Christmas in November

     There’s something wrong about playing miniature golf in 70 degree weather while listening to Christmas music.  That is what we did the other day.  Christmas decorations and lights adorned the palm trees as they swayed in the warm sea breeze. 

     I’m not a fan of Christmas in November.  I think the 24 days of December should be enough time for people to prepare for the holiday, but obviously there are many people who don’t agree.  The stores are filled with Christmas toys and holiday hoopla.  It’s time to get out of the city and back on the Gunflint Trail.

     When thinking about Christmas gifts this year think about how you can make a difference.  Is there a needy family in your community that you could purchase a gift certificate for?  Grand Marais has a number of programs to help the folks who are having a difficult time making ends meet.  We can purchase oil credits for heating bills and make donations to the food shelf.  There’s even a program where we can be secret shoppers for a struggling family.  Anonymous gift cards sent in the mail can brighten anyone’s day and then you don’t have to worry about returning gifts. 

If 10,000 Biters have to return one less gift to a nearby store, we’ll avert the CO2 caused by driving from NYC to North Pole, AK, and back again six times.