Christmas is a time for Memories

     Well, the big day has finally arrived!  Not a minute too soon, either. Today was a nice day here in New England. We had a little bit of snow, so technically it was a "White Christmas", even though much of it was melted by noontime.  I tried to make truffles last night, but they didn't come out right-the mixture didn't solidify. But it will make a nice sauce for ice cream!  

     Anyway, I promised earlier in the week I'd discuss Christmas memories.   My most prominent memory is how big the Christmas tree was, because I was so small. In those days, we had an artificial tree. I guess it wasn't really that tall, maybe six feet.  Naturally, I remember the feeling of Christmas morning, and running downstairs to open the presents.  My mom had already been up for a couple of hours, and the turkey was already in the oven. It seems like it took longer for turkeys to cook in those days, too!

     I never truly believed in Santa Claus, though I tried to convince myself he was real.  I remember watching all those wonderful Claymation Christmas specials, especially Rudolph. I think it's neat all those programs are still on today, even though I haven't watched them in years.

     I elaborated on how wonderful it was with my grandparents and uncle visiting, so I won't repeat it here except to say it was a true special occasion, which made Christmas special.  If you're interested, my post "NOW it's time for Christmas!" can be accessed on this site.

    It seems like I always got what I wanted.  I can remember one year when I was having a crisis waiting for Christmas and opening the presents, and I got to open one before Christmas eve.  It was a box of crayons, which every kid loves. When the crayons are new and sharp, there's nothing like it.  I just remember being jealous when my sister got hers, and mine were already worn down!

     My most coveted toy was Lite Brite. I'm sure if you try you can remember the commercial.  I was so excited to get that gift! I hope I didn't drive my parents crazy asking for it.  It's in the cellar somewhere, I wonder if it still works?  Another year I wanted that hand-held game "Blip". I got that one too, my parents were always so generous and I hope I wasn't too demanding or greedy. I always got nice clothes, books, candy, stuffed animals, art supplies, etc.

      Did you get to open a present on Christmas eve? We always did, and I think it was the only way to keep us sane until Christmas morning. I'm ashamed to admit that I was shallow enough to be obsessed with the gifts, but I was. Seeing all those beautifully wrapped presents under the tree for what seemed like weeks sure drove me crazy!

     One thing I love about Christmas is revisiting the ornaments and decorations. We have some that my Dad had on his trees growing up, and then there are ornaments you make that have the year on them. My  mom used to do ceramics, and we have dozens ornaments she made and painted. They're beautiful.  It's fun to reminisce and decorate the tree.  

     I'll leave now, let's see if I can find a clip of Rudolph, and maybe the Lite-Brite ad from the 70's.  I hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

     

Wishing for that Christmas Feeling!

    If you're an adult reading this, chances are it's been a l-o-n-g time since you felt the true excitement of Christmas. I'm convinced you have to be a child to feel it. By "it", I mean that all-encompassing feeling that if you have to wait one more day, or even one more hour for the big day, you're going to bust!

   That's the way Christmas was for me until I was probably ten or eleven. And back in those days, it wasn't hyped as much as it is now. 

    Part of the problem of being a kid is that the time drags so slowly. A week seemed like a month and a month was more like six months. So that last week waiting for Christmas was absolute torture!! I swear I was delirious, waking up on the 22nd, 23rd and 24th, thinking it was Christmas, and realizing I still had a day or two to go.

    Now I'm grown up, and even though I can distinctly remember how I felt, I wish I could truly feel the magic of Christmas again. I have an appreciation, and try to do things to be festive, like decorate and send out cards.  I hear plenty of Christmas music, whether I want to or not, and I try to do holiday baking, though in recent years I haven't followed through.

