“Do we really need the Christmas music playing already?” Dave Winston asked Molly Whiteside when she delivered the menus the other morning at Mabel’s Grill.
“I like it,” Molly said. “I persuaded Mabel to put on the Christmas music a little earlier this year. It cheers me up!”
Dave shook his head. “Christmas just starts earlier and earlier,”
“A good thing too,” Molly replied.
“I see Christmas advertising starting on the TV as soon as Halloween is over,” grumbled George Mackenzie.
“Christmas movies, too” sighed Dave.
“Great, isn’t it,” said Molly.
“I saw Swiss Chalet offering a Christmas special about two weeks after their Thanksgiving special finished,” said Cliff Murray.
“Wonderful,” said Molly sounding anything but wonderful. “Now we’ll have customers driving all the way to the city to eat.”
“Oh they’re probably there already,” smiled Cliff. “If you think people going to the city is hard on restaurants, you should try owning a store downtown.”
“Remember when they made Christmas movies where people put up the tree Christmas Eve?” Dave wondered. “My wife wanted to put up the tree so early a natural tree got too dried out, so she went out and bought an artificial tree.”
“Have you seen how much those things cost?” Molly asked.
“Have you seen how much a real tree costs, and only last a couple of weeks?” Cliff asked.
“Yeah, but it’s part of Christmas, going out and buying a tree,” Molly said, then took the guys’ orders and headed back to the kitchen humming “It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas” along with the tune playing on the speakers.
“I still cut my own tree,” George said. “We had spruce seedlings planted along the river at the back of our place some years ago and I’ve been cutting the odd one, and thinning them out.”
“Wasn’t it a long time ago you planted them?” Cliff wondered.
“I guess it was,” George observed. “Now I either have to cut a couple of feet off the bottom of the tree or raise the ceiling in the living room.”
“My wife seems to have forgotten how much money she spent on that artificial tree,” Dave sighed. “Now she still wants to spend big on presents for the kids.”
“That’s the nice thing about having kids that are all grown up!” George chuckled.
“Yeah, my parents said we shouldn’t get them gifts anymore at all,” Cliff said. “They already have just about everything they need and all it’s going to mean is more stuff for them to find a place for when they have to move to an apartment.”
“I hate to even think about that day coming,” George sighed.
“That means you can save a bit on Christmas, at least,” said Dave.
“Well we decided we’d take the money we’d normally spend on their Christmas presents and give it to somebody like CARE or UNICEF in my parents’ names,” Cliff said.
“But a lot of the people you’re giving money to aren’t even Christians so they don’t celebrate Christmas,” George grumbled.
“Yeah, but they still like full stomachs,” Cliff answered.
Molly returned with the guys’ loaded plates and delivered Mabel’s observations. “Mabel says she agrees with you guys – Christmas starts too early, but you’re here an hour a day but I’m here eight hours a day so I win!” she smiled.
“I suppose we could always make a trip to the Tim Hortons over by the lake,” George said slyly.
“And spend extra gas money to get there?” Molly wondered. “Besides, I’m not sure that corporate headquarters hasn’t decided they should play Christmas music early”
“Yeah but I can pay the gas because I never tip at Tim Hortons,” George smiled.
“You must get good mileage on your truck if you can drive for the tips you leave me!” Molly smirked.◊