Christmas

The Christmas season is the happiest time of year. We get to spend extra time with our family and friends, and there are endless supplies of cookies. While these few weeks are filled with tons of cheer, it's also the sappiest time of year, especially in the good ol' USA. It's the ideal time for overseas military men to surprise their loved ones, and of course, create tearjerker alert YouTube video

My friends will sometimes ask what I want for Christmas.  I always have a hard time answering them.  The material things I would like to have are items that I cannot afford. Since all of my friends are in a similar socioeconomic position as myself, I get uncomfortable talking about presents.  There are a few things I know I don't want though.

I have spent several days putting up my outside Christmas lights, and I have become what my grandmother referred to as "flumixed" which is a more polite way of saying how I felt earlier today.

We are less than 20 days away from Christmas, and the retail industry is still abuzz over much improved sales over 2011. This week I visited several stores to get my Christmas shopping started.  All of the store employees I talked to all said business was staying brisk this year. It got me to thinking; when you go holiday shopping, what city do you like to go shopping in?

There was a time when a person would do just about anything in order to make ends meet. However, even with the unemployment rate dangling somewhere around 8 percent, many companies claim that they cannot find enough help to staff their operations.

During this busy holiday season, the Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety is reminding motorists to designate a driver or call a cab and avoid driving impaired. According to the Pettis County Sheriff's Office, law enforcement is on the lookout for impaired drivers, with targeted enforcement efforts Dec. 10-16.

Every year, we are bombarded with Christmas music. It is everywhere and takes many forms.  Music in elevators, in stores, on television and yes, on the radio.

My wife and I are just moved to Sedalia this last summer, and we'll be spending our first Christmas in Sedalia this year. We're having family visiting for the holiday, and we're looking forward to spending time with them, but I was hoping we could take them out on Christmas Day and actually do something, rather than just bum around the house all day.

Employee theft and shoplifting will cost retailers nearly $9 billion this holiday season, and unfortunately it's the upstanding consumer who pays for that loss in the end.

Snow falls from the sky, shops sell their Christmas wares, and the sweet fragrance of gingerbread houses fill the air—'tis the season! In the United States, there are plenty of Christmas traditions around to keep everyone happy. Gift giving, holiday meals and ornament-covered trees are in abundance everywhere.