     Still, I have trouble feeling the sheer joy of the holiday.  There's just too much to do, and not enough time to do it. I tip my hat to anyone who's able to get it all done and still enjoy the season.
      It's actually quite normal for people to feel depressed, overwhelmed, and anxious during the holidays. Stress from financial worries, work, the state of the world can all make this a hard time of year. If a loved one died near Christmas, that can also put a permanent damper on the festivities.
     In my case, I feel that I can never meet my own high expectations. I have an ideal view about what Christmas should be like, and since that lofty goal is unattainable, I tend to feel a letdown before I even start. Maybe that's why I feel so much better when Christmas is over, and I have a fresh slate to work on for next year.
    My ideal Christmas has the house tastefully decorated inside and out. A real tree, and my fiber-optics.  The smell of pine, cinnamon, and baking cookies.  I will have hand made my cards and gifts for all my friends and family. Will have gotten my shopping done months in advance, to allow plenty of time for creativity and entertaining.  I think Christmas brings out the Martha Stewart in all of us. I have hundreds of magazines full of great crafts and foods I'd love to make. 
    In the perfect world, I'd feel like I made a difference, having contributed to the many worthy charities, especially those involving animals, and children in need.  There's still time for me to follow through on this one.  I'm an extremely lucky person, and it's time I shared my good fortune.
     There's actually time for me to follow up on ALL my Christmas ambitions.  It's just time for me to DO it, instead of just talking about it. So off I go, to get my sugar, flour, and other ingredients for my awesome pineapple macadamia nut fruitcake. 
     If you're feeling down this season, remember you're not alone.  Also remember the stress will be over soon, and there's light at the end of the tunnel.  If you're fortunate enough to be swept up in the pure joy of the season, be sure to share your enthusiasm with those who can appreciate it, but don't force it on those who are already having a hard time dealing with it. 
    One thing I won't forget to do is to thank God and Jesus for being alive. No matter how hard life gets, I won't ever forget what God has done for me and my family. Christmas is really about Him. 
     If you've never seen it, I recommend my favorite Christmas movie, "It's a Wonderful Life".  It encompasses all the things I talked about in this post: the unbridled joy, the despair, and ultimately, the realization that every person put on this Earth has a purpose. And that what YOU do has an effect on everybody around you, more than you realize. It's brilliantly acted. I'm going to upload the trailer.

 I selected a short one, that didn't give away too much of the plot, in the unlikely event you haven't seen it.  Merry Christmas!
Karin

      

They Call it Christmas Season because it lasts so long!

     It's Christmastime again, and unlike last year, I'm enjoying it more. That's kind of weird, because Thanksgiving came very early this year, which made Black Friday and the official holiday season start earlier.

     Maybe it didn't seem as bad because the oldies station that used to bombard us with bad Christmas songs changed formats a few months ago. After hearing the crap they play now, I'd never complain about the Christmas music!

    Now the holiday music is on Magic 106, the local soft rock station. I hear it when I'm at work, so it's not constant. They seem to play a better selection, and more of the "classic" Christmas songs from the 50's and early 60's.

    Aside from the music, the shopping hype didn't seem to be as bad, or maybe I just wasn't paying attention. I haven't gone Christmas shopping yet, and the big day is only 9 days away. Holy Cow! It snuck up on me again, like it always does.  I did order a couple of things online, that really is convenient. I forgot about one gift I picked up from my Mom a couple of weeks ago. 

     Shopping is one thing I love to do, but don't do much because I don't drive. I haven't been to a mall in years. I go to discount stores every so often (Ocean State Job Lot), and I love the Christmas Tree Shop! Building 19, a local chain of discount stores, used to be great. But the last time we were there, they were awful.

    Do you send Christmas cards out to friends and family? I like to, though lately it's been very limited. I found some cards I had written and addressed, but never sent. I can't use them, though, because I wrote the year on them! I'll be sure not to do that again.

    This year I actually made some of those photo cards-did it online at the Staples website. They had a half-price deal that I couldn't pass up. It was time consuming, but the end result I'm pleased with. Now I just have to wait for them to arrive, and mail them. No guarantee you'll get yours before Christmas, but all my friends know I'm always late anyway!

     This post is getting a little long, so I'll close for now. Next time I'll touch on some of my favorite gifts when I was little, and other memories.

     I haven't said anything yet about the horrendous tragedy in Connecticut. I don't want to comment except to say it's devastating. It makes you feel like there's nothing sacred in this world, and there's no place to hide. By writing this post about Christmas I didn't intend to ignore what's going on in the real world.  

