I am sometimes too frantic – being a mean spirited person who works from home is very time consuming – to remember that there are mildly pleasant people around who endeavor to be even more pleasant around the holidays. My neighbor just delivered a Christmas present for my dog and reminded me of this.
Don’t worry; I haven’t gone all sappy and cheerful. I could say a million things on the topic of courtesy gifts that would scorch the ears and blight the souls of blog passersby. I could list the many work events that I have attended in my (admittedly short lived) career, the different tins of crappy candy and cheap wine that I have brought to each, and the excuse that I made to duck out early. I could dream up recollections of roommates passed, gifts bought at random and short-notice and gift cards run rampant.
I could probably even talk about that Christmas when everyone in my extended family gave me flannel pants. (Two notes on this topic. First, there is no better way to imply that someone is frumpy and mysterious than to give them flannel pants. Secondly, I think that was the last year that we exchanged gifts with extended family. Coincidence?)
But I won’t go through the trouble of detailing these stories because I will still be a little touched by the fact that my neighbor brought over a present for my dog when I finish. Even though I know that my name was probably written on a holiday to-do list under the category of neighbor as “Kevin and ????” and even though I know that the other neighbors probably received baked goods, I still think it was a very nice thing to do.
I am going to make my neighbor a pie. And I will endeavor to make it attractive. As penance for my previous unpleasant association with courtesy gifts I will try to not make fun of people in Christmas sweaters today. But people with Christmas socks are still fair game.
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