christmas shopping and finals mania, part i

Yesterday was my first official outing expressly in the name of Christmas shopping. I got a few cards, a present for a friend, and some random items for a white elephant party I'll be going to next weekend for Yosakoi. I went with my cousin; it was actually a pretty fun trip considering the biting cold outside. It was also fun to see some of the more "interesting" items that some of the stores carried. Some of my favourites were:

1. Origami paper. Who knew they sold it in a gift shop several blocks from my dorm? I looked all over at Hobby Lobby and settled for decorative scrapbooking paper instead.
2. Incense sticks. I hadn't realised how much I missed incense until I walked into a little shop that had an entire wall of incense sticks. I could have stood there smelling them for a loooong time.
3. Scarves and hats. There were lots of cute ones in stores I visited: Fuzzy scarves, soft scarves, downy hats and felt-lined stocking caps. So cute, and so warm.

...and here are some of the items we saw that won't end up in anyone's Christmas gifts this year.
1. Leopard-print rubber duckies. Who knew the classical bath toy could be so hip. Or so weird. The facial features were all wrong, too, and the ducks just looked creepy.
2. Marijuana smoking accessories. Or so I'm told. It's whatever they sell in the partitioned section in the back of those Third Planet-like stores...even though I'm old enough to enter the curtained area, I did not feel the need, or the desire.
3. Books of Bushisms. Don't get me wrong. I'm going to laugh when I hear anybody say "I know how hard it is for you to put food on your family" or "Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning?". But give the guy a break - who hasn't screwed up what they wanted to say when the pressure is on, at one time or another? I'll have to admit these quotes are definitely more fun to read than the newspaper...but I digress.

Later in the evening I went to a coffee shop to study with some friends, in preparation for finals. I had an iced green tea and read my Mass Communications book, and later some fruity chai while studying in my friend's room. It was a good way to ease into studying for the week ahead and wind down for the night.

Now it's early afternoon and time to organise my tasks for the day. Which are, at the moment:
1. Write Christmas cards
2. Finish tweaking final English paper
3. Organise my University Experience and English portfolios
4. Watch a documentary and take notes for anthropology.

I guess I've got my work cut out for me...