Yesterday was the first day of winter, and because yesterday was Wednesday, it is also sometimes referred to as hump day in reference to being the middle day of the week. I look at yesterday as a sort of hump day in reference to the length of daylight hours. While yesterday was the shortest day of the year, that means that today the daylight hours start to reclaim some time from the nighttime side of the ledger. While it’s not yet a noticeable increase, we are over the hump.You can also tell we are getting close to a holiday and, of course, in this case that means Christmas will be here in a few more days, thus the rise in gas prices. On the subject of raising prices because of a holiday, I’ll share this story with you. My wife, Mary, and I were going to go to Redwood Falls for New Year’s Eve. I called the casino hotel to make a reservation and they were understandably booked for the night. I called the Redwood Valley Lodge, a nice hotel that we have stayed at a number of times this past year. I was happy to hear they had rooms left and proceeded to book a room. That is, until the reservation clerk quoted me the rate at nearly double the regular rate that I have paid several times the past year. When I asked her how come so much, she replied, "Because it’s New Year’s Eve." I told her they would have to gouge someone else and declined the reservation.Anyway, back to the task at hand. With just three days before Christmas and tonight set as men’s night for shopping in Luverne, I’d better start making a list. Oh, and one more thing: Merry Christmas.