"Christmas trees? You have got to be kidding me. What the Hell is wrong with this place?!"

That was my reaction as I walked into the ROM to work this morning. I turned for the cafeteria to get my ritual ROM breakfast of a regular coffee and a rice crispy square and was struck incredulous by the awesome sight of Chirstmas trees in the shops. Someone want to explain to the ROM shops manager that it isn't even Hallowe'en yet? Even *I* remember when the Christmas shopping season didn't start officially until the Santa Claus parade in early, rainy November. I'm not that old, you know? Honestly, all the seasonal television specials in the world can't combat the consumerist bullshit that surrounds Christmas. A whole lot of marketing wonks deserve big, fat lumps of coal in their stockings, if you ask me.

Then I walked into the horrible cafeteria, a Druxy's deli, to buy, as I said, my typical ROM breakfast. Once, not too long ago, the rice crispy squares were long and large, and took a while to eat. Now, they are small and flat, a snack for mice. I went to the cash to pay, getting out the 2.63$ required to buy my square and coffee, only to hear that they'd upped the price to 2.90$. I laughed and said, "You have to be kidding? For this tiny thing?" They kid at the cash must have thought I was joking around because he laughed too, or maybe he was just an idiot. Add to the whole ridiculous affair tons of red and white balloons to celebrate Druxy's 25th anniverary, and you have something rather surreal.

So, out in the shops it is Christmas, inside the cafeteria it's bloody Valentine's day, and up in membership it's Hallowe'en. Thank God membership (three words I don't normally combine) is seasonal. I might have cried if I'd walked in and found Easter paraphenalia, though after the decorating ideas on the main floor, I wouldn't have been surprised.