Note to self: don't run yourself ragged this Christmas

I have just returned from Edinburgh’s largest department store with a mattress pad and a pair of “nude” nylon tights. The mattress pad is for a guest bed, and the nylons are for me. One of the small annoyances of British life is that hosiery manufacturers seem to think the average nude Brit is walnut-coloured. In Canada I would at least have the choice of “alabaster,” the colour I actually am.

Around me the department store swirled with crowds of Christmas shoppers. My stress level rose.