How many times have you planned an outing (or an outfit) based on the weather forecast? How many times have you had to pull a last minute change up because instead of sunny and 30, it is now raining and 20? How many times did you pack for snow heading to aunt Jane’s only to get ½ way there and have it change to warm temps and melting snow?
It doesn’t have to be that way – no really. We’ve found a very accurate weather forecast system.
AccuWeather.com Canada is the site for you. We can do one better even. If you choose Firefox as your browser, click this link This takes you to an add on page for Monzilla’s Firefox that allows you to install a weather display on the bottom of your browser.
I’ve been using the AccuWeather browser toolbar for over a year now and love it. Besides being a quick link to the forecasts, it gives me up to date/time on my weather. I have actually looked at the bar as it changes to rain, though that’s silly, the sun is shining so I look out the window…. And yep, it’s raining. Very accurate!
While you are on the Monzilla Firefox page, check out the rest of the add ons. Functionality and userability are simple reasons why Firefox has become the browser of choice for many.
So now that you know what to wear as you head out to finish (or in my case start) Christmas shopping, where to go. Let me tell you a story first, then I’ll pass on some cool finds.
I don’t like gift cards/ gift certificates, normally. There are however exceptions; gifts to Mother in-law’s and kids over the age of 18. My Mother in-laws chooses her own gift, always had, likely always will. She’ll give us a particular item, change her mind several times and then finally say – ‘oh I don’t know’ just get me something. So now, we go out and hunt out the best source for a particular type of gift and pick up a gift card in the denomination that is close to one of the items she likes. She usually ends up with the shoppers card from ‘the home outfitters’ or ‘The Bay’ – heaps of opportunities to change her mind.
My other in-laws are particularly hard to gift – we never know what they can use, what they like, what they’ve bought for themselves in the past few months. For them – well even though we spend an incredible amount of time hunting for just the right gift – it is gift cards for them too. When forced into making a decision as time is running out, we have been known to send gift cards for ‘the home depot’, a personal favorite ‘Canadian Tire’ and then the old stand by ‘the Bay’.
Oh and ‘the Daughter’ – what to get a girl like her. Well, you guessed it – gift cards. We haven’t been able to successfully buy for her for a number of years. We get her the clothes, the electronics the music and everything is always okay. Last year we stumbled on what we thought was a pretty good idea for her – gift cards at a couple of her favorit malls. This way she is not tied to the stores that we like and she gets to really shop.
Anyone who has teenagers, growing into young adults knows what it is like to go to get a hair product or a blow dryer to find it gone. Kids will do that. Take it, use it and forget where it came from in the first place. As a result of having to hunt down ‘my stuff’ in the house, we now make sure our lovely daughter gets a gift card from ‘Shoppers Drug Mart’. I don’t think there is much that one would need (outside of clothing) that Shoppers doesn’t have. A great all around gift.
Now with all this talk about gift cards, you’ll be thinking I have caved in and allowed the commercialization of Christmas take over. I’m here to tell you, no, I haven’t. I can’t fight the in-laws – you go ahead and give it a whirl and we’ll chat afterwards. As for ‘the daughter’ – I did mention that I spend more time searching for ‘my stuff’ than getting ready to actually leave the house, didn’t I? The girl simply can not have enough clothes either and I don’t like to see her leaving for work dressed in rags. (well, she has nice clothes, she just doesn’t put them on – go figure, so we’ll contribute to the nice clothes that she might wear)
I/we NEVER give friends gift cards. That is a no no. Mind you, some of our friends would likely prefer a gift card to some of the crazy gifts I find for them. But then again, what are friends for. I simply believe that gifts to friends need to be unique and I say ‘I thought about what you’d like, saw this, and even though I questioned it myself, thought – heck, it really reminds me of (insert friend’s name) you – so there you go.
I also don’t think gift giving is about the size of the gift or the amount of money spent on it. I believe you give someone a gift to say ‘you are special to me’.
When you are out shopping, please, think about others in that light. Unless you have absolutely no way around it, make gift giving something you want to do, not something that you must do.
Have a wonderful Hot Cherry Day!
