Monday, December 21, 2009

Catching up


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:

serendipity_viv said...

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.

Peter S. said...

Hi Viviene! Merry Christmas to you too!

Becca said...

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!

Peter S. said...

Hi, Rebecca! I hope you enjoy the holidays too!

Astrid (Mrs.B) said...

Merry Christmas Peter! You're right, it is so crazy this time of year. Hope you get lots of bookish presents!

Anonymous said...

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!

Anonymous said...

It's hard to account for all the hidden costs, isn't it?

Gilion at Rose City Reader said...

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.

LoF said...

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.

Peter S. said...

@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.