this whole getting-things-for-other-people-on-demand thing.

I hereby present to you my gift from me to me: a Zara chunky grey knit and knee-high socks from H&M. And guess what: I love my present! No surprises there right?