Recently the two teams played a basketball game. Earlier that day, Johntell Franklin, one of the player’s for Madison High School lost his mother to cancer. Because the coach and many of the players wanted to be with him, they were late getting to the game. DeKalb High School had driven 2 1/2 hours to play the game but Coach Dave Rohlman offered to cancel. The Madison Coach, Aaron Womack Jr. declined. Since Franklin wasn’t there, he only had eight players, but they still decided to play the game.

In the second quarter, Franklin showed up and wanted to play. The officials informed Coach Womack that Franklin wasn’t on the roster and they would have to accept a technical foul. He accepted it. The DeKalb coaches however did not want to take the foul shots. Officials told them they had no choice.

Darius McNeal, the Senior Point Guard, said he would take the free throws. McNeal threw the ball a few feet in the air and it then bounced on the ground. He repeated this for his second free throw. After the second shot, the crowd gave McNeal a standing ovation.

“Any one of my teammates would have done the same thing, and I think anyone on the Madison team would have done the same for us,” McNeal was quoted as saying.

As I said, it is nice to hear about something positive in the current situation most of us find ourselves in. I have played sports and have been involved with youth sports programs. The drive to win often takes over good sportsmanship. It is great to know that sportsmanship still shows up now and again.

You can read more about this at the LA Times and the International Herald Tribune.

Rachel Maddow talked about this story on last nights show and I posted a video of it on YouTube.

Since I was running to Best Buy, decided to get a replacement iPod. Mine had been giving me some battery issues and I think there was a short in the bottom where the sync cable goes. Turned out that the sales person lied to me when I bought it and I didn’t have a replacement plan on it but instead had a service plan.

I wasn’t happy. Ended up talking to the manager and left with a new iPod. All worked out well and now I have the 2nd gen iPod touch. Doubt I’ll get to even use that until tomorrow because it will take forever to restore from my old one. FYI – to restore your iPod, just hook it up. I did not know this and had trouble finding info online. Finally just tried it out. So, if you are trying to restore a replacement iPod, just connect it to iTunes and it asks if that is what you want to do.

To top it off, Brett Favre announced he really is retiring. I’m sorry to see him go. I feel bad that people gave him so much grief for coming back the first time.

While many people want to have the argument about religion during this season, I don’t want to go there. There are many religions that celebrate things around this time. I don’t understand the fight over Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday’s. I’m a “Happy Holidays” person. That covers whatever belief someone may have. Yes, Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. There is no denying that and there should not be. But again, it is not the only holiday being celebrated during the next few weeks.

Okay, enough of that personal note. Back to my original thoughts…

Here is Agent Squirrel’s list of possible gifts you can give this season.

First, if you have browsed this site, you know that I’m a huge fan of singer/songwriter Meg Hutchinson. I have to put her latest CD, Come Up Full at the top of my list. Trust me on this one. I’ve given this CD to a number of people during the year and not a single person didn’t love it.

Next for CD’s is Missy Higgins latest titled On A Clear Night. This is a great CD from start to finish.

You can buy either of those CD mentioned above through iTunes or through the artist websites. Don’t forget that you can always give a gift of music through iTunes.

Speaking of music (can you tell this is a favorite subject of mine?), there is a great site I came across called Feed Them With Music. This site sells two CD’s priced at $6.99 each (who can beat that). The first one, titled Road Trip: American Singer Songwriters, contains 10 tracks from various artists. The second CD, titled Road Trip: Relaxing Piano, contains 11 tracks from Benny Weinbeck playing the piano.

What makes this so special is that with your purchase of this CD, 10 hot meals are served globally to those most in need.  It is an amazing idea because you not only can give the gift of music to someone in your life, but this gift actually helps others.

The theme I mention above – a gift that helps others – is going to continue through the rest of my list. There are many gifts we can give people that can help other people.

Gifts That Help Others

Let’s face it, we all have people in our lives that don’t really need – or want – anything material for the holidays. We end up buying them something because we want to give them something. In this case, there are lots of things you can give without ever leaving your house to shop.

Here is my list of ideas based on the different people we know in our lives:

Friends/Family
Donate money to the person’s favorite charity: You hear this a lot, but think about it… you get to give them something that can provide much needed help to someone else. Unless the person you are buying for is a complete scrooge – and if they are, why are you getting them anything? – there is a good chance that some cause is close to their heart.

Did you know that there are lots of charities where you can “buy” gifts that are given to others? Heifer International is one of the many organizations that provide you with a way to give a flock of chicks to a family somewhere in the world. The family raises the chicks which will end up providing them with eggs for food and to sell, and the chicks will reproduce to provide even more chicks. A flock of chicks cost $20. $20 that can change a family’s life somewhere in the world.

After you make your donation, you can print out a card to present to the gift recipient showing what you have done and what purpose it serves.

Kids
The above mentioned donation to an organization like Heifer International is a perfect example of a gift you can give a child in your life. Think of the lesson that this could teach them? You could even buy them a stuffed animal of the same category as your donation that lets them remember what you did. You can sit down and explain what this means to someone who is a total stranger to them. Many lessons can be taught by giving a gift such as this.

