Monday 23 December 2002

Pic of the day: Screenshot from The Sims, to protect the somewhat innocent.

Mandatory shopping day

Xmas is a highly emotional holiday, and so I do not believe that any family with a shred of dignity left would invite a stranger into it for purely financial reason. But if anyone ever did, I guess I would be a good choice. Xmas has not been exactly profitable for me in any of the years I have spent with people outside my own family. Even if you count the excessive amounts of food heaped on my plate, I am still deeply in the red. But it doesn't matter all that much to me. I have a little more than I need these days, and my friends have a little less than they need. Like most Norwegians, and Americans above all, they are trapped in an attempt to live just slightly above their means. A race among peers to keep up with the more successful neighbors, not realizing that the neighbors are sinking into debt trying to compete with them.

Wisdom is indeed better than riches, as the Bible says, though a little cash certainly oils social interactions these days. Malls are like the church steps of old, our gathering place, where we see and are seen, where we meet or narrowly miss meeting. But as a good capitalist, you should also enjoy the rituals of Shopping.

***

SuperWoman and Cutie went shopping with me before noon, while the rush was still moderate in the shopping centers. We went first to a home furnishing shop, selling stylish furniture and interior decorations. There were lots of things there. Lots of pretty things, according to my friends who are more knowledgeable in these things. Since many on our list were in the process of setting up their own homes, alone or together with someone, we left the place laden with gift boxes. We then moved on to the Xmas tree buying. Normally this has been the alpha male domain, but for reasons unknown it was now delegated to the offspring. The boys not being trusted with such an important task, we went off to get the Xmas tree of the decade. It was bristling with dense branches, a very compact tree. It was also incidentally very tick-stemmed, but we had to prioritize. And density was given right of way.

It was a rather heavy thing to carry up all the stairs, and later in the day it had to undergo some drastic surgery to fit into the tree foot. Even then it was practically wobbly. But it sure was dense.

As is customary on Shopping day, one of the girls managed to lose the car keys, leading to a short time of drama until the keys were found again. Turned out she had a hole in her pocket, which she had not noticed before.

After going home with the tree and the first load of gifts, we went to the shopping center, the European equivalent of a mall. (Actually the Norwegian word is even more crude and direct, meaning "buy-center".) We bought another great helping of gifts, cheering up the poor shop workers as best we could in the process. Then we tried to leave. This was harder than you might think, as the byzantine structure of the parking lot had led to a gridlock of great dimensions. Eventually a woman came running. From her looks and demeanor, it seems more likely than not that she was one of "Smith's Friends", the now somewhat diluted group of Christian mystics that originated here in Norway about a century ago, and whom both the girls and I remember vividly. It would also be quite in character to act as she did, taking command of the parking lot and redirecting cars to break the deadlock and get the traffic flowing again. I doubt she was paid to do this, she was wearing everyday clothes and no sign of office. But mystics don't need insignia to act. They are plenipotent in doing good. And it worked too. Soon thereafter we were on our way home again.

Needless to say, we had forgotten something, in this case pineapples for the traditional food. So SuperWoman and I had to make yet another trip later in the day. As the actually useful food only filled up a corner of the shopping card, we filled it out with $100 or so in snacks and chocolate. Said their aunt: "This will be gone in one evening." Somehow, I would not be too surprised.

***

Other notable events of the day was that I noticed the youngest brother sparkling. Now this is a well known visual gag in Japanese comics (Manga) and cartoons (Anime). Pretty boys are depicted as sparkling, as a shortcut to visualize that part of attractiveness that does not lend itself immediately to drawing. But this is the first time I have actually seen a boy sparkle in real life, and it was kinda disconcerting. The light of the lamps occasionally reflected from some point in his face, like sunlight on snow or waves, or the glint in a diamond, only less frequent. He claimed to know nothing about the origin of this, but I am relieved to report that I was not the only one to perceive it ...

Oh, and SuperWoman suddenly decided to order a pizza brought to us, as neither I nor she had eaten for the duration of our shopping spree. I was not particularly hungry, and a whole pizza sounded like overkill, but it kinda fit with the feeling of the day. So she called the local pizza house, who promised to bring a pizza within an hour. She then decided that I would pay for it. The whole thing sounded kinda American to me, but evidently the middle class here is doing this occasionally. When I don't, it may owe more to the fact that I would not be able to eat even a small pizza over the course of a couple of days. We had just ordered a big one. But the young lady does know her family. Even though no one had been hungry until it was decided who would pay for it, there was precious little left to the dog.

Yes, an older relative brought a dog when he visited late in the evening. He did not stay the night, however. He has a daughter in the same part of the country. Since half the kids are scared of dogs and the other half love them, this was yet another source of entertainment.

To top the day off, we plopped down in front of the brainwashing machine and watched Fellowship of the Ring until midnight. I've hinted with the heavy sledgehammer that I would like to go out with SuperWoman and watch the sequel someday this week. Unless I misjudge her, she will try to bring along a few siblings and/or their partners. I would be shocked if she went with me alone. Shopping is one thing, movies is another. There must be decency. I really don't see the point. It's not like I would try to snuggle. Well, not enough to impede watching the movie at least ...