I'll be enjoying a day away from work, while getting paid for it :)

We're up in the air. My in-laws want us to drive over to the coast and spend it over there, but I really don't want to drive to the coast in the winter if I don't have to. We went home for Christmas last year, so I'd really like to stay home and have Christmas here this year. We would have to drive back home on Christmas Day and I'm just not up to spending my holiday on the road, especially if the weather's bad. Six hours of driving in bad weather makes for a very tense holiday.

Christmas currently kinda sucks. I have the kid part of the day. Which is great but it means I can't really go anywhere. Year before last I watched my Live Aid DVD, this year maybe a Star Wars marathon.

I'm gonna try not to regain consciousness on Christmas until afternoon.

I have 8 pages worth of items on my Amazon Wish List. However, I rank the items by priority. So while there may be hundreds of CDs I'd like to have, there are less than a dozen that I want right now.

I think many people are unaware of this feature, but it's really helpful to those who may be shopping for you to be able to sort your Wish List and see what you really want.


1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?
Virgin Nog, but I usually cut it with 50% milk because it's so rich.

2. Does Santa wrap presents?
Santa always wrapped our presents.

3. Colored or white lights?
I think we always had colored... er, African-American lights. ;)

4. Mistletoe?
No

5. When do you put your decorations up?
I don't put them up. I don't care nor do I have space to store them the other 11 months of the year.

6. Favorite holiday dish.
If you include Thanksgiving, stuffing. Gawd I love stuffing!

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child:
While I don't think this is my "favorite", it happened to come to mind when I thought of an answer to this question.

I was visiting my grand parents and my grandfather spontaneously started singing carols a capella and we all joined in. (That branch of the family tree are all singers.)

8. Truth about Santa?
I have no recollection of an epiphany, I think I eventually just reasoned it out.

9. Gift(s) on Christmas Eve?
No, Xmas morning only—barring scheduling conflicts that could preempt or postpone that date.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree?
I don't. But as a kid, we had an eclectic mix of ornaments. We went for sentimentality over style.

11. Snow: Love it or Dread it?
I've lived all my life in LA, so I don't really associate Xmas with snow, come in contact with it, nor have any strong feelings about it.

12. Can you ice skate?
Yes, I'm a good skater for someone my size. (I prefer roller though.)

13. Favorite gift?
Nothing is jumping to mind (though I also got a Merlin as a kid and played with it for months and months.)

14. Most important thing about the Holidays?
Since I started working for the university, I freaking love getting a week off with pay that doesn't count toward vacation time! And that fact that I can be away from the students and faculty for a week is pretty frelling grand as well!

15. Favorite Dessert?
My grandma used to get these multi-layered chocolate tortes which were to die for. :drool:

16. Favorite tradition?
While I don't do it now, getting up at the crack of dawn Xmas morning, waking the parents up, and making them come downstairs to open presents.

17. Tree topper?
see above

18. Give or Receive?
If I'm present for the present, giving. I feel incredibly awkward opening gifts in front of people. I love to receive and open presents, just not in front of others.

19. Favorite Christmas Song?
Any darkly humorous carol parody will do. The Bob Rivers oeuvre gets heavy rotation.

20. Candy Canes?
I enjoy a peppermint stick, bent or otherwise.

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?
Hot Chocolate- I always try Nog but always come away disappointed.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
Wrap- we also have a tradition called the ACP: After Christmas Present; where gifts without tags will appear under the tree long after the main gift wrap shredding is done- usually contains some special gift for the family or individuals. Last year I wanted a Time Turner- so bad- and I did not get one. Then late on Christmas day an extra gift appeared- and it turns out Santa did heed my wish (Mom got the thing overnighted like 2 days before Christmas)

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white?
Colored- no lights on the house. Can't find a $@*&@ outlet!!! Colored lights up the banister too. I have an angel and Santa in the window with lit (lightbulb) candles.

4. Do you hang mistletoe?
No- I have it but have never hung it.

5. When do you put your decorations up?
The weekend after Thanksgiving- this year I was so psyched about a house of my own it went up the day after Thanksgiving.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert.)
Excluding? Oh gosh- I have no idea. Including- FUDGE! and yummy cookies.

