Christmas Controversy
Lately, I have been receiving several emails imploring the sender to forward on a message that we need to get the word out and tell people that Christmas should not just be called a Holiday or we should not stop saying Merry Christmas to make way for Happy Holidays. By the messages I have received people are really upset by this. Did I miss something? Was there some law passed that said that Christmas no longer exists? Is there some mandate stating the Christmas is not longer PC? I am pretty sure I didn't miss anything. So what's the big deal? So a few retailers decided that they would avoid alienating their non-Christian shoppers by saying Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas? Who cares! Lets face it these retailers DO have to sell to people who are not Christians. Do Christians have a monopoly on the Holiday Season? Last time I checked Chanuka was going on right now too and Rahmadan was a few weeks ago. So it makes sense that retailers take a neutral stance on this topic. Jewish and Islamic customers shop too. I realize that this might not be as prevelant in our more rural areas where Christianity does dominate, but I live and work in a city where there are lots of diverse religions and cultures and they all work hard and spend that hard earned money during this time of year too, which drives are lovely economy here in the good ol' USA.
Now I have yet to meet a Jewish or Islamic or Hindu (all religious backgrounds I work with) who have a problem with the fact that I say Merry Christmas or celebrate Christmas or have a Christmas tree. Nope, most people don't care on a personal level. I think people are just getting bent out of shape because a couple of major national retailers decided to take a more neutral stance. They are just acknowloging that they have customers who are not Christian and that they don't just cater to those of a Christian faith.
If there is a problem at all its that we Christians forget what this celebration is about, the birth of Christ. So maybe we should worry more about that and not so much about what the local Nordstrom's puts in their window this time of year. I mean isn't this time of year supposed to be about good will towards men (and women) and loving thy neighbor, regardless of their background? I seriously doubt that the good lord's intention was for us to draw lines in the sand and take sides against each other. Just my two cents. Take it or leave it.
Merry Christmas Everyone!
Christmas Shopping and the Illini
Well its 14 days until Christmas and I am glad to say that I have most of my shopping done ahead of time this year. Usually I am still scrambling the day or so before the big day but with 14 days left I only have a couple of gifts to buy, not counting some stocking stuffers. This year I split this shoping between the online catelogs and "brick-and-mortar" stores. On-line is nice because I don't have to fight for parking at the mall and don't have to stand in line to buy my items but every now and then its still neat to get to the mall and wander around in the heavily decorated stores and soak in the holiday hustle and bustle. This year I have bought quite a bit more than I usually do. I think that is a combination of having new people to add to the list as well as a function of making more money than last year. I don't even want to add up what I have spent this year, lol. But in the end it is worth it to see how happy people are around the tree opening gifts. Especially when you hit the occasional home run and get them something they didn't ask for but really thought was a neat item to get.
If you are like me you didn't think you would be writing about how this year's Illini have started out the season 10-0 and have moved themselves from 17th to 8th in the rankings and in first place in the Big Ten. Nope everyone, even myself I'm afraid, did not have high hopes for this Illini considering they lost most of their team from last year. But this year's new guys are picking up where the others left off in keeping the Illini in the winning column. Granted they are not as crisp a team as last years but I would argue they have just as much heart. They are winning the same way by playing solid team ball and hustling on defense. Its a testament to Bruce Weber's coaching that he can get these kids to buy into his system so early and get W's. And at the same time he is sending kids to the NBA in the first round draft. That just make's the Illini that much more attractive for potential recruits. So here is to Coach Weber, he's got me drinking the Kool Aide! Keep it up Illini!
Snow, Commuting, and things Basketball.....
Wow, so after getting somewhere around 6 inches of snow last night Chicago is definitely a winter wonderland. Fortunately I take the train so I wasn't part of the commuting nightmare last night. In fact my department had their holiday party at Joe's Bebop cafe at Navy Pier last night. Getting there was an adventure. Even though my building is within spitting distance of the pier the snow was so bad we decided it would not be a good idea to try and walk there. Especially since there was about 4 inches of snow on the sidewalks that hadn't been cleaned off yet. So my manager and I ran around out in front of my building after work trying to flag down a cab that didn't already have people in it. After about 10 minutes of this we finally got one to stop. The party was fun. I got to meet a lot of people in my department that I hadn't be able to talk to before. It seems like a good group of people. After the party three of us were standing out in front of Navy Pier hoping for a cab to pass by and after about 15 minutes of nothing we decided to start walking into the city in hopes of finding one. Well after about 5 blocks of no available cabs my teammate decided she was goning to jump on a bus so after walking her to the bus station I kept trudging on to Linda's place 15 blocks later I finally made it. It wasn't necessarily a bad walk because I was bundled up but wading through ankle deep snow in dress shoes isn't all that comfortable. Anyways, I like the snow enough that it didn't really bother me and it is definitely neat to see all the snow on the ground. We are supposed to get more this weekend but I don't think it will amount to much more. This morning while commuting into work I stuck to the underground pedway to avoid the wind and slush. It was funny walking with all the commuters underground on the way to my building because while I was walking the Dave Mathews Band song "Ants Marching" came on which I thought was appropriate. For those of you who don't know the song, its about people who get up and go through the everyday routine of getting ready for work and communting with all the other people to work each day. Kind of like a line of ants marching.
Well its that time of year again and honestly I didn't think I would be writing much on them but the Illini basketball team is off to another great start! Currently they are 9-0 and have moved from 17th to 10th in the rankings. Considering they lost most of their players from last years awesome team to graduation and the NBA draft, I was expecting a much more mediocre start. I have been very impressed with the new players, especially since most of them are either freshman or didn't see much playing time last year. Don't get me wrong. This team isn't near as pretty to watch as last years team but they are getting it done on defense and the leadership of their 2 seniors. Last night they won a game that was supposed to be closer against the Georgetown Hoyas, whose coach declared Illinois as one team expects to see make a title run this year! That is great feedback to hear considering this team wasn't supposed to contend again for at least another year. Granted the Illini haven't played a lot of big time programs yet but they did pull of a win against #24 North Carolina and beat a very good Georgetown team. If they can win against Oregon this Saturday they could be 14-0 before the Big Ten season even starts! We will see how they do. They still have a lot of work to do. They still turn the ball over a lot and aren't shooting very well. But considering these guys haven't played together much and are still 9-0 they should only get better as the season grinds on. I am not saying they will be 29-1 again but they are looking like the team to beat again in the Big Ten and should be dangerous in March. Go Illini!
