People find places to go despite holiday closings

Christmas Day isn't what it used to be, and many people are grateful.

Not long ago, Dec. 25 meant every store in town was closed. Need to buy an extra gift? Too bad. Forget a vital cooking ingredient? Tough luck.

Entertainment on Christmas Day also once meant watching the same holiday TV shows again, or resorting to eavesdropping on bickering relatives.

But now restrictions have faded and it's perfectly acceptable to leave the house on Christmas Day.

Go to a movie. Fuel up the car. Buy some makeup. Or maybe just rent some video games. It can all be done on Dec. 25.

Russell Burger of New Hamburg, Mo., saw a movie Wednesday at the Cape 14 West Ciné. He said it was a fun change of pace.

"It gives a little different zing to the holiday to be here," he said. "But it still gives us time to spend with family on Christmas Day."

Russian natives Igor Sukhina and Natalie Agshchuk spent time shopping in Cape Girardeau's Walgreens.

With no family here, the couple didn't want to stay at home, so Sukhina bought a calculator and a pair of scissors while waiting for his pictures to be developed.

"Cape Girardeau is a very small town, and we don't know anybody here," he said. "There's not much to do on Christmas, but we try to keep busy."

Some families avoided making a holiday feast in favor of a nontraditional meal with no cleanup. Chris Churchwell of Cape Girardeau and his family ate a Chinese buffet dinner at Great Wall restaurant. The parking lot was packed.

"It's the only place open here today, man," he said. "Plus, we sort of forgot to prepare anything and decided not to cook today."

mwells@semissourian.com

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