I went through the mail the other day. I normally do this no more than once a week. Almost everything important comes by email or text anyway. So in one envelope, there were shampoo samples I’d requested a while back. I smiled, and put them in the bathroom cupboard.

Much to my surprise, the following day I received an email from the shampoo company. The subject line: “Did you enjoy your shampoo?”

Huh. Did opening the envelope trigger an email? Maybe that’s what the drones people are seeing are doing? Sorry shampoo company, while it was nice to receive the samples, I was not jumping to try them.

I know when I click on any ad in Facebook, the item I looked at starts to appear repetitively in my feed. The internet is watching us. Or at least following up on what we show interest in. It’s more of a mild annoyance than creepy, as long as you don’t think too much about it.

But it does make me think more carefully about what I click on. Clearly, I write about my life in this column. But I choose what I share, and what I don’t share. What I don’t print is either private, legally not shareable, or just plain boring. Single parenthood is full of joys, challenges and mundaneness.

Anyway, the holidays are here. Enjoy the lovely lights. Holiday however you like, but don’t forget the less fortunate. Above all, have a happy, merry, thoughtful whatever-you-celebrate.