After the season of spending

I could barely believe it when I heard that the average Canadian would spend about $900 this holiday season on gifts. But then I spent almost that much, so now I believe it. With all that money now gone, people are probably tightening up the purse strings now and looking to conserve and save in the coming months, right? Well, not if you're from Alberta. Because hey, who needs to save when you have oil?

This article from the Globe and Mail is about the $400 rebate that will be given to Albertans early this coming year. I think that a person's response to this will provide a good example as to their priorities - seeing if they can put their money where their mouth is, basically. It does not surprise me at all that many people are just planning to spend it on toys and clothes - the evident priority there being "me." Some are planning on home improvement - I would say that goes to personal comfort, and some investment for the future. And even the President of the Young Liberals of Alberta, who is trying to convince others to donate a portion of their money to the party that opposes the handout, will be using his money on books for school. Of course, he was going to have to buy books regardless, so now he will just have $400 more with which he may buy more beer or buy a new camera for all we know.

I do believe the expression people are living by here is, "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth." While there are many who call this handout a bad idea, I am pretty confident that there are not very many who are going to refuse to cash the cheques when the time comes. I would probably put myself in this group of people. However, as was pointed out in the article, if you think that this money would be better spent on other projects, you now have free reign to make that happen. $400 probably won't go very far toward advancing solar or wind power in the province, it won't protect a very large area of wetlands, and it won't even buy a single day in the hospital for someone who is sick. However, this is a chance for you to put some money you weren't expecting toward something you believe in. You could make a donation to the Stollery Children's Health Centre. You could put your money toward your local SPCA, or sponsor a child through World Vision - that would be $396/year. Maybe you want to help support the Edmonton Firefighters Burn Treatment Society. Ducks Unlimited Canada aims to conserve Canada's dwindling wetlands while the World Wildlife Fund supports conservation on a broader scale. You can even sponsor a sea turtle, a polar bear, or some boreal forest on their website.

Obviously there are a million things that could use this money, not the least of which will appear to be a new TV or digital camera that you really "need." While I haven't decided yet where my money is going, I sure hope when the time comes I can put MY money where my mouth is. I will have to decide before the cheque arrives - that way, I will send the money off right away and I won't even miss it in my bank account. What are you doing with yours?