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child:
Too many to mention really- the creation of the ACP comes to mind. I wanted a Hairy Spider (glove puppet- anyone else recall them?) and he was not in any of my gifts- later in the day while cleaning up I found a box that was heavy- inside was my spider. Santa surprise.
One as an adult stands out- anyone seen Polar Express? Rose loved the bell thing so much that we got her a bell- put it in a box and my Mom wrote a note to Rose in pretty script from "Mr C"- we hid it under the tree with the ACP's- she loved it.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?
What truth? Are you implying something about Santa?

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
My family opens gifts on Christmas Eve- stockings and other gifts Christmas morning.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree?
Disney. I subscribed to a Disney ornament club and collected a bunch of them- colored lights, red tinsel, Disney ornaments (including a new one this year from GC :) ) and a red and green tree skirt. I used to have a train going around the tree- but it's not going out this year. I think I am going to sign back up- just send back the ones I already have.

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it?
Hate to go out in it- love to look at it from the warmth of my home.

12. Can you ice skate?
Yes, but only in circles.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift?
Gosh no- my family was so good at giving us things that delighted. I am most currently fond of the Time Turner- but there have been many over the years.

14. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you?
Family- delighting and surprising them with Christmas surprises- not just gifts.

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert?
Fudge and cookies

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition?
The ACP, the time we spend together during the holidays. This year is going to be different-the BF's family is going out of state, I have not been in touch with my brother for months, and will only be visiting my parents briefly- this Christmas will be spent mostly at home- making new traditions.

17. What tops your tree?
A white lit star

18. Which do you prefer giving or Receiving?
Giving. I like getting gifts but I look forward to the reactions to the gifts I give so much more-

19. What is your favorite Christmas Song?
O Holy Night (and most any other Christmas songs- love Christmas music) Oh, and Christmas Eve Sarajevo (Trans-Siberian Orchestra)

20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum?
As a last resort


Gifts-
For me? I want a Nintendo DS with Animal Crossing- appeals to the geek and the child in me. A Kitchen Aid mixer, a kitchen remodel LOL- Farscape season 4- clothes would be nice.

The testosterone crew is getting an XBox 360- the BF knows about it though. Which is ok- he has been helping me figure out what to buy. I have to find some special thing to get for him that's a surprise now-I'm sure we will get a game or two.

Rose is getting a Coral Pink DSLite with NintenDogs.

I bought Mom the newest Spyro game. Dad is getting a flight simulator for his Mac.

BF's parents (both sets) are getting gift cards- likely his siblings are too.

Not sure what else just yet- small things- stocking fun. Candy and fun stuff-

Dinner- traditionally we have lasagna, salad, garlic bread. I love that it's different.

I love simmering cinnamon and cloves and playing Christmas music and watching my favorite Christmas movie- The Muppets Christmas Carol in the warm light of the treem cuddled up with my family. Or playing a game together-

Makes me all warm and cozy!

It's not Christmas until somebody (ok, usually me) eats WAAAAAY too many cheesy garlic mashed potatoes.

How could I have forgotten "The Restroom Door Said Gentlemen"? I love that one!

This year, the plan is to spend the night of the 23rd at the Herbfarm/Willow Lodge (feel free to be jealous now). Then on the 24th there will, of course, be a Seahawks game, which will have to be wedged in between check-out and getting to my folks for the cold cut sandwhich extravaganza. The 25th will probably be just the two of us at home with the cats.

No, no, it's a fantastic questionaire. I'm a firm believer that a thread should take whatever direction it takes. I just also really wanted to know about people's current xmas. :)

Maybe I will go back and do the whole questionaire, but I wanted to answer this one.

When I was young, may 9 or 10, I noticed that we didn't have a tree topper. So I decided to make a star. So I took a piece of chipboard and drew a five-pointed star on it (about six-inches in diameter) and cut the shape out. Next, I glued tin foil onto both sides, trying to keep it as unwrinkled as possible and making sure to put the shinier side out.

I next had to figure out how to put it on top of the tree. So I took some more foil and wrapped it around two fingers and the ends of the fingers to create a cylinder that was open only on one end. I used glue to keep it in a cylinder (and not unravel) and to glue it to the star with the opening on the bottom. That could be slid onto the top branch sticking straight up on the tree.

To this day, 35 years later, my mother STILL uses this as her tree topper.