This Christmas season is somewhat odd for me. For the first time in I don't know how many years, buying gifts for Geogal is actually EASY.

She is, after all, one of the hardest people for which to buy. A lack of hobbies and general eschewing of "girly" things make gift-giving a difficult task for me several times a year. This time of the Christmas shopping season usually finds me having already entered and left several stores with a slowly-increasing frustration. Not so this time!

I should enjoy this feeling while it lasts. I don't know if I just got fortunate this year, or if I actually am improving on extracting genuine, affordable gift ideas from her. Probably the former.

On the other side of the coin, I shipped off the gifts for the nephews and nieces last Tuesday. Two families, two packages filled with wrapped presents.

Two families that received each other's packages. I'll never use that UPS Store again. Stay tuned for the resolution of this mess. If there is any upside to all of this, at least I sent the packages early enough for the switcheroo to be made prior to the Big Day. I'll just dwell on that for now. No need to raise my blood pressure at this time of the year. So there, family members! Don't call me Scrooge!