breathe easy

I really really really want to join the ranks of the righteous and be one of those people who disdains material Christmas gifts, choosing instead to dedicate their resources towards bettering the world around them. They shun the shallow and the selfish, the consumer-driven greed-fest that Christmas has become in so many ways. And I agree wholeheartedly with the principle and I want, badly, to act on it. There are two reasons, however, that I still actively participate in the present-fest.

First and foremost, I’ve tried it. People seemed unimpressed. And I’m so desperate for positive feedback and avoiding the WHY DON’T YOU LIKE ME middle-school flashbacks that I can’t go through that again.

Second, my Christmas presents this year so significantly improved my quality of life I’m not sure I can express in words how cool they are. For all-time greatest present, it is not, as you might suspect, my awesome new video ipod (I can watch TV! On the metro! Working out! Whenever I want! My life is complete!) or the warm winter coat (brr, baby, it’s FINALLY cold outside, but not inside my toasty new parka with the pocket and earphone vent for my awesome new ipod). Instead, it’s this random little eye pillow with the um, herbs and such in it.

It doesn’t seem like much—a silk pillow filled with beads? seeds? hulls? I do not know, and aromatic, pungent even, with the scents of peppermint, eucalyptus, spearmint, and other odd things you would think wouldn’t be very soothing. I cannot believe I have gone my entire life without this. You see, I am allergic to cats. And I have two. Well, three, currently. I keep the allergies under control with Zyrtec, but every night in that hour between when my Zyrtec wears off and I take the next one, I get sniffly and stuffy and my eyes get all watery and I have a little trouble breathing just at the time I want to get to bed.

So every time this has happened since Christmas, I have stretched out in bed and laid this little eye pillow over my face and suddenly, I can breathe. The sniffles and the stuffy and the watery is all gone, and everything clears up. I love it. It is a lifesaver.
Remember that new identity I was talking about? How I don’t know what or who I’ll be in a year? I mentioned vegan and lobbyist and student and really, the possibilities are endless. But I tell you, this eye pillow thing is really tilting the scales in favor of naturopathic, incense-burning, charm-wearing hippie.