Holiday Countdown

Today is Tuesday, November 15th. The next 2 or 3 days to follow are considered the calm before the storm for me. As I've said in the past, I work in the retail meat industry and with the Thanksgiving holiday coming up in 9 more days, I will be extremely busy. Right now my main concern is just preparation. I'm making sure that there is plenty of product priced up and displayed properly for consumers to purchase. With every passing year, it seems like most people are starting to shop alittle earlier for the holidays in terms of food products. This is really a pretty smart move actually. For one thing, you avoid the holiday rush when you shop a week ahead of the holiday. You can get in and out quicker. Also, you're more likely to find everything you want when you shop earlier. When you wait until the last minute to shop for your holiday dinner, there is a larger chance that the items you're looking for may be out of stock being that there are more consumers shopping for the same items. Although the holidays can be very happy and joyous times, they can also be quite stressful. And believe me when I tell you, there are many impatient consumers during the busy holiday season. So here I sit, taking in deep breaths, exhaling slowly, and trying to prepare myself for the "holiday challenge." I've always found the end of the year to be so rushed. It seems as if Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years is kind of smashed into the end of the year. One holiday just rolls into the other leaving no breathing space in between--especially Christmas and New Years. There is somewhat of a break between Thanksgiving and Christmas, (this year 31 days) but the work doesn't stop for me. As soon as turkey day is over, there's a push for the next holiday and preparation begins for that. So all together I've got roughly about 40 days of holiday cheer and then business will die down. Generally, this is the way I view the holidays......work. Don't get me wrong, I still like the holiday season but I think in terms of work since that's what I primarily do during those times.

While I'm talking about the upcoming Thanksgiving Day holiday, I'd like to share something with you. Last month, I recieved a birthday card in the mail from a very good friend of mine. He always sends me a birthday card every year along with cards for Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. He's a christian man and he always writes an uplifting or motivational message in each card he sends to me. This year he sent me a beautiful birthday card with a message handwritten inside however; this time the message seemed rather sad. He seems to be going through a rather rough time right now. He has a wife and a very large family. ( 10 children) He has his own business but it doesn't seem to be doing well right now. He owns a security company. I believe he's going through bankruptcy at the present time and money is pretty tight. I really feel for him. Can you imagine trying to feed 10 children in today's age. Geez!! He was on my mind all day today while I was at work. As a matter of fact, I had an idea today while working and I'm gonna do my best to make it happen. After I pay my bills for this month tomorrow, I'm going to see what I have left and try to help him out alittle. I'd like to buy him a bone-in ham and a turkey so he can have a nice holiday dinner for him and his family 'cause judging by what he wrote in the card he sent to me, it doesn't seem like he can afford to celebrate this year. All I have to do now is figure out a reason to get him to come over my house before the holiday. I'll think of something I'm sure. I know he'll appreciate it and it will make me feel so good to do something for him being that he always thinks enough of me every year to send me cards with inspirational messages inside to guide me through my path of life. To me, that's what holidays are for--sharing love with family and friends and showing them you care. Anyway, just thought I'd share that with you....Have a good nite all!