Yup. Today is December 22, 2009. I can say that a lot of things have happened in the past on this date, but I'm going to stick to the general for today.
For those people that celebrate Christmas, December 22nd (either past or present) can mean one of three things.
1 - "Yes. I have finally finished my Christmas shopping. I can now relax for the next few days, make some cookies, and not worry about having forgotten someone's gift."
Or
2 - "Oh no. It's only three days until Christmas??? I haven't bought a single gift for a single person. How am I supposed to buy gifts for everyone in only three days!?!?"
Or
3 - You're right in the middle between of one and two. You've bought gifts for some people, but not everyone. And you still hope to make the cookies to take to grandma's house for the holiday.
I know quite a few people who, this year, are in the third category. Hopefully, though, everyone is in the first - nice and relaxed, waiting for the holiday.
Regardless of the year, whether it be this year or the past, and regardless of whether or not you celebrate Christmas, I want to wish everyone a very happy holiday season!
Happy Holidays Everyone!
Showing posts with label christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label christmas. Show all posts
Monday, December 21, 2009
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
The Hazy, Anything-But-Lazy Days of Christmas
Christmas. The word is enough to send a shudder down my spine. Yes, I know, that's very Scrooge of me, but I can't help it. Not being religious, and having no kids, I'd just as soon hide and wait it out. But Christmas is like a great flood--you can lock yourself in your house, but it's going to seep in after you.
So, for those secret Scrooges like myself, here are my top five reasons for disliking Christmas:
5. Christmas Cards. It got to the point where I was spending about $40 and eight hours of work on Christmas cards. Not to mention it's not very environmentally responsible. So, I gave it up. But even though I tell everyone I've given it up, and that they don't have to send me a Christmas card, they do anyway. And each time I get one of those festive little envelopes, I get a tiny prick of guilt for not sending them one.
4. Winter. I think I might be able to tolerate Christmas a lot better if it were in, say, July. But being cold and wet in addition to broke and annoyed is just too much for my system to handle. Not to mention all those December mornings driving into work during a blizzard, wondering what my foot will taste like when I'm forced to gnaw it off to stay alive while trapped for days in a snowbank.
3. Wrapping Gifts. My "kids" are two dogs and two cats. And they, just like human children, like to "help" me do things. So, as soon as the delicious, crackly paper comes out, my cats must, walk, roll and lay on it, leaving tiny clawholes in every square inch. Then, just as I've finished, my dog will put a giant paw square in the middle of the gift, tearing a much larger hole in the paper. By the time I'm done, I might as well have wrapped it in cellophane, for all that the paper actually conceals the gift.
2. Shopping. I do it online to avoid the crowds, but the pressure to pick the "perfect" gift is fierce, and competing with oneself year after year can get expensive. It's always now that I remember reading "Little House On The Prairie," and how Laura and Mary were delighted to receive oranges for Christmas. Oranges. Really. Wonder what my nieces would say if I sent them oranges, rather than a piano mat they can dance on to play.
1. "Christmas Spirit." Love to see some of that. Instead, I get cut off in heavy shopping traffic, checkout girls who've had the cheer wrung out of them by high-maintenance shoppers, and people who yell at me for wishing them "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas." Now, I just stick with, "Have a nice day."
So, if you too cringe every October, when the first department store Christmas displays go up, take heart. You're not alone. We're out there, and we WILL overcome.
Jacquelyn Sylvan, aka "Scroogette," is the author of Surviving Serendipity, a Young Adult fantasy novel that would make a great, er, "holiday" gift. Click below to buy on Amazon!
So, for those secret Scrooges like myself, here are my top five reasons for disliking Christmas:
5. Christmas Cards. It got to the point where I was spending about $40 and eight hours of work on Christmas cards. Not to mention it's not very environmentally responsible. So, I gave it up. But even though I tell everyone I've given it up, and that they don't have to send me a Christmas card, they do anyway. And each time I get one of those festive little envelopes, I get a tiny prick of guilt for not sending them one.
4. Winter. I think I might be able to tolerate Christmas a lot better if it were in, say, July. But being cold and wet in addition to broke and annoyed is just too much for my system to handle. Not to mention all those December mornings driving into work during a blizzard, wondering what my foot will taste like when I'm forced to gnaw it off to stay alive while trapped for days in a snowbank.
3. Wrapping Gifts. My "kids" are two dogs and two cats. And they, just like human children, like to "help" me do things. So, as soon as the delicious, crackly paper comes out, my cats must, walk, roll and lay on it, leaving tiny clawholes in every square inch. Then, just as I've finished, my dog will put a giant paw square in the middle of the gift, tearing a much larger hole in the paper. By the time I'm done, I might as well have wrapped it in cellophane, for all that the paper actually conceals the gift.
2. Shopping. I do it online to avoid the crowds, but the pressure to pick the "perfect" gift is fierce, and competing with oneself year after year can get expensive. It's always now that I remember reading "Little House On The Prairie," and how Laura and Mary were delighted to receive oranges for Christmas. Oranges. Really. Wonder what my nieces would say if I sent them oranges, rather than a piano mat they can dance on to play.
1. "Christmas Spirit." Love to see some of that. Instead, I get cut off in heavy shopping traffic, checkout girls who've had the cheer wrung out of them by high-maintenance shoppers, and people who yell at me for wishing them "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas." Now, I just stick with, "Have a nice day."
So, if you too cringe every October, when the first department store Christmas displays go up, take heart. You're not alone. We're out there, and we WILL overcome.
Jacquelyn Sylvan, aka "Scroogette," is the author of Surviving Serendipity, a Young Adult fantasy novel that would make a great, er, "holiday" gift. Click below to buy on Amazon!
Friday, December 4, 2009
A Christmas Story: Christmas at the North Pole Compound
I enjoy looking at old family photos, a favorite showing me as a preschooler ripping into my small pile of gifts beneath the now-classic 1950s silver Christmas tree.
To a child, there's nothing more exciting than the arrival of Santa, the glow of the colored lights, and the sparkle of a lit tree. There's not much that can diminish the joy of the holiday--except if someone tried to stop Christmas.
As I enjoy writing, and reading, mysteries, I had to wonder, what would happen if – gasp – a crime wave hit the North Pole?
That's the premise of my new short story, "Christmas at the North Pole Compound," being released Dec. 5 (today) from Echelon Shorts.
In the story, Chief Elf Investigator Finius Flaherty is not only alarmed by the decrease of Christmas cheer (it's enough to threaten Rudolph's ability to pull the sleigh, he says!), but is even more disappointed that crime has come to the North Pole – and is most likely an inside job.
*** Read more and check out an excerpt at Echelon Shorts.
*** BUY: Christmas at the North Pole Compound"
* See the elves and 12 Days of Christmas in Miniature at Candid Canine
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