"Go ahead and swipe," she said. Huh? Oh, right, swipe the card. "It's asking you if you want cash back." Huh? Oh, sorry. "Go ahead and push the green button." Oh gosh. Sorry again. I think she was holding back a sigh. "Sorry. I think we're all a little... sleepy this time of year," I told her. "So many things to be distracted by. The mind wanders." Her reaction: Blink, blink, blink. Obviously I made no sense to her whatsoever. But, this was not the kind of conversation you typically have with the sales clerk at Big Lots on any random Tuesday in December. It's Advent. It's really hard to have Advent right before Christmas. Couldn't Advent be some other time when you're not on a black diamond slope careening toward December 25th? It's supposed to be a time of preparation, of waiting in expectation for Jesus' birth. But really for me it becomes a time of preparation of "stuff" -- pr...