Cross-country travels with my plaster sidekick.
posted November 26, 2008		 Commercial Christmas is like a shiny red Corvette, speeding along the highway toward me. I could lay down on the highway and let it run over me. I know that feeling, I've been Christmas roadkill before. Or I could fight back, with words....here goes.

Whoa, sounds like Ian has a problem with Christmas.

Yes, of sorts. It's overwhelming. Think for a moment about Christmas gifts, except imagine that they're meals that have to be consumed on the spot. Unwrapping a gift is akin to eating a meal. So, on Christmas morning, you're going to eat the equivalent of a turkey dinner, a steak, three hamburgers, a cauldron of soup that you really don't enjoy, a grilled cheese sandwich or five, french fries, six pounds of linguine. Afterwards you enjoy an emotional throw-up. Yikes. Merry Christmas.

A lot of effort went in to the purchase of the gifts, and a lot of stress (for some of us). I'd bet that at least fifty percent of presents are under appreciated, or flat out unwanted.

So what does this have to do with cross-country travels with my plaster sidekick? Everything. Let me explain...two friends recently gave me a gift that was completely unexpected. Bingo! Point one: surprise, the gift was not expected. The gift was a small statuette of a clown that probably came from a dollar store. The gift was symbolic. Aha! Point two: it had relevance to my life. Was the gift useful? On the surface no, it was just park of an ongoing joke. Was it thoughful? Incredibly so. Let's re-cap: the gift was unexpected, thoughtful and

 relevant. It was not purchased under duress. It was purchased because it was the right gift, for the right person, at the right time. It was perfect.

The clown has a name, it's Timmy. There's a long story about the name which involves a sleepy little town in Maine and a sinister doll, also called Timmy. We won't go there now. Had I received Timmy (the clown) at Christmas, it wouldn't have had the same impact. Context is important, and this is where Christmas fails us. Christmas gifts are given because they're expected to be given and that's a lousy reason to give a gift. I know, I know, we've all received fantastic gifts for Christmas...it happens all the time. I've received more than a few that I love.

What would it be like if gifts were spread throughout the year? Much more pleasant, from where I'm sitting (which happens to be a couch). I'll never change the western world's habit of over indulging our children on Christmas morning, but I'll do my part (sorry Julian). Someone's got to stop the madness.

Speaking of madness, let's re-visit Timmy for a moment. Timmy was given to me in Hood River, Oregon, the midway point of my cross North American trek this summer. Timmy took on a starring role on my drive home to New Brunswick. He made a wonderful traveling companion, his conversation was witty and he had a joie de vivre that was contagious.

We had a lot of fun along the way. Take a look at the images below to see where a gift can take you.
Timmy & Tammy, at home in Cambridge-Narrows.
Timmy calls New Brunswick home now. He lives with his girlfriend Tammy (pictured above right), who he met at a 'dance' club on the Quebec/New Brunswick border.