Closing Remarks

Advice on Christmas Presents
We have reached 12th night so we can declare Christmas as officially over for this year. There is one
matter that may still be ongoing and that is Christmas present despatch.
We spent many hours buying presents in real and online shops with much consternation. By the
way, I advise anyone of my height (around 5 feet 10 inches) to avoid shopping in Glasgow on a rainy
day. The determined women shoppers in Glasgow are typically 5 feet tall and once they put up their
brollies and march resolutely down Buchanan Street the prongs on their umbrellas are precisely
lined up at my eye height and the danger of losing an eyeball or at least getting a good poke is
severe. Some things we should not have to endure to bring glad tidings.
Online shopping has its problems too. Trying to deduce where Gus the Yodal delivery man has
deposited the Italian food hamper (behind the green recycle bin) and eventually struggling to
reconstitute a soaked Pannecotta loaf is not a recipe for peace on earth.
On Christmas day we mentally sort out the useful from the recycle pile and planning starts. The
Rotary raffles, tombolas and the like can take care of a few. M&S will allow exchanges but the
present is now half price so you take a big loss if you are too polite to tell the giver you are changing
it. Alternatively you can give it to someone else. In the nineties, US mail ran an ad to promote their
postal service along the lines of ‘don’t get stuck with the fruit cake, pass it on’.
Also there are the presents you feel a need to keep to avoid offence so you put them away in a safe
place and try to remember to put the porcelain toucan back on the bookshelf when the mother in
law visits.
So here is advice on giving to anyone who has a house full of stuff. You may remember I raised the
issues of de-cluttering in an earlier advice session. Only buy them presents that can be consumed
such as food and drink; a good 21 year old malt will rarely go amiss.