A merry little Christmas

Christmas came and went as a small, mostly quiet holiday.  In what has been a busy December, I'll gladly take sitting around eating more than I should, listening to music, and playing cards (not at the same time) over some big to-do.

My brother, sister-in-law, and nephew checked in via Skype from their vacation in Germany.  My other two brothers were here. Without any request my mom made monkey bread for this morning's breakfast.  She also made rolled cookies that had been her mother's recipe (I think).  I remember these usually being made around Christmas when I was a kid and had considered making them myself because it's been ages since I've had them.

In a day without anything scheduled except for church at 10 a.m., it was odd how packed the day was.  My time here for the holidays is more than half over.  It's zoomed by.  But I suspect that's a good thing.

Hope you also had a good Christmas, whether it was a big production or little more than time home with family. 





  

Creep

Christmas candy and decorations were out at the grocery store the day after Halloween.  People were complaining about Christmas creep before Halloween.  Typically I'd be one of them, but for some reason I don't mind this year.  Scanning through radio stations while in the car last night I even thought I wouldn't mind finding one playing Christmas music.

Why the change of opinion?  As best I can figure, it has to do with wanting a transition to what December usually represents.  I'm ready to wind down for the year and hole up at home after a hectic fall.  This autumn has been especially busy with the longer academic term that seems like it's never going to end.  I want the mental break that comes with a break in the work schedule.  I want to be thinking about year-end lists and getting awards screeners on a near daily basis.  I want to feel like everything isn't one big rush.

In actuality December isn't necessarily a slow, peaceful time, but I'm searching for what it might be or what it could be.  That doesn't mean I can't chase it in its idealistic form or be reminded of it as a chill permeates the air and retailers encourage anticipating that time.  It does mean that I ought to think about how I can make it possible.  Since Thanksgiving isn't here yet, I'm certainly capable of putting that work in.

Christmas in Texas

While it's tempting to write about the dysfunctional aspects of the holiday and the circumstances surrounding this one in particular, I'm going to resist the impulse. I could be less than charitable about some things surrounding this whole trip, but it doesn't feel proper to do so on this day of all days.

All in all, it was a good Christmas, if somewhat confining. On the scale of Christmas drama, this one would have to fall toward the bottom end. For those who know me, though, I do have some stories to tell, though.

I hope you've had a safe and merry Christmas. Now could someone bring the sun out down here in Texas?

Songs of the season

Getting ready for Christmas. If you liked this song, there's a box set of Sufjan Stevens' annual Christmas EPs out there. Plus, today two of this year's entries were let loose on the web.

Day by day

Today's entry is in response to this post about holiday decorations and one's favorite as a child. That's an easy one.

My favorite Christmas decoration from my childhood was a felt Advent wall calendar. The big white rectangle had pockets for each day across the top and bottom. A big green tree in the middle was dotted with beads for hanging the daily ornaments. Even though us kids knew what ornament was in each day's pocket after so many years (or could peek), it was always fun to go through it day by day.

With three brothers there was always a certain amount of competition for who would get to take out each day's piece. I don't remember how that was resolved. Through the years the beads seemed to have more trouble holding onto the loops used to attach the ornaments to the tree, or maybe it was that we got taller and thus were more likely to brush them off when passing by.

There must be something intrinsically appealing about Advent calendars. In my high school German class I remember that we were excited to see what was behind the door each day of the culturally specific calendar. Imagine high school students being interested in something like that!

I've had pleasant reminders of these old calendars with the holiday update of iPhone game Angry Birds. Unlike the regular game, you can't unlock levels as you complete them. Instead, a new one is available each day leading up to Christmas. Rather than working through them all in a few days or a week, there's a new little thrill each day. I'm like a kid all over again.

Deck the halls

I've not been one for decorating for the holidays. It's just me at home, and I don't have people over very often. Nevertheless, a year (or two or three) ago I bought a string of colored lights that I (pathetically) draped over the blinds by one of my sliding glass doors. It added a splash of color to my place and made it feel a little more seasonally appropriate.

Last year I bought a small fake Christmas tree. I couldn't find any colored lights, so I added the string I had to the white ones that came on the tree. My apartment seemed slightly more Christmas-y.

Here's the thing: I never put away the Christmas tree. It's siting in the exact same spot where I set it last December. I haven't been plugging in the lights all this time, but the tree has been there in its prominent spot atop a short bookshelf by the TV.

It's not like I didn't think about taking it down. In fact, it occurred to me to do so on a few occasions, but due to the need for folding up the branches so it can fit back in the box, I just never got around to it. Honestly, the tree kind of became invisible to me after awhile. I knew it was there, but I didn't really see it.

Tonight the tree is lit up. It does give me a good feeling to see it, weird as that may seem. This time I'll try to put it away. I might need to give myself until February or March, though.