Playmobil!

Our holiday Playmobil arrived last week. That includes Advent Calendars and Santa Claus figures that will be stubbornly placed in the basement until I feel I can't hold out any longer. I always aim for the week of Thanksgiving, but give in a bit sooner to the pressures from a retailing perspective. Never do I place stuff mid-October like the big guys, I just can't rush my life like that. So, the advent calendars are sitting on a shelf marked seasonal with all of the Christmas ornaments, bow bedecked Christmas bears, Elf on the Shelf's and I still can't believe I ordered this... Christmas Pickles. The rest of the Playmobil is up on the shelves though, and it brings me great joy to look at it. We got the Egypt stuff in, which is very, very cool, but my favorite in this shipment has got to be the jewel thieves. Nothing like a little toy cat burglar to make me giddy with delight. I never got to have Playmobil when I was a child. We did have the little fisher price stuff though, and I feel like they allow the same kind of play. Playmobil does it with far greater detail, ingenuity, and way more cool little everything. My sisters and I spent hours with our fisher price toys, and when I send a set of Playmobil home with a child, I know the same kind of imaginative play will ensue. Worlds will be created for mini lives to be lived. A yearning to make those worlds come to life will be deeply seated at the core of the play, and that somehow on some level, that is exactly what will take place.

Gratitude and the divine.

I run. It keeps me somewhat sane. I was going to say sane, but I realize there are many who would debate that, so somewhat sane it is. Every day when I run I pause down by the Yamhill river, take my ear buds out, breathe deep, and give thanks for everything. Here's the catch. I'm not religious..I don't know who or what I'm thanking, I just know that it has to be done. Whether or not there is some higher order I feel I have an obligation as someone who is blessed with abundance to recognize that not everyone is. It has nothing to do with God, though I do feel the divine in my surroundings.
I'm perfectly happy in my lack of faith. I work hard to make the lives of people I touch better, and having been through intensely religious phases in my life can say that I live my life basically the same as I would if I feared judgment from on high. Raising children without religion has proved trickier than I imagined. What I would not give for simple "he's in heaven with Jesus" answers from time to time! I wanted to raise them to be able to make their own decisions regarding the divine order of things. To seek their own truths, and sometimes I fear that I have left giant blank slates for someone else to come along and fill.
I believe in sitting down at meal times and eating with friends and family, and as I have stated, in giving thanks, so at every meal our family says "thankfuls". We go around the table and acknowledge two things that we are sincerely thankful for. That, education about the religious beliefs of other people,and reading bible stories is the extent of our religious indoctrination. Some people worry that not having God and fear of judgment would leave children without a moral compass, but that hasn't been my experience. My children love (and can't stand) their fellow man just as much as any God fearing Christian. They also know that when you are a jerk, people treat you like one which makes your life miserable (Karma).
At hopscotch I have had a hard time deciding which religious materials to have in my product mix. I have some in books (Beautiful Noah's Ark book just came in), some in infant for baptisms and births, some in puzzles,some in educational, and some first communion type lockets and crosses in my jewelry. I want to offer something for everyone, and I truly believe that the tradition and cultures of all faiths are beautiful, diverse, and worthy of preservation. (Now I am hearing all of the childhood sermons about the hottest fires of hell being reserved for those who straddle the fence. Man that stuff stays with you!)) That said, I simply cannot stomach little white bears with angel wings that have sound chips that play electronic greeting card versions of Jesus Loves Me. The hottest fires of my own personal hell have shelves and shelves lined with them playing ceaselessly. Yup. I just tackled religion in a public forum that is directly tied to my business. Not recommended. Don't really care. Politics tomorrow?

Boys and Trains.

What is it with boys and trains? In an era when most boys have not even seen freight being unloaded from a train let alone ridden in one, many are still obsessed with them. It amazes me! It's not just Thomas either. As a matter of fact, our Thomas sales have taken a dive as our other train sales have climbed. Our electric trains do great particularly at Christmas time. Is it grandfathers passing along their passion? It really seems more organic than that. Eight times out of ten when a little boy comes through the front door of the store he heads right over to our Plan City train table. For some of these guys we are known as the train store though trains make up less than 1% of our inventory. We used to be exclusively Brio and Thomas, but then Brio went and got all strange and new-age with their trains and began manufacturing in China so I stopped ordering them and introduced Melissa and Doug for a generic non-character train. Yes, M&D is manufactured in China also, but they are priced like they are manufactured in china. I brought in Plan as an environmentally friendly option. Manufactured in Thailand from reclaimed rubber-tree wood. I love Plan toys! Boys and cars, I get that. Boys and construction stuff, I get that too. Boys and weapons, I even get that. But trains! I don't understand the drive in this day and age. Still, I must admit that though it is considered trespassing, I can't resist the urge to balance on the rails between 3rd and 5th street on my walk home (where this picture was taken incidentally). I enjoy the sound of the rumble and whistle when the 11:00 blows through town. I am transported by old songs of riding the rails and the freedom that it presented. I look forward to a time when we abandon much of the transportation we currently use and ride the rails once again.