Gifts from the Heart and Hands

Let me begin by thanking everyone who purchased Giselle Renarde Erotica prior to December 15th 2008. As promised, all profits have been donated (along with third quarter earnings from sales of my ebooks) to the LGBT YOUTHLINE, providing peer-to-peer counseling to queer youth. As a queer woman with a transgendered partner, LGB and trans issues are close to my soul, and I can't emphasize how important it is that youths have someone they can turn to. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to you, my readers, for your purchases, and to YOUTHLINE for providing such an essential service to young people.


Now, according to my calendar, next Thursday is Christmas. I deserve a break. I'm taking the day off. *grin*

So, who's finished their Chistmas shopping with a week to spare? I am! I am! But, you know, there’s nothing better than receiving a hand-made, personalized gift. It shows the giver took the time to contemplate what I would like, then took even more time to create it for me. Assuming Sweet will appreciate a gift from the heart and the hands, I knitted her a pretty pink scarf and strung her a necklace of funky freshwater pearls.

What am I hoping to get for Christmas? From those I love, there would be nothing better received than the gift of time. I don’t see my mother half as often as I’d like to. Same goes for the rest of my family and my friends. We all work so much, be it outside or in the home. There is nothing I would appreciate more this year than to spend more time with my family and friends.

But time isn’t something you can put under a tree, and my family needs to see things beneath the tree. To that end, I’ve been relying for years now on a magnificent site called Buy Nothing Christmas which contains an “alternatives” page for those of us looking for meaningful, non-consumerist gifts. My favourite gift suggestion, as a writer, is the personalized audiobook. I have a few older friends whose eyes aren’t what they used to be, and they really appreciate the home-made audiobooks I’ve written for them over the years. But, hell, what dirty old man wouldn’t want a young female friend recording a CD full of dirty porn for him?

To be perfectly honest, though, buying absolutely nothing at the holidays is something I never was able to master. When I finish this blog post, it’s off to the great big internet shopping world. I’m buying most of my family books this season.

If you’ve got someone on your list who would drool over some erotic books or sexy lingerie, check out my little shop of Giselle Renarde Erotica. It features anthologies containing my work, my ebooks in kindle format, and—because I’m a sucker for gorgeous women in corsets and stockings—there’s a huge lingerie section as well! Check it out at http://astore.amazon.com/dondes-20

Happy Holidays!
Giselle Renarde