The Neighborhood: Better late than never

It was a belated time in the neighborhood...

When you are shopping, do you ever wander through the greeting card aisles, looking for the right card for an occasion? Sometimes it takes a long time to find the one that is just about perfect. Perhaps, in your meandering, you noticed that you can buy a belated card for just about everything. Seriously, go check it out. Belated this, belated that. But, no belated Christmas wishes. Hard to believe, isn't it? I'll have to talk to Mr. Hallmark about that, because I'm sure there are people out there who would take advantage of it. I know I would. I say this because I just finished our Christmas letter.

Hey, I wished people a Merry Christmas every chance I got this past Christmas. I bought Christmas presents. I wrapped Christmas presents. I went to Christmas parties. I did some Christmas baking. (What? Chocolate chip cookies don't count as Christmas baking?) I even decorated our house a bit, despite the fact that we weren't going to be home for Christmas.

But, there was that one little thing that I never got around to...sending out Christmas cards. Some years I don't send anything out because I just don't feel like it. (The way I look at it is, why do something like that when it just seems like an annoying chore?) Other years I actually want to wish everyone well and send out the obligatory greetings. This year I decided to do something completely different and wait until after the holidays... which is where those belated Christmas cards would have come in mighty handy. I'm thinking a lot of people are going to be surprised - and maybe happy - to hear from us during these long, dreary days of winter. It will be a nice little surprise in their mailbox.

Then again, as a friend pointed out me last week, if I don't get them out pretty soon it will be Easter and then I might as well skip it altogether!

So, as I say goodbye to yet another Christmas season (better late than never), I can get on with my life. And who knows, some year I might just send out holiday greetings in June or July...I could call it my Christmas-and-a-half greeting.

Now if I could just get those envelopes addressed so I could send our letter out...

You can reach Mary Bruemmer at mary.bruemmer@pineriver journal.com