Spreading Holiday Cheer On A Budget.

Apologies for the lack of activity today, I'm not feeling all that well. It's the cold that just won't go away (note to self: more than six-ish hours of sleep per night would probably make an enormous difference). Oh, and the day job. And the holidays, for which I am sadly unprepared...which leads me to what I do have to say today.

Having now lost my mind completely, I decided it would be a good idea to cross some items off my Christmas shopping list this past weekend. At the Eaton Centre. What was I thinking? Excellent question. Well, it appears I was very concerned with spreading the holiday cheer at bargain prices. Either that or there is no other time in my life between now and December 25 in which to get it all done. Regardless, I, along with approximately 8.73 million other people, ended up shopping the Eaton Centre this weekend. And, I have to say, despite the insane hordes of holiday shoppers, there were some beautiful things to be seen.

First, the Swarovski Christmas tree is up in the middle of the mall and impossible to miss. I should have taken a picture to post here (a task at which I failed all weekend), but you really have to see it in person to appreciate its glowing goodness. I am actually a big proponent of the more Charlie Brown-esque features of Christmas trees and, while beautiful, it isn't really my holiday tree ideal. But it is worth seeing and appreciating. And it does benefit charity, I believe. Although I'm not totally clear on how. My head is a little fuzzy.



Moving on, I elbowed my way through the masses at Indigo for the book lovers on my list (including me) only to discover that The Canadian Tenors were singing and signing. Now, I didn't go in for the signing, largely due to time constraints, but they sounded just as beautiful as they looked. They did a really lovely version of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah. They also have a new CD out and are performing tonight and tomorrow in Toronto.

As a side note, I found a really great book at Indigo that I've been meaning to read for a while: A Complicated Kindness by Miriam Toews. If you are female and at all interested in finding alternate sources for monologues, this is one you should definitely check out. This is giving away trade secrets because I certainly intend to use it at my next audition. If you're not interested in these things, I still recommend it as a good read.

Finally, Christmas shopping on a budget is difficult (duh). Especially when you really do want to find nice things for people with more $$$ than you. But, unfortunately, part of being a "starving artist" is that you generally are not rolling in the dough. So, may I propose a few Christmas gift ideas that are particularly good under these scenarios, and especially for the kind of people who basically already have everything--like, say, The Photographer's parents. If anyone on your list enjoys cooking, check out Williams-Sonoma. They have neat kitchen gadgets that are fairly inexpensive as well as lots of really delicious sauces, drinks, etc. I highly recommend drink mixes that can be given with mugs--such as hot chocolate or mulling spices or anything of that nature. It is, after all, the spirit and intent that are most important...but you still want to give something nice that will be appreciated.


Another option is a nice framed picture, if you have a particularly good picture of the recipient or a place that is special to them...this is probably easier when your boyfriend is The Photographer. If all else fails, the picture frame itself will do. Pottery Barn has an excellent selection.

Finally, As a personal touch, I also include with all my gifts a Christmas ornament that in some way relates to the recipients' interests...Pottery Barn can also be good for those, amongst other places.


Happy holiday shopping! I hope you all manage to find some beauty in the insanity of it all, too. And I promise to be more put together tomorrow...