Of all the cool gadgets there are out there, many of which are strewn about my home, there is one that stands heads and shoulders above the rest - my shredder. After a hard day at the office, most (if not all) of us undoubtedly return home to a large stack of annoying junk mail promising to get us rich, save us a bundle on car insurance, or otherwise make us happy if only we'd part with our money and give it to the source of the correspondence. Anyone who's successfully emerged from their twenties surely knows what it means to suddenly become a marketing target for all things financial. Daily walks to the mailbox produce credit card applications four deep at a time, encouragement to drive the latest [insert automotive brand] car down at the local dealership for a chance to win $10,000 just for showing up, and life-altering sound financial advice from seasoned professionals enclosed in envelopes with the words "Important Financial Information Enclosed" printed in big red letters. It's like we get a little ticker tape parade welcoming us home every day, enough to drive us to want to tear every piece of mail to shreds in fits of frustration, but alas, there's just not enough energy, time or sheer will to do so.
That is, unless you own a shredder.
While not necessarily cutting edge technology (pun intended) in a world of dual-core computer processors and laser guided luxury sedans, a paper shredder empowers its owner in a
way nothing else can. Unfold and lower that credit card application into it's receptacle, marvel how it draws the paper into its maw: slowly, methodically, towards certain death. There's nothing like it! Take it a step further and visualize a particularly annoying coworker, miniaturized and taped to the paper's surface as it's drawn down into the grinding, crunching, whirring jaw of destruction. I can sit in front of my shredder for hours, or at least until all the day's junk mail is gone -- whichever comes first.So for anyone still pining away over what to get that special someone on your Christmas list, consider a paper shredder. Non-gender specific, it's the perfect gift for anyone who might enjoy a bit of controlled destruction with the added benefit of eliminating piles and piles of junk mail.
Merry Christmas, and happy shredding! Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a sizeable stack of Important Financial Information and the visual image of a miniature annoying boss that require my immediate attention.