Rescue the reindeers!

This time last year I took a short break to celebrate Thanksgiving with my friends in New York. We had great fun including touring the wondrous shop window displays already glittering at Macy's and Bloomingdale's and Saks. It set me up for Christmas back here as folks in New York were already buying their Christmas trees and so preparations just knitted all together. My friends aren't quite so jolly this time around as they are still recovering from the shock of Donald Trump's victory, reminded of him always by the nearby mass of ugly Trump-constructed apartment blocks that run the length of Upper West Side, towering over the Hudson. In the run up to Christmas back here in the UK, the annual super brand Christmas TV ads can usually raise a smile. And yes, once again £5bn of investment does not disappoint. My favourites are the Waitrose Robin ad and Buster, the bouncing boxer dog for John Lewis. But you can bet someone will spoil it all. The Wildlife Aid Foundation reckons that the John Lewis ad is misleading and might encourage people not to take proper care of their garden equipment and its potential risk to pets and wild animals. This stance is at loggerheads with the Wildlife Trusts which is benefiting financially by donations from John Lewis this Christmas and reckon that the campaign encourages people to care for their local wildlife. Lighten up there, folks - it's only make-believe! What about those poor reindeers, strapped to that sleigh all night with Santa - maybe that's where our animal rescue focus should be?