Giving is good...

...As they say. Last year instead of traditional present for some folk I knew I wouldn't see for a while because they live far away from me and haivng it lying around the flat for ages until I next saw them I logged on to Oxfam Unwrapped and bought some charity gifts in their name. This year several of my friends and I all decided that we had more than enough junk already and that instead we'd buy each other charity gifts. So some of us are buying gifts which then get donated to the likes of the Salvation Army to be distributed to folk who don't normally get presents, some are taking out a monthly donation to a charity in a friend's name and some are buying charity gifts online. Bit late for Christmas now, but if you have any late gift buying to do for friends or relatives that you may not see until after the big day then think about doing one or two of them this way - Oxfam Unwrapped have a good range of ideas and prices and they will send a card to the person you bought it for to tell them what has been given in their name. This time of year is supposed to be about giving, regardless of your religious inclinations (or lack thereof) that's not a bad thing to recall from time to time in our consumerist society.

Do I really need another movie on DVD or would I rather my friend bought a gift from Oxfam in my name that is going to help someone somewhere in the world who isn't going to a nice family home for the holidays to be with loving parents and eat more home-cooked food than some parts of the world see in a month? I'm not saying don't buy any traditional presents of course and like anyone else I fancy a look at the Janaury Sales - its nice to give and receive those too - but if even a quarter of us took the charity route for but a handful of our seasonal gifts splurge we'd make the world a little better, feel better about ourselves, make the person in whose name we give it feel good, be a little less consumerist and help someone who needs it far more than most of us. I'm not preaching here or trying to tell anyone what they should do, but as a suggestion I think that's a win-win all round, don't you?