Nobody is missing. We're just waiting. |
I'm having a little trouble getting into the Holiday Spirit this
year. Not exactly sure why. With the Teenangster’s birthday in the second
week of December, we tend to not do significant decorating until after we’ve celebrated
her day. So that might be part of
it. It’s the last of her “angst” years,
so I’ll have to come up with a new moniker I suppose.
We’re way behind our usual pace too. By now we’ve usually picked up a few gifts,
written the slightly informational, yet completely irreverent Christmas letter,
gotten a strong start on the Christmas cards, and attended the mandatory-fun
Command Holiday Party. I have no idea if
a letter will even be attempted this year, we just bought some cards today, and
our holiday party had to be moved to January.
Yeah, that’s what I thought- a Holiday party in January? The only fun holiday in January is New Year’s
Day, and that’s reserved for college bowl games and sobering up. No disrespect intended to the estimable Dr.
Martin Luther King, but his isn’t a day especially known for imbibing,
recovering from imbibing, or collegiate sports.
As it turns out, our hard working and well-intentioned party planning
committee chose the perfect December date for the fiesta. Perfect, except for the fact that it
conflicted with the longest and worst scheduled Mine Countermeasures (MCM) Exercise
in recent memory. We didn’t schedule it, but the folks in
COMFIFTHFLEET, the ones who actually do Mine Warfare, as opposed to the folks
in my command who just talk about it (guffaw), found that the dates work better for our
coalition partners, some of which aren’t all that keen about Christian-based
holidays. That meant that a good portion
of our staff would be in Bahrain advising, training, and assessing the forward-deployed
Naval MCM Forces.
So, our party this year isn’t until next year. January 12th to be specific. I’m sure it’ll be very anti-climactic, but what
can you do? Not go I suppose, but I
wouldn’t be much of a team player. “Sorry,
I don’t want to hang out with all of you outside of work except before
Christmas. After Christmas? Forget it!”
That is the weekend before MLK
day so it is still a “Holiday” party I guess.
My lovely wife usually kicks off the season in our household. At a minimum, she puts out the Advent Wreath
and fills the Advent Calendar with little candies for our kids, neither of
which are kids anymore of course. Despite
being all grown up, they still love the Christmas traditions they knew as kids,
like the daily dose of the sweet stuff out of that particular decoration. Quite particular about their candy is the
younger one though, as I caught her swapping out some of the later days of the
month with this week, knowing she’ll get to the calendar before her brother to
get the “better” candy. I’ll show her by
filling it with black licorice and Jujubes next year. Fortunately for her, my son takes more after
me and isn’t all that concerned about it. He’ll
just roll his eyes at her as he happily munches whatever is there.
I’m not sure I’ll get around to putting up lights this
year. It takes a couple hours and I didn’t find the time for it this past weekend. This
time of year there’s only about 90 minutes of daylight by the time I get home
from work so inside decorations might be our only “Fa La La La La” as my wife
puts it. I didn’t waste the weekend, but
it sort of feels like it as I was driving around San Diego County playing “See’s
Candy Delivery Man.” My son hit up our
relatives at Thanksgiving for his school fundraiser and cleaned them out.
Comics.com |
We do have a couple other traditions. Egg Nog is a favorite of mine, with or without the additional spirit. Watching "It's a Wonderful Life" is another. I mentioned that my wife is usually the Christmas catalyst
round these parts. She’s gainfully
employed this season though, for the first time since the kids were born. And as a new member of the workforce, she
doesn’t have the energy that she was able to spend on excessive holiday spirit
like she once did. She’s working in the
hospitality sector too so her weekends aren’t my weekends now and we don’t have
each other to nag encourage about the Christmas chores. The weather isn't helping either. It's supposed to be 85 today and if you haven't heard, California is on fire again.
Here in the upper Midwest another inch of the white stuff yesterday aaaaannnd it's 6 above(F) right now. Eggnog is good although I prefer it straight and the house is decorated. Now for the Christmas cards today and time for the Christmas CDs. Being closer to the end than the beginning there's not much I need although I did notice one of the snow shovels is wearing out on the working end. Then there's Christmas Eve service to attend and that's what it's all about.... eh?
ReplyDeleteWe used to attend Midnight Mass, but we got too old to stay awake as did our Pastor, who moved it to 10PM, then 8PM. With Christmas on Monday, we'll be attending Mass either 2 times on Sunday (10AM for regular Sunday, 8PM for Christmas Vigil) or two days in a row (morning mass).
DeleteWe put lights in the windows, a wreath here and there but since the kids won't be visiting this year, we will forego having a tree. I miss it but it's a lot of effot for just the two of us.
ReplyDeleteWe will be spending Christmas with The Nuke and I'm really looking forward to that.
Nice post Tuna.
Yes, I know how to spell "effort." I just don't know how to consistently type "effort."
DeleteSigh...
A wreath is a quick win in the decoration department. I'll do that post haste.
Delete:)
DeleteIt gets more difficult to get in the spirit as the kids are spinning up their transition to adulthood. But Little Juvat will be back in town on R&R, so we've got that to look forward to. MBD is juggling the two families thing with her boyfriend, but said she'd be home for Christmas. She and I will have our traditional day making sweet potato gnocchi, which always makes it a good day. Off to San Angelo to do battle with the Car Salesman today. Mrs J has decided on a new ride. So it is written, so it shall be!
ReplyDeleteYour son coming home on R&R- You have inspired another post for me. My life has been made all the better because of one particular R&R.
DeleteChristmas is in full bloom here at The manor. Outside, a wreath and a couple lighted trees brighten up the front door. Inside, the tree is up and the house decorations will be an ongoing project as more and more are added almost daily as MiLady continues to fine tune. 3-4 inches of snow brightened up the season last weekend but caused the cancellation on one party but there's a couple more upcoming. Highlight of the season was a matinee showing of It's A Wonderful Life yesterday for my Mother who had never seen it.
ReplyDeleteWe haven't watched it yet, but will this weekend most likely. We own it on DVD, but also catch it on NBC which has the rights to it I believe.
DeleteChristmas really takes over in this house the MoB has been bingeing the Hallmark Channel since before it should be allowed (IYKWIM), the totes, all 16 came out and have been emptied, and their contents a now on display inside and outside.
ReplyDeleteThey shall remain so until at least January 6, Little Christmas.
This year it looks like everyone who missed Thanksgiving together will be here for that.
That's reason enough to celebrate.
Oh, and we watched It's a Wonderful Life Saturday afternoon.
Delete