There is a general consensus - certainly among my own friends - that Christmas has come around faster than ever this year. Obviously, we all know it hasn't, but as I wound my garland and lights throng my banisters a few days ago, it seemed little more than three or four months ago that I was putting the things away after last Christmas.

It's taken until this week for the Christmas spirit properly to descend (you know it's here when you buy that first bottle of Bailey's) - but here it is. The fires are roaring, the fireplaces bedecked with boughs of holly and today's the day I finally settle down to write the Christmas cards. A chore, but a nice one, making contact with people to wish them well over the festive period.

And this year, I'm proud to say I've done all my shopping entirely locally. No Amazon deliveries for me: instead I have bought everything I need in one brisk but enjoyable trip to Ulverston. After all, if you can't support the businesses in your home town at Christmas, it's a pretty poor state of affairs.

Thanks to the independent entrepreneurs of the Festival Town/birthplace of Stan Laurel/quaint cobbled streets, I returned home laden with individual, quirky and good quality items, all of which I know will delight their intended recipients, and none of which can be found in any of the big chains.

For once, everything clicked into place. Parking place right in the middle of town? Check. Kids back at school after their lunch hour and therefore not spilling all over the streets devouring Greggs pasties? Check. Market Hall open? Check. I tell you, it was a doddle. I'd got everything I needed, without once having to do internet searches, price comparisons or any other tech-based irritations that are now part and parcel of the online shopping experience.

With our high streets and independent retailers under a seemingly existential threat, it is vital that we make the effort to support our local entrepreneurs. Setting up in business in a small town like Ulverston is not for the faint-hearted these days - with almost overwhelming online competition, sky-high business rates, and parking woes for those who do venture in, all seemingly conspiring to make the life of the town centre trader as difficult as possible.

I like to feel that I've done my bit by shopping local this Christmas - and as Brexit approaches (or at least it is at the time of writing), maybe it's more important than ever to remember that we are, as Napoleon famously said, a nation of shopkeepers. Long may the shopkeepers of south Cumbria stay in business.