As I continue to get a little older each year, I often find myself feeling more and more nostalgic about things and days gone by. This time of year, around the holidays, only seems to amplify those feelings. I guess that's probably normal (as normal as anything having to do with me, anyway). We always have a soft spot in our hearts for happy things that are no longer around.
A few years ago, as I was driving across the country on a vacation trip, I happened to come across a place somewhere in the midwest called "Nostalgiaville." Since I was sure they had a restroom and because you can't just simply drive by a place called "Nostalgiaville" and not stop, I decided to pull in. They had almost anything you can think of, from vintage road signs to those really cool aluminum Christmas trees with the color wheel that would shine light on the tree and change the color of the tree. My grandmother had one of those and I always loved seeing that tree. Not only because I thought it was pretty, but I knew when that tree was up, Christmas was not far away.
Another thing I remember and miss is the Sears and Roebuck Christmas catalog. It would always come in the mail around this time of year. They appropriately called it "The Wish Book." It was only about half the size of the other catalogs, but what made this one great was the fact that it had toys listed in it. In fact, the toy section of the catalog took up about half the catalog. I remember getting the catalog and thumbing through its colorful pages with my crayon and carefully circling the items for my list. When my list was complete, it was carefully documented with descriptions and page numbers, just in case Santa had any question as to what I had in my young mind. At the time, I was quite certain that Santa had easy access to the Sears catalog, even at the North Pole.
In a way, I feel a little bad for kids these days. With the internet and online shopping, I feel they miss out on something without the joy of sitting down in the middle of the living room floor with a crayon and the Sears Wish Book and circling the items of their heart's desire. Most of them would probably get into trouble if they tried to circle an item on the computer screen with their crayon.
So now, I think I'll try to find out if "Nostalgiaville" has a website I can contact. Perhaps they will send me a catalog and I can circle the items I want with my crayon. Happy holidays everyone, from the sunny side.