STRESS: The TCNY Syndrome - Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's

Here we are, countdown to Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's! Are you feeling the pressures already?  I know I am!  Here are just a few panic attacks I foresee prior to my major nervous breakdown:

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Here's hoping your dinner arrangements have been made!  My household has greatly diminished, so this year I will NOT be cooking dinner; actually, I am planning to share the day and also spend the night at my friend's home to save time. We are going SHOPPING ON BLACK FRIDAY!!!!  That in itself invokes terror within me ... the crowds, the pushing and shoving, the noise ... and that is only in the car on the way to the multiple stores we will be attacking with a vengeance!  Crying and pleading started just after Halloween:  "but I neeeeeeeed that IPhone 6, mine is sooooo old!"  "Look at how much we can save on that awesome larger-than-my-house plasma TV!"  "I sooooo need headphones and matching earplugs for my soon-to-be new outfits!"  ... you get the idea. Computers, laptops, every make and model of cell phone and tablet, TV, DVD, Blu-Ray, Kindle ... aaaaaaaagh!!!!

Does it stop there?  Oh, heckie no!  We have Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday!

CHRISTMAS, ET AL

(Note:  Shopping for this particular season will commence between 1 - 2 days after completing the above)  Bigger and better sales await you!  After post-Thanksgiving (whatever that is!), we now arrive at even more food and decoration mania.  This is followed by severe outbreaks of whining, begging, pleading, notes, pictures, messages, magazine articles, etc. being left in ridiculous places throughout your entire world!  This is usually responded to with "I dunno, but it's cool, ain't it?" or something to that intellectual effect....Radio, television, billboards, junk mail, will be filled with the sounds and colors of the upcoming event....at a discount!  ha ha

NEW YEAR'S

Many will require an entire new outfit with all accessories, hair, nails, etc.  At least that's what I'm being told by my 'loved ones' .... ha ha!  Personally, I plan to just curl up at home and watch festivities around the world on my laptop (my hopefully NEW laptop, refer to previous holiday).  New Year's Day has become an all-day snacking event spent largely in front of the TV (also hopefully NEW, refer to both previously listed holidays).

With all teasing aside, from now until the beginning of the next year....let us all take that precious time to reflect how fortunate we are just to breathe life...donate some of your time and money to those so much less fortunate...there are so many possibilities....you can think of and do at least one, can't you?  Won't you?  Thank you.....