"I Want An iPhone For Christmas"

I know that quote might not seem outrageous on its surface, but when you hear the context I'm certain you'll feel my pain. For the most part, Mandi and I are not big spenders, especially when it comes to things we consider to be just toys. We have good phones, but you can be sure we got the good rebates on them and our plan is as cheap as can possibly be. We use our iPods quite a bit, and the iPhone's ability to do email, photos, and so on would not be difficult to sell me on for my hard working wife. So why did that quote deserve a post on my blog today, you ask?

Because Avery said it.

Trust me, I wish I was kidding. Lily, Avery, and I were driving to Lowe's to return some paint I'd picked up to paint our garage with. About halfway out of our neighborhood my phone rang and I immediately recognized the number as Avery's friend Elise, who lives 2 blocks away from us. 15 minutes later when we pulled into our parking spot at Lowe's I had to cut the conversation off. As we got out, Ave immediately started begging me to call Elise back when we got back in the car, to which I responded "We'll see how good you are in the store," knowing in my heart of hearts that that was a slam dunk way to keep the phone in my pocket. Then, as I got Lily out and locked the doors, the bombshell was dropped. "I want an iPhone for Christmas," Avery said. My jaw literally got stuck in some old gum that was on the ground in the parking lot. "Umm, how do you even know what an iPhone is?" And then it hit me . . Elise is from Florida! I immediately flashed back to my 9 months in Miami all those years ago, visions of broke people driving their Escalades to the plastic surgeon's office, but only after a stop at Starbucks (which of course they paid for with their Amex).

No, seriously though, what the hell is going on in this world? I won't pretend to remember second grade, but I can promise you none of us were as interested in "stuff" as kids are today. At 7 years old, I'm pretty sure my biggest concern in life was trying to get through a day without PJ, who my mom babysat, biting me. I'm quite certain I was wearing homemade velour shirts and Spiderman Underoos and loving every minute of it. I remember years later obsessing over things I wanted, but we're talking about Transformers and Matchbox Cars, not a $400 phone. After I summarily told Avery "No" to her request, she retorted "I'll just ask Santa Claus for it, and I don't believe Mommy when she says she has his phone number, so don't tell me that." "Well, (I didn't say punk, but I wanted to), maybe not, but I do have his email address, so don't get your hopes up!"