Dear Santa,
I’m a tech writer and photographer with an Amazon wish list (URL: http://amzn.com/w/SJMDQ66DLPRB) for all my wants, with detailed and specific items in every price range, and categorized by priority.
Now that we have that out of the way, let’s get to the things I’d like that can’t be bought.
- Regular sun breaks. As a denizen of the Pacific Northwest, even an afternoon of sunshine with no rain goes a long way to keeping the “it’s going to rain for the next 8 months” blues away. Sure, a successive amount of days of sunshine would be awesome, but I’ll take a few hours as a minimum. And could you make that happen once every 2-3 weeks, please?
- Drivers who use common sense and follow the rules. I know, I know, I’m asking for the impossible. A girl can dream, can’t she? Let’s start with using turn signals. Apparently, there are a lot of drivers who have never learned how to use a turn signal – and not just in Portland, either. I’d like to put my mind-reading skills to rest, and actually know when someone wants to change a lane…and could you remind them that if they do use the turn signal, to actually use it at least 50 feet before the change? Using the turn signal *while* they change lanes is too late. I’ve got other driver requests, but this behavior will do for this year.
- Television stations that don’t send anchors out into serious inclement weather. How many times do we need to see the local TV anchor in front of storm surge or a foot of snow, putting their lives (and the lives of the crew with them) in danger? Sure, it’s a nice advertisement for a local apparel company’s jackets because their logo is prominently displayed for minutes at a time, but I’d rather see reporting on actual news than some poor wind-whipped, knee-deep-in-the-snow anchor.
Santa, now that I’m done dreaming the impossible dream, could you make sure that those in need get presents this year? I don’t really “need” anything on my list (except maybe the sun breaks), those are all “wants.” Of course, I really, really want that 70-200mm F2.8 lens, but that’s a dream for another day.
