Tulsa World, Okla., Jay Cronley column

Source: Tulsa World, Okla.self storageDec. 17--Here are three Christmas and holiday traditions that are going the way of a Norman Rockwell painting -- they're becoming fond memories to smile over -- and one tradition that can be preserved.1. Last-minute shopping.Most everybody I know has already finished shopped eight days out.I have even completed approximately one-fifth of my shopping, a record.I drove by a branch post office this morning. It looked like they had just put Oklahoma City Thunder stamps on sale.Cars were lined up outside, their drivers honking at one another and wondering if the gigantic vehicle backing out of a spot without anybody appearing to be behind the wheel was ever going to slow down.Beware of little people in big cars.Shopping online takes three minutes if you're prepared, 10 if you're browsing. There went 5,000 more electronic tablets and 4,000 more keyboards to go with them.Calm and fast advanced Internet shopping can be catastrophic to local merchants.Shop at the last minute, keep our economy cooking.Next on the list: 2. Sending Christmas and holiday cards.I was in the branch post office the other day and was told my small envelope would cos迷利倉 66 cents to mail, more, because it was square and couldn't be sorted like rectangle shapes.Mantles show off fewer cards each season because to many, buying and sending them is an expense and a chore.Some people send photos of themselves from a vacation site. Some send written personal histories of what transpired the year before. Some send mass greetings on the Internet.You can go ahead and stop that.Most people like to get cards but don't like to send them; it's a quirk of the season.3. Gift wrapping.Internet shopping leads to brown boxes under the tree.Early shopping leads to professional wrapping.Few people still wrap packages themselves and seal the outside edges of the decorative paper with duct tape, which in its own way says this is for somebody special.Best tradition: The tradition worth preserving at almost any cost is buying something for yourself every time you buy something for one of them.Books, music, art, games, computer accessories: one bag for them, one bag for you.This makes shopping a joy.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) Visit Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) at .tulsaworld.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