Only One Week 'Till the Gift Exchange we Call Christmas!!
It was the weekend before Christmas and the Glendale Mall was in a flurry. Armenian shoppers were chatting it up on their cell phones as they ran from store to store in quest for the perfect gift. But, wait, what is the perfect gift? Is it sentimental value, or is it in a designer name?
I don’t know how I get the privilege of hearing snippets of the most random comments people make as I march past them but some things our Armenian gift givers were saying as they shopped were SO off the wall I feel like I want to talk about this holiday a bit.
There is clearly some twisted gift buying strategy that people are ok with and I’m sure it goes way beyond Armenians. I’m really curious as to why we feel obligated to buy people something (when we would rather not), evaluate the worth of what we give and get, and get blind sighted by designer stuff because of a label. I know why. But. WHYYYY?
I don’t want you to misunderstand. I’m not some kind of hippie anti big business type of person. I have my share of designer goods but I guess what I’m talking more about is the approach to this stuff, the value we put on it, and the responsibility we take for what behavior we are encouraging. Christmas is the best time of year. Twinkle lights flickering, holiday grabs over lamb chops and red wine, concerts and the chill in the air just pulls it all together. But, I take issue with this buying frenzy more and more. What the *(&(*# are people doing? The AWFUL local news only exacerbates the situation with their calendars “only 7 more days to go to the mall”, “merchandise is running out”, “don’t get left out in the cold.” Cry me a freakin’ river!!
This isn’t a revolutionary subject but I guess when my 17 year old cousin and her friends who will be of credit card age next year were discussing how they want anything Coach elevated my blood pressure I felt I needed to do some damage control. I resorted to think of alternatives to at least be able to challenge their idea of “nice stuff” and try to inspire their artistic wit to distinguish between commercialized crap that builds its brand on a supposed image and then what really beautiful design can look like. I’m not sure how I am going to do this yet, but do you think it might work? They are after all Armenian and see their friends with the black Beamers and Juicy Couture every day.
I’ll be honest though, part of the issue that I take cause with is the damaging effect globalization and outsourcing is having on our economy. Ask any “expert” and they will tell you that we are doing GREAT and creating lots of jobs – what those guys won’t tell you is that the bulk of jobs we are creating are all in the service sector. We are outsourcing, literally, EVERYTHING to countries that are in a race with each other as to who can produce it cheaper. We are getting down to the pennies people which means that the college grads of tomorrow AND YESTERDAY can say hello to Walmart. Don’t believe me? Open your eyes to the types of people working at book stores, Target, in the mall. The landscape is changing pretty quick and immigration issues are not helping one bit. Anyway, I digress with this but like to throw it out there so we get a little more discerning about how and where we spend our $$ - at least to the extent we can.
True to form I will tell you my strategy since I am asking for yours. To me, appreciation, validation, and sentimental affection are the elements that make a gift “perfect” – to give and get. I happen to be a crafty person so have the ability to conceptualize and create unique hand made gifts for people throughout the year whether it’s for their birthday or just because. I like it because time is the most valuable asset I have, so to spend it to concept something unique for someone is probably the most valuable thing I can give. But, when Christmas creeps up on me and I'm not prepared I turn to support independent artists and designers with whatever they are offering. A lot of these people leave the big names in the dust. I like knowing that not only am I giving someone a really cool gift that is unique and personalized, but I also am taking an opportunity to support the dream of a truly talented artist – and if they are Armenian, all the better. I'll also gift someone something that challenges that status quo - I happen to have an usual number of lawyers as friends and LOVE seeing their reaction when I give them a gift certificate to the Ceramics Studio on Beverly for unlimited monthly use and classes. They have the notion that they can just buy whatever they want so it's so fun to see them trying to use the other half of their brain (trying is usually the operative word, unfortunately). haha I get that i'm in the minority with this, especially among Armenians, since the line at the Apple store was, like, reallllllly long.
My commentary is a bit late in the game since according to the polls your shopping is 73.89% done but in the future take a second to think about what you are doing and if it's really what speaks to your own spirit of giving. If it is, that's cool. If it is'nt, there are alternatives if you think outside the box a bit. And for the love of GOD, don't give someone something just because you feel obligated.
PS. Unfortunately I don't know any Armenian crafters or the like off the top of my head but I promise to look around for them and tell you my favorites if you promise to give them a chance. Deal? Deal.
