Happy December! How can it be that we're already near the end of yet another year? How can it be that we're on month 12? How? I really would like to know.
I have this theory that time speeds up the older we get. I think it's a pretty popular theory outside of this blog, too, but I digress. Anyway. It seems like it takes forever to go somewhere or do something when you're young. That's why kids need toys and books. Something to distract them when all that dreadful time comes between them and, say, Christmas. This month is *not* going to shoot by for an eight-year-old, for instance. And even longer than the month is that wait for opening presents!
The older you get, of course, as some of you or all of you already realize, the faster time goes. We have about three weeks till Christmas. In weekend-time, that's six days! Oh, my goodness. I don't even have my tree up yet! We need something so we can relax with all that stress. That is why adults need toys and books. And candy.
Of course, speed of time in adult-land turns inverse when you're sick. I discovered this last week, when I ended up getting a stomach virus. Ick. I don't recommend it.
So, Happy December! I'll see you around, but if my posts are infrequent, don't fear--it's just the Holidays.
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
If only...
Do you ever wish that life were a musical? :) That something like this might happen in your own home town?
Did you watch that video? How utterly cool, right?
I've wanted to live in a musical for a long time. And I think I kind of do. It's not too difficult--dance a little in public, sing a little in public, have a constant soundtrack in your head. (I took a quiz once that told my my life's theme song is I'm Walking on Sunshine by Katarina and the Waves.) But seeing something like this made me feel a little wistful that I'm apparently the only cast member in my own personal musical.
It's okay, really--it's just that lately, I've started to remember just how much I love those song-and-dance routines. I guess I'd been away from them for a bit too long. Maybe the real reason for this is because it's Christmas, and despite all barriers, I'm always sentimental at Christmas time. Seriously. Even for decades I didn't live through.
What do you all think about this? I guess, in the words of Colin Firth in "Love Actually," it's Christmas, and I just wanted to...check.
Did you watch that video? How utterly cool, right?
I've wanted to live in a musical for a long time. And I think I kind of do. It's not too difficult--dance a little in public, sing a little in public, have a constant soundtrack in your head. (I took a quiz once that told my my life's theme song is I'm Walking on Sunshine by Katarina and the Waves.) But seeing something like this made me feel a little wistful that I'm apparently the only cast member in my own personal musical.
It's okay, really--it's just that lately, I've started to remember just how much I love those song-and-dance routines. I guess I'd been away from them for a bit too long. Maybe the real reason for this is because it's Christmas, and despite all barriers, I'm always sentimental at Christmas time. Seriously. Even for decades I didn't live through.
What do you all think about this? I guess, in the words of Colin Firth in "Love Actually," it's Christmas, and I just wanted to...check.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Another few adorable links
Not that I mean to inundate with links, but I have a few today.
First two are for fans of the Muppets. Gonzo and the chickens are fantastic, of course; and then there's this *fantastic* beast of a song, also done by the Muppets.
OK, and if you're a comments reader, you'll note Christmas is coming up quite a bit. So, last but not least, one of the funniest videos I have seen this season...the silent monks sing a song for Christmas.
You know, Youtube can be addicting. But I just get so excited when I find something on there that actually seems worthwhile. I think that Muppets and Silent Monks are just perfect harbingers of the Christmas Season! Or any other season, for that matter.
First two are for fans of the Muppets. Gonzo and the chickens are fantastic, of course; and then there's this *fantastic* beast of a song, also done by the Muppets.
OK, and if you're a comments reader, you'll note Christmas is coming up quite a bit. So, last but not least, one of the funniest videos I have seen this season...the silent monks sing a song for Christmas.
You know, Youtube can be addicting. But I just get so excited when I find something on there that actually seems worthwhile. I think that Muppets and Silent Monks are just perfect harbingers of the Christmas Season! Or any other season, for that matter.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Merry Christmas, 2009
Dear friends and family,
I’m learning with every passing day just why my parents were always ready to stick a few extra days into the season of Advent, before Christmas came. There’s so much to do, to prepare for the holidays. Gifts to buy, goodies to bake, surprises to make, songs to sing, concerts to prepare for…and with the addition of snow to shovel, and all the other winterizing processes one must do in a house, I can easily see why they might have wanted more time.
At this point, I should add that I am now the proud owner of a house. An exciting move! And a busy one.
