Boxing Day

Thanks to gift cards and gift returns, the day after Christmas is quickly surpassing the day after Thanksgiving as the number one shopping day of the year. Rather than just staying home and complaining about commercialism, my family decided to do our part and help contribute to the overcrowded malls and general hustle and bustle of the post holiday season.

The stylishly swank Chandler Fashion Mall (which is the nicest shopping mall I've ever been to, in Arizona, California, Kentucky or otherwise) was so packed, it was almost to the point of being ridiculous. I mean there was a line just to look at the directory. But there something amazing about seeing so many people in one place, even if most of them were upper class, materialistic sluts. (Indeed the warm Arizona climate inspires a low level of modesty that isn't found in Kentucky, but an eighty degree Boxing Day is quite pleasant.)

Paul and I did our best to make John Letoto happy and both found some pants at Banana (some chino slacks for myself, and jeans for my brother.) In a brilliant example of how what I do in moderation my little brother does in excess, David bought a pair of high fashion jeans that cost more than my last two pairs of jeans combined.

But the superficial satisfaction of new material possession pales in the comparison of indulging in the culinary ecstasy of In'n'Out Burger. Oh if there is something I missed about Arizona other than the pleasant temperatures, star filled skies, friends and family, and the mountain air, it was definitely In'n'Out. I could devote a couple of more paragraphs to the subject of this wonderful restaurant, but I'm afraid it would just cause my east coast brethren to fall into the sin of coveting living where the best fast food place on earth exists. Suffice it to say, after a long day of shopping sitting down with my family to a dbl. cheeseburger, freshly made fries, and strawberry shake was a tremendous blessing.