Oh, and Merry Christmas!!
That's it. Bye:)
I don’t know how I get the privilege of hearing snippets of the most random comments people make as I march past them but some things our Armenian gift givers were saying as they shopped were SO off the wall I feel like I want to talk about this holiday a bit.
There is clearly some twisted gift buying strategy that people are ok with and I’m sure it goes way beyond Armenians. I’m really curious as to why we feel obligated to buy people something (when we would rather not), evaluate the worth of what we give and get, and get blind sighted by designer stuff because of a label. I know why. But. WHYYYY?
I don’t want you to misunderstand. I’m not some kind of hippie anti big business type of person. I have my share of designer goods but I guess what I’m talking more about is the approach to this stuff, the value we put on it, and the responsibility we take for what behavior we are encouraging. Christmas is the best time of year. Twinkle lights flickering, holiday grabs over lamb chops and red wine, concerts and the chill in the air just pulls it all together. But, I take issue with this buying frenzy more and more. What the *(&(*# are people doing? The AWFUL local news only exacerbates the situation with their calendars “only 7 more days to go to the mall”, “merchandise is running out”, “don’t get left out in the cold.” Cry me a freakin’ river!!
This isn’t a revolutionary subject but I guess when my 17 year old cousin and her friends who will be of credit card age next year were discussing how they want anything Coach elevated my blood pressure I felt I needed to do some damage control. I resorted to think of alternatives to at least be able to challenge their idea of “nice stuff” and try to inspire their artistic wit to distinguish between commercialized crap that builds its brand on a supposed image and then what really beautiful design can look like. I’m not sure how I am going to do this yet, but do you think it might work? They are after all Armenian and see their friends with the black Beamers and Juicy Couture every day.
I’ll be honest though, part of the issue that I take cause with is the damaging effect globalization and outsourcing is having on our economy. Ask any “expert” and they will tell you that we are doing GREAT and creating lots of jobs – what those guys won’t tell you is that the bulk of jobs we are creating are all in the service sector. We are outsourcing, literally, EVERYTHING to countries that are in a race with each other as to who can produce it cheaper. We are getting down to the pennies people which means that the college grads of tomorrow AND YESTERDAY can say hello to Walmart. Don’t believe me? Open your eyes to the types of people working at book stores, Target, in the mall. The landscape is changing pretty quick and immigration issues are not helping one bit. Anyway, I digress with this but like to throw it out there so we get a little more discerning about how and where we spend our $$ - at least to the extent we can.
True to form I will tell you my strategy since I am asking for yours. To me, appreciation, validation, and sentimental affection are the elements that make a gift “perfect” – to give and get. I happen to be a crafty person so have the ability to conceptualize and create unique hand made gifts for people throughout the year whether it’s for their birthday or just because. I like it because time is the most valuable asset I have, so to spend it to concept something unique for someone is probably the most valuable thing I can give. But, when Christmas creeps up on me and I'm not prepared I turn to support independent artists and designers with whatever they are offering. A lot of these people leave the big names in the dust. I like knowing that not only am I giving someone a really cool gift that is unique and personalized, but I also am taking an opportunity to support the dream of a truly talented artist – and if they are Armenian, all the better. I'll also gift someone something that challenges that status quo - I happen to have an usual number of lawyers as friends and LOVE seeing their reaction when I give them a gift certificate to the Ceramics Studio on Beverly for unlimited monthly use and classes. They have the notion that they can just buy whatever they want so it's so fun to see them trying to use the other half of their brain (trying is usually the operative word, unfortunately). haha I get that i'm in the minority with this, especially among Armenians, since the line at the Apple store was, like, reallllllly long.
My commentary is a bit late in the game since according to the polls your shopping is 73.89% done but in the future take a second to think about what you are doing and if it's really what speaks to your own spirit of giving. If it is, that's cool. If it is'nt, there are alternatives if you think outside the box a bit. And for the love of GOD, don't give someone something just because you feel obligated.
PS. Unfortunately I don't know any Armenian crafters or the like off the top of my head but I promise to look around for them and tell you my favorites if you promise to give them a chance. Deal? Deal.
Oh, and Merry Christmas!!
That's it. Bye:)
posted by Lisa M. at 12:02 PM
1 Comments:
It should say 2 weeks as Armenian tradition calls for gift exchange on New Year's Eve!!!
Let's keep our traditions... and take full advantage of boxing week sales!
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