So with the daughters visiting from college for the Christmas break, they both have brought big empty duffle bags in which to pack their boodle back to campus when they leave.

So where do we learn these pack rat skills from that fill our garages and spare bedrooms with gear? I guess I am starting to understand a bit better now. I am teaching it to my girls as well.

The girls are making quite a haul this year. Probably $2k between the two of them. I am giving the younger one my guitar, er, Sierra Nevada mouse trap, which gets it off my hands now. I wasn't playing it much anyways, and she asked for a nice steel string, so I can kill two birds with one stone there, and maybe upgrade to a better mouse trap sometime.

Then there's the usual clothing array to redo their wardrobe with. I get hit with that one at least twice a year.

If they were closer than a plane flight, they'd be going home with a load of surplus foodstuffs to get them by for a couple months. College students can never have enough noodles.

I had the wife wrap up all the items that the youngest left during her stay with me this last summer. She gets to open those before christmas cuz some of it needs to be consumed rather than transported again. Then there are the Lord God Humungous Professional cookbooks I got that she wasn't able to pack with her last time.

I suspect they will leave at least one load of goodies with us to ship to them after they return to school.

Oh yeah, they'll each get a trip to the doctor for a good once over, including eye exams and such. That pretty much kills the rest of the Christmas budget.

So how about the rest of ya.

DD1 (5yr) is getting her very own wristwatch, some personalized stationary with a fairy motiff, and three pretty dresses. DD2 (3yr) is getting "Moon Sand", and a big box of crayons. Grandma and grandpa arrive tomorrow so their haul will be greatly enhanced at that time. Knowing grandpa, there's probably a fishing pole in DD1's future. She'll love that!

I'm getting rain gutters and the movie "House of Flying Daggers". DW hasn't told me yet what I got her, but she's really smiling and has hid the checkbook.

-Blast

Oh yeah, forgot to mention, bought Christmas for a Salvation Army single parent family, and some presents from the gift tree at the mall as well. Sure is nice having enough to go around to share with others like this. Does a soul good.

+5 on that. We've had many blessing this year and know they aren't all meant just for us.

-Blast

DW got a new laptop computer, printer, and a boat load of software since she's back to college again. Helped out a couple of "brothers" who are having a rough time due to major illness in the families.

DW takes care of the rest of the extended family, thankfully, because I hate to shop.

I get the rest of the year OFF, starting today. I was caught in the "use it or lose it" mode on annual leave time. I won't give'm any more back. As for my Christmas present, probably the same stuff I get every year. Frankly, I'd just as soon have cash. Ya can't send folks to buy gear and expect them to get it right. Going to a major Gun Show tomorrow, who knows what might be found, hehehe.

Wow.

We aren't buying any gifts this year, for anyone. This is only a slight change from previous years, in which we limited our gift purchasing to $400 in total for the entire Xmas budget, for all gifts purchased, regardless of recipient.

This year we are making ONE (nice) gift per child, and my wife and I are not really sure what we're doing for each other this time, I want a hat and she wants these weight things that hold down fabric when laying out a pattern. I can make those with some lead shot.

I asked that my family not give me any gifts, and instead donate to http://www.mercycorps.org/

We have been working, with some moderate success, at undoing the endless cycle of consume/discard that complicates our lives. Even my "emergency supplies" cache is both comprehensive and trim, if that makes any sense.

I have a long way to go before I can really say I've cleared the packrat mind, I may never do it. But we don't "do" the Christmas buying frenzy, and have not for about 5 years now, and that's working for us.

Friend, you already paid back me. Your Getting a youngster started on fishing post will save me a lot of frustration and wasted effort, not to mention make my dad and my girls very, very happy.

-Blast

Don't forget 2009 fishing, hunting, and etcetera licenses.

The DW has given me a "wish list" that will take at least a year to give her.

Back to a wise hubby's wisdom: I'm going to school next week (taking DW with me) and when I get back, I'm going shopping for DW so I can at least surprise her with a few things that I know that she likes.

(Blast, Librarian, Kmat, and Clarktx--we'll meet y'all next week!!)

Yes, I am smart enough NOT to get her any gifts that I would love but she wouldn't!!!

My dad, a copy of Munchkin. It's a great game, and I'm taking mine when I get a real place, so he'll need his own copy.

My mother is into explorer and medical biographies, so she's getting bios from antarctic and an everest doc.

Both are getting small kits they can stash in their cars, built into German-pattern mess pots.

My brother is getting flash drives. He needs a couple, and I had a good price on a couple of 8 gigs. I'll preload one with portable applications.

Extended family, donations in their name and chipping in on the family baskets.

Past three months, when I do my weekly shopping, I buy a ten dollar food shelf bag- my grocery store has them prepacked, just put them in your cart go up front. And I bought a small turkey for the food shelf for thanksgiving, and I've pledged a small, uncanned ham for christmas- pay for it next week.

For me, I'm still hemming and hawing. I need a new pack. It is down to the Jansport Carson which I like, and some other gear, or the Northface Crestone 75 which I REALLY(!!) like. I had them put 40 pounds in the Crestone, walked around for twenty minutes, asked for another ten. An hour later, we were up to 70 pounds and it was still comfy.