Black Thursday? What next?

The NYT had an article on Veterans Day about stores in the U.S. opening late at night on Thanksgiving evening in order to beat the Black Friday rush. On the same day on Facebook, a friend posted a picture of Nordstrom's sign, which announces that they do not decorate for Christmas until after Thanksgiving. I have boycotted Macy's since 1992, due to their progressively more advanced Christmas decorations, which I believe now appear around Labor Day. Barring the obvious arguments about loving the season you're in and the commercialisation of a religious holiday, I think there are some other considerations afoot with this advance Black Friday movement.

I live in Switzerland. One of the first things I learned about Geneva is that all businesses are closed on Sunday, with the exception of 1) restaurants; 2) bakeries (the Swiss feel fresh bread is a natural right); 3) farmer markets like the one right near my flat; and 4) businesses willing to pay double their employees' salaries for working that day. This is because they view Sunday as a family day. They also close business around 7pm daily and actually in the past few years voted against having later shop hours. The result is that not only is it somewhat harder to get quotidian errands done, but one also does much less mindless shopping. I consume less here - and that's actually rather good.

It Isn't Enough to Love; We Must Prove It

I just finished reading The Happiness Project, picked up during a layover in Atlanta. Tonight, I glanced for the first time at author Gretchen Rubin's site, and her video challenge of the week is to hug more, kiss more, touch more (appropriately, of course). She closes her brief injunction with a quote from St. Therese of Liseux: "It isn't enough to love; we must prove it." (N.B. I know Mom will love this quote, since she urged me to visit her patron saint's chapel last year while I was traveling with a friend in Normandy.)

Reading about a contemporary's search for greater happiness, divided into 12 monthly installments, struck a chord with me, particularly as the reading coincided with the celebration of my birthday, an entree to a new year. I don't know whether to call it stubbornness, procrastination, or simply the hunt for the "just right," but I am still formulating my resolution - my challenge - for this new year of life.

But I'm coming close. A friend posted a birthday wish on my wall, that he hoped this was the beginning of a year full of magic, wisdom and love. And those are the right elements.