Holiday Gift Giving 2008

First, I thank god for antibiotics and pain pills. My chest is nearly normal after only two days of treatment for this nasty infection. While it is probably too early to do so, I'm going in to the office for at least part of the day. Working from home when sick is no treat. I won't, however, be my normal green Metro riding self. I need as much climate control as possible so Ms. Louise will be taking me to and fro.

Now for the holiday giving. I rarely purchase gifts for friends, my siblings limit our gift giving to something cheap or fun to open, often a silly something-or-another, and Tim's family has finally stopped exchanging gift certificates for the same amount each year. That futile exercise got a bit ridiculous. This leaves me with my parents, my partner, and my daughter.

My parents have little and want for less so they are fairly easy to please. Mom may not actually use half the things we buy her, but at least she appears appreciative. My partner and I have agreed to do a token exchange (again to have something to open) as we'll use our holiday dollars for vacation expenditures. My daughter, well, she needs a lesson in excessive consumerism. I plan to give her a few small green items and a dairy goat since she is so blessed to have more material things at age 14 than many adults. No designer purses or jewelry from Tiffany & Co. this year.

You might ask what she'll do with a dairy goat....it doesn't exactly go to her. The goat will go to a family in Kenya, Haiti, or some other less fortunate country. There are several organizations that do this, but I've decided to go with Heifer International. They are the most comprehensive in their efforts and are not religion based as many of them. While I don't universally knock the religious organizations, I have no idea what they are teaching and it generally doesn't include diversity. Click Over to their site and check out the options available at various price points for a meaningful holiday gift.

I know a farm animal gift does not suit most of your buying needs. That being the case, you may want to follow the Gimme Gimme series over at The Mango & The Jayhawk for more suggestions. Please also consider HRC's Buying for Equality guide and make your purchases from fair minded businesses. Finally, don't forget to buy local products. That hemp handbag may appear green, but you can't imagine the carbon footprint created if it was woven in China!