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CHRISTMAS GIFT GUIDE Wednesday December 13 Page When choosing gifts Plan ahead trust your judgement Even of us who Man nut curly with the best somehow wind up searching frantic illy Tor last presents on December 24ih and buying anything lhai can be wrapped up and given And usually takes all the pleasure out of giving Although buying and selecting presents for loved ones should be among the est moments of the holiday season indecision bad weather lines and crowds of harried shoppers can get you down So whal the best way to keep from gelling frazzled during the holidays A few simple shopping tips should keep your spirits up One common mistake Christmas shop Wholl be the first foot There are many fascinating customs associated with the Christmas season Among ihem is the tradition of first footing which hails from the British Isles On New Year Day in Scotland and Christmas Day in rural England the first person to enter the house is of utmost im port a nee He or she is considered to have let in the holiday and the fortunes of the family who reside there arc dent on this being done properly If a woman is the first person to enter according to superstition the results would be disastrous Thus in some places families hire men as first foot to make sure everything occurs cording to tradition These men however should have dark hair they cannot under any stances be redheads as that would be un lucky red is the color of Judas Iscanot There are certain actions associated with first footing as well The first fooler must enter the home through its front door walking through it and exiting in the back He usually bears a twig of evergreen a symbol of life in the midst of winter barrenness And while within the house in many locations he is given a token gift usually salt or bread as a symbol of hospitality What is the aim of all this elaborate uaP An old carol offers one answer when it recounts a pocket full of money and a cellar full of beer and a great fat pig to last you all the year pers make is concentrating too much on the spectre interests and hobbies of the person for whom the gift is intended Rest assured your friend the cat lover will have of kitty calendars and posters and probably prefers to select her own anyway Your athletic pal has more tennis tie clips than he knows what to do with precisely because everyone thinks they re the perfect gift And don try for example to find an instrument or other piece of equipment for your musician fnend unless you know leagues show up gift that might please more in per son go and get it You thank yursclf on December when need a last minute for someone you forgot you have enough presents for everyone you like you won I be unhappy keeping it for yourself Another tip is to buy multiples of in inexpensive sure to please item like an organizer or a drawer sachet and wrap them before the season gets busy precaution is a life saver when your col exactly what you re looking for He ready will have very specific ideas about what model and brand of equipment he needs and more than likely it will be too sophisticated for you to afford Unless at yo party and you ve forgotten their wives and husbands Of course you re not gated to give them gifts but it certainly makes exchanging presents less awkward when one person t left out And think you know for sure that he wants exactly how touched and grateful the outsiders this microphone over others on the will feel when you include them market chances are you 11 get him the When selecting presents for children wrong one especiallyother people children However if you stay away from your seems impossible to keep up with the friends areas of expertise there really is trends in in toys and gadgets Idrcn wrong gift Remember few people have only one interest in life and most of us enjoy receiving the little luxuries we ordinarily deny ourselves If you make use of your own knowledge and interests you have a much better chance of a gift that will be appreciated The silk scarf you found on sale is just your color Maybe there s another shade that would suit a friend Although we usually rely on our own judgment when shopping for ourselves it amazing how little faith we have in our own taste when choosing for others Just because you never seen your col lege roommate wcjr purple mean it won l look smashing on her Ask your self first Do 1 like if Then consider why it may or may not be suitable for someone else Still unsure If it s a good buy and a are actually much than adults You may have hit on the latest hot car but buy it in blue whin fa vonte color is red and you got a pointed tot on your hands Since children develop at different rates it best not to give a toy that for a specific age If you re really a loss as most of us arc ask the salesgirl at your local toy store what the hottest sellers are or watch a child for a few minutes Observe what he or she picks out or even ask him what he wants from Santa If nothing else isganed the Christmas spirit may be In fee nous With a little ingenuity you spend your time off during the holidays relaxing instead of running around People v II admire not only your thought fulness but your holiday cheer as you gve it drink and arc merry The birth of the Christmas card While cards are taken for granted today as among the most of holidav customs their use actu ally only dates back to the last century With the advent of the Industrial Revo lution which made possible the mass production of printed matter such as Christmas cards and the invention in Britain of the penny post in 1840 which allowed people to correspond with family and friends relatively inexpert the stage was set for the creation of the Christmas card The date of the first Christmas card is probably 1846 when Sire Henry Cole asked John Calcot to design an illustrated card which contained greet ings of the season This card in form depicted three scenes Two in volved charitable deeds giving gar and food to the poor The third showed a family celebration with each member toasting the occasion with a glass of wine One thousand copies of this card were printed and sold the first step taken in what has become an extremely profitable business venture and a ubiquitous day time tradition that over ISO years young shows no sign of waning in SANTAS SENSATIONAL SPECIALS Until January 1st THE BEST SHRIMP CAN BUT TAMPA MAID SHRIMP RING Approximately 35 Pieces THAW SERVE PERFECT PARTY lb Each of Cheese Bites Meal Balls Sausage Rolls Shrimp Mates BAGEL BITES Bagel with Topp ng PIECES IE Reg With Spec al Seasonal Rebate BACON WRAPPED fu SCALLOPS PIECES SURF TURF Oi Bacon Wrapped Filet Lobster Tails MacGREGORS FULLY AGED NEW YORK STEAKS 3395 FRUIT PIES By ALL SO AQ NATURAL A BLACK FOREST CAKE Made With Real Whipped Cream INCH ruts wed fB SATURDAY STEAK EXPRESS ST GEORGETOWN BOXED MEATS FROZEN FOOD OPEN SUNDAYS Georgetown Store gieat and be youis you adC jfiYirs Major Minor Repairs Specializing in JAPANESE CARS Toyota Datum Honda Mazda 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