It’s easy to get distracted during this time of year—during any time of year. In the course of my job, I found an article that perhaps illustrates this best of all. Out of Grand Rapids, Michigan, and reported in the Bismarck Tribune, this story was printed on Dec. 22, 1936:
Mrs. Louis H. Hake, who had just finished baking some cakes for the holidays, discovered that she had somehow misplaced a quarter-inch bolt from her electric mixer. She searched for it frantically, and came to the conclusion that, horror of horrors for any Christmas baker, she had misplaced it directly into one of the cakes she had just finished making.
The only way poor Mrs. Hake could figure on locating this bolt—as she couldn’t tell which cake it was in—was to ask a local doctor to x-ray them. You can imagine her duress; so close to Christmas, all that work accomplished, to find something gone horribly awry. Their phone conversation was interesting; she asked him, “How would you like to x-ray a dozen cakes?”
“I’ll try anything once,” Dr. Stonehouse replied.
The doctor did so, and luckily for Mrs. Hake, he found the bolt in the third cake. And he earned himself a cake as payment, declining any other fees. One hopes that nothing else was baked into her cakes.
But it’s completely understandable, right? It’s easy to lose your head amidst the hustle and bustle.
Not that that’s what Christmas is all about. Baking, decorating, buying—it’s nice, but it’s not the spirit of the season. That’s being with family, and friends; spending time together; and that all-important Love. A man selling his watch to buy combs for his wife’s hair, when she sells her hair to buy him a watch chain. Mr. Edwards bringing Laura Ingalls and her sisters some treats from Santa. An editor reassuring a young girl that there is a Santa Claus. A baby, lying in a manger. I believe there is a song—“Love came down at Christmas time.”
So anyway, I wish you all the best in this season and the New Year. And if you lose a spoon while doing the holiday baking—well, you may just want to check those cakes!
With love,
Sarah
I’m learning with every passing day just why my parents were always ready to stick a few extra days into the season of Advent, before Christmas came. There’s so much to do, to prepare for the holidays. Gifts to buy, goodies to bake, surprises to make, songs to sing, concerts to prepare for…and with the addition of snow to shovel, and all the other winterizing processes one must do in a house, I can easily see why they might have wanted more time.
At this point, I should add that I am now the proud owner of a house. An exciting move! And a busy one.
It’s easy to get distracted during this time of year—during any time of year. In the course of my job, I found an article that perhaps illustrates this best of all. Out of Grand Rapids, Michigan, and reported in the Bismarck Tribune, this story was printed on Dec. 22, 1936:
Mrs. Louis H. Hake, who had just finished baking some cakes for the holidays, discovered that she had somehow misplaced a quarter-inch bolt from her electric mixer. She searched for it frantically, and came to the conclusion that, horror of horrors for any Christmas baker, she had misplaced it directly into one of the cakes she had just finished making.
The only way poor Mrs. Hake could figure on locating this bolt—as she couldn’t tell which cake it was in—was to ask a local doctor to x-ray them. You can imagine her duress; so close to Christmas, all that work accomplished, to find something gone horribly awry. Their phone conversation was interesting; she asked him, “How would you like to x-ray a dozen cakes?”
“I’ll try anything once,” Dr. Stonehouse replied.
The doctor did so, and luckily for Mrs. Hake, he found the bolt in the third cake. And he earned himself a cake as payment, declining any other fees. One hopes that nothing else was baked into her cakes.
But it’s completely understandable, right? It’s easy to lose your head amidst the hustle and bustle.
Not that that’s what Christmas is all about. Baking, decorating, buying—it’s nice, but it’s not the spirit of the season. That’s being with family, and friends; spending time together; and that all-important Love. A man selling his watch to buy combs for his wife’s hair, when she sells her hair to buy him a watch chain. Mr. Edwards bringing Laura Ingalls and her sisters some treats from Santa. An editor reassuring a young girl that there is a Santa Claus. A baby, lying in a manger. I believe there is a song—“Love came down at Christmas time.”
So anyway, I wish you all the best in this season and the New Year. And if you lose a spoon while doing the holiday baking—well, you may just want to check those cakes!
With love,
Sarah
Monday, December 7, 2009
Christmas letter?
So, because I'm running late, I'm thinking I may just post my Christmas letter here. And direct people here. Hm. I can save paper! Except I have the cards already...I just don't have the time. Or the funds to cover tons of postage.
Is it taking something personal and making it less personal? I usually enclose a personal note with my form letter, so saying that a typical Christmas letter is already impersonal isn't going to work, this time. I just am not sure.
But right now, I'm 90 percent sure I'm going to post my letter here! Maybe tomorrow, for that extra post.