In the past, I have also purchased two of a gift and let the child I was giving a gift to know that another child, who may not have received any other gift that year, also received the same thing.

When my son was growing up, he used to take one item on his list and we would buy it together to give away. Not one single time did he ever pick an item on his list as our “donation gift” that wasn’t something he wanted. He knew that there were children who had less than we did and it became important to him to give to others. It was a lesson he learned at a young age and it stuck with him up to his death.

Pet Lovers
I want to suggest adopting an animal, but NEVER do this unless you know that the person wants an animal. Instead, why not donate money to the Humane Society, the ASPCA, Alley Cat Allies, or the local shelter near where they live. If you have the time, you can even buy a case of dog/cat food and bring it down to your shelter. You could even buy this ahead of time and plan a time where you both can go together and drop it off. That gives you both time together while you are providing such needed help to animals waiting for a home.

If this pet lover in your life has a pet of their own, buy their pet a small gift and then write down in a card that you donated money too.

Gifts for Someone Who Lost a Loved One
This is a personal issue for me. My son passed away two and half years ago. During the holiday’s it is hard for me not to “shop” for him. This year, I decided to add his name to my Christmas list. I then donated money to two pet charities in his name. Many animals will get food and medical care this month because of this gift. I feel he would be happy to know this.

My Aunt passed away last year of cancer. As I was making out my Christmas card list for this year, I realized that I wouldn’t be sending her a card as I had in the past. I realized that I would typically spend at least $5.00 on a card, postage, etc. plus the cost of a gift I would normally have given her. Instead, this year I donated money to the American Cancer Society in her name.

If someone in your life lost a loved one recently, maybe a donation to a charity that is related to how they died might give them some comfort.

Conclusion

I think you get the idea of what I’m talking about. The thing is that you don’t have to actually go to a store to “buy” something for someone you care about. There are many ways to show you care while helping out someone else. Everywhere you look there are people who need a helping hand.

Now, if you insist on actually buying something, here is a short list of some items I think are cool, neat or just plain fun:

For Anyone
Books – Remember these? Seems that nobody is reading books anymore. Just about everyone we know is interested enough in something that there is a book out there for them. If not, you can always go with a gift card to their local bookstore.

Music – I already covered this at the beginning of this page. Give the gift of music to someone. Introduce them to something you listen to. Give them Meg Hutchinson’s CD. You know that you can gift someone a song or even an entire album on iTunes? It is real easy and they can download it when they get a chance. If you have iTunes installed, go to the album and select the “gift this music” (I think that is what it says) button and then enter the email address of the person you want to send it to. Don’t worry if that might not be the email address they use for their iTunes account.

A Letter – Yes, a letter. When was the last time someone in your life got a letter from you? Nope, emails don’t count. I’m talking about a real letter written using a pen and a piece of paper. Something that tells the person how you feel about them. Maybe write about a holiday memory you have of them from the past.

For Geeks
Flip Mino HD – This is a ultra small video camera that shoots HD video. No really. I’m in the middle of writing up a review but the videos I did at the Tin Angel were all taken with the Flip Mino HD. I love this camera. website Added 12/15/08

Casio Exilim S10 – This little digital camera is great. I bought one because it was time to replace my older digital camera but I didn’t want to spend a ton since I own a great Digital SLR for serious picture taken. The sale price of $199 at Best Buy (prices vary but look around for sales) made me decided to go with this one. I have been really surprised at this camera. Even the video setting is amazing and will let you transfer your movies right to YouTube. Great digital camera for beginners or experienced users. website

For Kids
Any kid under the age of 10 wants to be in control of things once in a while. How about giving them a card that lets them pick a movie for family movie night? Or maybe a board game they get to pick for everyone to play. Anything that lets them pick what everyone does.

Board Games – While I love computers, I still like to play board games. I’m amazed at how many kids have never played some of the classics. Now their face might not light up that much when they open the gift, but I bet that would change if you told them you will play the game with them. Instead of just giving them a board game, open it up together and go over how to play.

Music – Don’t forget that kids like music too. We all focus on how much music is out there that kids shouldn’t be listening to that I think we forget how much good stuff there is that kids can listen to. Surprise them with a fun CD aimed at their age level. Maybe get something that you liked at their age and introduce them to it. Show them how you danced to it or pop it into the CD player and sing to it. Most kids I know get a kick out of watching how silly adults can be when they sign to their favorite songs.  The point is to share your love of some music with children and even more importantly, share memories and/or time.

Play Dates – Write down a day when you are free and you and the kid in your life can go on a play date where they get to pick where. Even if it is at home, pick a date when you will come over and play a board game (maybe one you bought them) with them or watch a movie with them. Again, anything that involves spending time with them. Kids want to spend more time with the adults in their lives then we often realize.

Well, that’s it for my list. I know that my list above steered away from things to buy. I guess I can’t help it. While there are plenty of things you can “buy” someone, there are many other gifts you can give them.

Happy Holidays