You hear a lot about retail sales and quarterly numbers from manufacturers at this time of year. Mandarin oranges seem to arrive earlier and advertising for pre Christmas "blowout" sales events fill the radio waves, plaster our TVs and stuff our newspapers.
Ah, the holiday season is upon us, like it or not.
Getting a Mandarin orange into your stomach isn't as easy as it seems. Many people are paid and have to work hard so this gastronomic feat can be accomplished.
Several weeks ago, farmers in China, Japan and elsewhere began harvesting oranges. Paid workers put them in boxes, stacked them on pallets, loaded them onto trucks and trains, and delivered them to ports where they were placed in containers and stowed on freighters for their long journey to our mouths.
When the freighters arrive here, paid longshoremen remove the cargo and assemble the containers so truck drivers (also paid) can deliver them to grocery stores so paid clerks can put them out on display so you and I can buy them with money we have earned and check them out at the cashier who is being paid by the business owner.
Hoping Santa gets you an iPad this Christmas? Same process. The devices are manufactured by workers in China and are delivered to London Drugs and Best Buy where a whole new group of people gets paid to help us buy stuff.
What does all this crazy commerce mean? It means the cashiers, the truck drivers and everybody else in the supply chain can pay for housing, food and maybe some presents for their kids.
The importance of jobs, logistics, trade infrastructure and a strong economy cannot be underestimated or taken for granted in British Columbia.
You may or may not appreciate this reality but it ensures our quality of life in Canada is maintained. Think about this every time you buy something, especially at Christmas.
As of yet, I haven't really participated in the economic chain this season.
As usual, with two weeks to go until the big day, I have not bought one Christmas present. I have purchased a brick of cheddar cheese, some fire logs and way too many replacement bulbs for my antiquated Christmas lights.
I have recorded a few Christmas TV shows and pulled decorations out of storage. Baby steps.
I like Christmas, I really do. As the old saying goes, I liked it better when I was a kid, I suppose.
I love being with my extended family for a couple of days and I really like playing with the little ones toys on Christmas afternoon. I will enjoy a contemplative beach walk while the 25-pounder is in the oven and I will smile when I am seated in some weird desk chair as we all squeeze in around a diligently crafted dining table.
I will also enjoy my post feast walk through the old stomping grounds and remind myself of all the wonderful times I have had with my family and friends.
I will take a moment, standing in the chilly night, to appreciate simplicity and wish that there were more of it.
I wish I could grow my own oranges.