As the kids say (I think): Peace out. Or maybe I just picked that up from a Sesame Street Christmas special that I saw part of, yesterday.
Is it taking something personal and making it less personal? I usually enclose a personal note with my form letter, so saying that a typical Christmas letter is already impersonal isn't going to work, this time. I just am not sure.
But right now, I'm 90 percent sure I'm going to post my letter here! Maybe tomorrow, for that extra post.
As the kids say (I think): Peace out. Or maybe I just picked that up from a Sesame Street Christmas special that I saw part of, yesterday.
Friday, December 4, 2009
New Tree!
Well, as I had foreseen, it has been busy, this month, so far--and it's only, what, Dec. 4? But I do want to share something exciting. I have a Christmas tree!
A Christmas tree, you ask? Why wouldn't you have a tree?
Besides being slightly cheap and having no room? No reason at all, I guess. I had a little tiny tree for some time. But now, my new home is also sporting a little Christmas cheer--a 6.5 foot Christmas Tree, found in one of the offices at work and donated to anyone who claimed it. Free! I jumped on top of that!
We (my family and I) could never have a real tree, and I don't think we'd want it, either--too much of a hassle, too many needles falling off, too much of a fire hazard. (Speaking of, read this for a quirky, perhaps twisted story of Christmas and Santa and fire hazards. No one got hurt too much, I swear.) But I digress from my point.
My tree is set up, now. It was nestled amidst tinsel and popcorn strings of some bygone era (the popcorn didn't look as bad as I might have guessed, to be honest), which has mostly been pulled away from it; and now, just to decorate it, and make it really sparkle.
Of course, I will need to get more lights, as I have just a 50-light string, and, as my brother pointed out, that will barely cover the base. Or the top. In fact, it's lit like a tree from Charlie Brown's Christmas, right now.
But it's my tree, and I love it.
A Christmas tree, you ask? Why wouldn't you have a tree?
Besides being slightly cheap and having no room? No reason at all, I guess. I had a little tiny tree for some time. But now, my new home is also sporting a little Christmas cheer--a 6.5 foot Christmas Tree, found in one of the offices at work and donated to anyone who claimed it. Free! I jumped on top of that!
We (my family and I) could never have a real tree, and I don't think we'd want it, either--too much of a hassle, too many needles falling off, too much of a fire hazard. (Speaking of, read this for a quirky, perhaps twisted story of Christmas and Santa and fire hazards. No one got hurt too much, I swear.) But I digress from my point.
My tree is set up, now. It was nestled amidst tinsel and popcorn strings of some bygone era (the popcorn didn't look as bad as I might have guessed, to be honest), which has mostly been pulled away from it; and now, just to decorate it, and make it really sparkle.
Of course, I will need to get more lights, as I have just a 50-light string, and, as my brother pointed out, that will barely cover the base. Or the top. In fact, it's lit like a tree from Charlie Brown's Christmas, right now.
But it's my tree, and I love it.
Monday, November 30, 2009
December is tomorrow!
December is tomorrow! And there's so much left to do!
I can hardly believe that in 25 days, it will be that time of the year again. I love Christmas, and everything about it--the traditions, the sweets, the foods, the sharing and caring (that *should* go on throughout the year), the stories, the gifts of the magi (thank you, O. Henry!), and everything else that you can think of. Music, concerts. Little tots with their eyes all aglow.
Oh, but there's so much to do! Twenty-five days doesn't give me nearly enough time. I have to bake my cookies, decorate my home, prepare presents, write two (yes--two) separate Christmas letters, send off everything else, *and* stay on top of my normal duties.
Can I do it? That's the big question of the day. I just have to remember to breathe deeply! It won't be difficult, if the scent of gingerbread and popcorn and other goodies is still in the air...
I can hardly believe that in 25 days, it will be that time of the year again. I love Christmas, and everything about it--the traditions, the sweets, the foods, the sharing and caring (that *should* go on throughout the year), the stories, the gifts of the magi (thank you, O. Henry!), and everything else that you can think of. Music, concerts. Little tots with their eyes all aglow.
Oh, but there's so much to do! Twenty-five days doesn't give me nearly enough time. I have to bake my cookies, decorate my home, prepare presents, write two (yes--two) separate Christmas letters, send off everything else, *and* stay on top of my normal duties.
Can I do it? That's the big question of the day. I just have to remember to breathe deeply! It won't be difficult, if the scent of gingerbread and popcorn and other goodies is still in the air...
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