And so work has finally ended for the year and I'm off to do some serious shopping and, finally, reading. First, the shopping. I spent two hours last night just finalizing my list and allocating how much I would be spending on each person's gift. The gift budget is a bit easy to do; since I know what to get each person on my list, I just had to plug in an amount that I'm willing to spend for him or her. I realized that I've been spending too much on gifts during this season, so I just hope that I stick to my budget.
I never knew that there were so many hidden costs to gift budget. You have to buy ribbons, wrapping paper, gift tags, etc. Plus, I thought that I never meet them just to give my gifts, right? We usually exchange gifts over dinner or coffee. So I had to factor in those expenses as well. My, oh my...
Next, I plan to catch up on my reading. I've bought several novels lately, and I do plan to read some of them before the year ends. Hopefully, the two weeks will let me finish 5 books at the most, which will barely make a dent on my TBR pile. Interestingly, I noticed that I've developed a taste for Gothic novels lately. I'm currently reading Daphne du Maurier's Jamaica Inn and Diane Setterfield's The Thirteenth Tale. I think that, for some reason, I find the eerie atmosphere of Gothic novels more suited to the Christmas season. Weird...
10 comments:
I think I have joined you in the Gothic interest. I hope you love Jamaica Inn, I much prefered it to Rebecca. Enjoy your Christmas shopping and don't spend too much.
Hi Viviene! Merry Christmas to you too!
Peter, I am glad you can enjoy some holiday shopping, reading, and some time with loved ones now. Wednesday is my last day until January 5th. I am stoked to have some time off. I was going to have to work 3 days next week. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas!
Hi, Rebecca! I hope you enjoy the holidays too!
Merry Christmas Peter! You're right, it is so crazy this time of year. Hope you get lots of bookish presents!
I adore Du Maurier and would imagine that her books in many ways are perfect for this time of year. I am trying to work out what season I read Rebecca in now... hmmm probably autumn/winter!
It's hard to account for all the hidden costs, isn't it?
Have a Merry Christmas and enjoy your reading! I have both those books on my TBR shelf and I hope to turn to them soon.
i do all my pasko shopping in october to avoid last minute problems. those irresolvable gift problems just fester until it reaches a crisis in early december, then i panic about one or two problems.
@Mrs B: Merry Christmas to you too!
@savidgereads: I really am loving all of du Maurier's novels. And her short stories are pretty good too.
@stacybuckeye: Oh yes. One minute I had all this money. And the next, I wonder where it's gone!
@Rose City Reader: Merry Christmas to you too!
@line of flight: Next year, I'll do that.
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