I used to laugh at reports of stores pushing Christmas merchandise before Thanksgiving had even rolled around.

Not any more.

This year it hit the Bay area with a vengeance. The day after Halloween many of our local stores seemed to have bypassed turkeys, pumpkin pies, and cranberries, and gone straight to Santa windsocks, illuminated animatronic reindeer, and remote control vehicles the size of a Saint Bernard. And that’s just in the grocery stores!

Remember the days when you went to a grocery store to by your ..um… *groceries*?? And to the sundry store to buy your sundries, and the department store to buy your..well..you get the idea.

“Look Momma”, says our son, “look how early the stores are celebrating Christmas!”

Yes, I suppose, for certain values of “celebrating”.

Certainly not a version which I will support. But that’s ok, I’ve got it all worked out – I’ll just buy my groceries at the drugstore down the street.