     A travesty such as this, which are more and more common these days, makes stories I write seem pretty frivolous. I hope you'll still find my essays an acceptable escape from the reality that we're forced to endure.  There won't be any joy this Christmas for a lot of people. If you believe in prayer, keep on praying and try to keep the faith.

    I'm going to try and leave you with a very powerful version of "Silent Night/Seven O'clock News" by Simon & Garfunkel.  

   

Searching For that Elusive Jackpot...

     Does anybody out there waste money on scratch tickets from their state lottery?  As a rule, I don't usually ever buy them, because of the obvious-I never win anything, except a dollar or two here and there.

     That was until last week. On a whim, I bought a five dollar scratch ticket when I was cashing my check. I just "felt lucky". I won $20, and was pleased at my intuition. I figured if I was smart, I'd take the $15 profit and run.

     What should I do with my winnings? I decided to use it at Trader Joe's, so I could splurge guilt-free at some of their more expensive seasonal treats. I wasn't going to fall into a trap of throwing away what I'd won on more tickets and end up with nothing.

      A few days later, I bought a $2 scratch ticket on a whim at the 7-11.  I told the clerk to give me a winner.  How surprised I was when I actually won $40! The way they make these tickets, if you win anything, a lot of the numbers were winners. I think eight of the ten numbers were winners, but only for 5 bucks apiece. Still, I'm not complaining. Now I had another 40 bucks to put towards Christmas shopping. I waited until today to cash it in.

     Just winning a couple of times can give you a false sense of security, and you feel invincible.  It's kind of weird, but you start thinking crazy-like you might actually WIN the huge amounts of money that are underneath the non-winning numbers! It makes me sigh when I scratch off $100,000 and think of how nice it would be to win that! It's probably what makes people keep spending money on them.
      I came back to earth today when I spent five more dollars on a Bruins scratch ticket. I was fully expecting to win, but that was a foolish expectation. At least it has a second chance drawing.
     So, what would you do if you were me? At least with a scratch ticket, you know immediately whether you won or not. Half the time I bought a regular ticket like Power ball or Megabucks, I never took the time to check the numbers. Who knows, I may have an un-cashed ticket laying around somewhere. As Ed McMahon used to say, I may already be a winner!
      So what's the point of this story? Do anything in moderation, and be realistic. I think there's ways to increase your chances of winning- I read you should buy a whole roll or several in a row of the same game to increase your chances, rather than one each of a bunch of different kinds. But even then , that's no guarantee.  If you're meant to win, you'll win. If you feel lucky, go for it-who knows, maybe you'll win the big one! Good luck! But for now, I'm going to spend some of my winnings at Trader Joe's.

Adding A Gadget to Learn more about you!

   I was trying to jazz up my blog last week, while at the same time trying to learn more about my so called followers. So while visiting another blog, I came across Feedjit Live, which is tracks all visitors to your blog, where they are, and stuff like that.

   I hate to say it, but since I added it, the only one whose visited the site is me! So I disabled my browser in order that my frequent visits wouldn't show up- admittedly I was checking it more often to see if anyone else visited (do I need to get a life or what?)

    Anyway, most of the people who do read my blog get a direct e-mail of the post, so they don't actually get counted as they should. Maybe I should disable the e-mail and make everybody go to my site, or direct them to it some other way.

   Today I checked my site from my work computer (something I never do). It showed that I was visiting from Kentucky, because that's where the company is based. But my site looked different, with a darker background, and at the bottom of the Feedjit box was some Vietnamese information.  I thought maybe it was a visitor from Vietnam, so I clicked on it, and got a Vietnamese website about the history of the Vietnamese military.

     I couldn't read it, since I only know English, and a little Spanish, and I didn't have time to use Google Translate. But the website also had a Feedjit box, and they got a lot more page views than I've ever had. Oh well. I just wonder why it was there, because it's not there now.

    Maybe sometime soon I'll get visitors again. Until then, I'm feeling a little lonely! Next time, try visiting my site directly, at 

kp-lifeiswhatyoumakeit.blogspot.com. See you there!