‘Tis the Season –
* Buy local. More of the money you spend at a locally owned store stays local (e.g., Quail Ridge Books, vs. Borders). So err on the side of local. For a list, check out the Raleigh Independent Business Alliance (”Raleigh Unchained”).
* Buy from a fair-trade store. If it’s really cheap, chances are it’s from a mass-production factory in China, featuring exploited workers, unsafe conditions and environmental disdain. (Not to mention the jobs Americans used to have.) Stores like Ten Thousand Villages, on the other hand, sell quality goods for which foreign and American artisans were fairly compensated.
* Give to a good cause. Dad doesn’t need another $50 shirt. At least, not as much as the Common Sense Foundation, or the Friends of Residents in Long-Term Care, or the Friends of Lake Johnson, need your $50. Give it to one of them, or some other do-good thing — and let dad know it was given in his name.
* Give A Holly Jolly Raleigh. It’s holiday music by Raleigh, about Raleigh, and the money helps Raleigh’s school bands. Listen to a couple tracks on the Indy’s website or buy it at Sir Walter Records’ place.