Black Friday

And so with the last crumb of pumpkin pie eaten and the city dozing on L-tryptophan, Old Man Winter awoke late last evening to blow a cold wind across the barren Delaware Valley. The icy gusts continued today prompting fresh flannel sheets and itchy woolen hats.

Swearing off the mall, Gus and I instead drove to my two favorite shopping destinations to jumpstart our holiday cheer. First, two darling shops in Hereford, The Cinnamon Stick and Homespun, the latter of which is housed in an 1860s General Store. Both were suitably bedecked for the holidays and offered cookies and spiced tea amongst their wares to a sprinkling of windblown shoppers. My purchases wrapped and sweet tooth satisfied, we hopped in the car and made our way down the Blue Route to Terrain at Styer's Nursery. The store sparkled with a particularly delightful array of decorations and housewares and, outdoors, the nursery's crisp air was a heady combination of freshly cut fir and woodsmoke.
---
After a brief winter's nap, we veered from the day's deck-the-halls theme to see the highly acclaimed film Precious. It's a pretty incredible film, but one that is difficult to watch unfold. I know in my heart that I see girls like Precious every day. When Gus picks me up from work, we drive the streets of what could be the movie's set through West Philadelphia. I've cursed as her kids have darted out in front of our car and I've looked on in sorrow as she's trudged home in the pouring rain. At the hospital, Gus gives Preciouses epidurals day in and day out, the same story retold and relived by so many. It is an amazing human story and not one I will soon forget.