I'll Be Fine and Dandy

I left a few of my favorite Christmas traditions off of the last list in order to save something for this post. Surprise!

- Angels
Since my very first Christmas, my Auntie Alice has given me an angel Christmas ornament every year in honor of my name. They're all different. One's fabric. One's made out of a pinecone. One resembles a pillow more than an angel. A couple of them are broken, from years of love. I have a lovely collection now. Last year she didn't give me one, saying that she always thought that the one I got at 21 (my 22nd ornament) would be my last. She thought I'd have grown out of liking it by now. I let her know that I was sad about that. I love it. Somewhat surprisingly, my aunt is the only person who has ever played up the the "angel" in "Angela" (my dad has played up the "gel", trying to get the nickname "Jelly" to stick, which, thank God, it never did). Oddly, someone else got me an angel ornament last year (someone unaware of the tradition), so I still have a full set. I don't know if I'll be getting an ornament this year or not. She hasn't mailed our gifts yet. *crosses fingers* I should really tell people that I like angel things more often. Maybe they'd buy me ornaments as a way to get into my good graces... It would probably work. (SHHH! Don't tell. Wouldn't want to make it too easy on anyone.)

- Christmas Pajamas
I debated even putting this on here because it's so excruciatingly dorky, but I love it. Every year, my mother buys "Christmas pajamas" for my brothers and I. We get them on Christmas Eve, and change into them before the gift exchanging begins. She started it when we were kids. One year, she forgot the pajamas, and we were furious. So she's kept up the tradition. This year, I got some decent ones (although I had to wear a hoodie over them for the gift giving, as I didn't want to wear a bra with the pajamas, and they're made of a thin material. The pants are as well, so my brother pointed out he could see my pink underwear... If it were anyone other than a family member, it would've been beyond mortifying.) My brothers hated the bottoms they got with wine bottles all over them, complaining that they weren't "classy". But really, Christmas pajamas aren't supposed to be classy. They're supposed to be ridiculous. I think my mom nailed it.

- Young Frankenstein
I've always thought of Young Frankenstein as a Christmas movie. Strange, right? I have a childhood memory involving watching it as my family was either putting up or taking down a Christmas tree. I was picking up pine needles and watching the movie, with all the dirty jokes (and some of the clean ones) flying over my head. Anyway. I always have a craving to watch it in winter. A few years ago, my dad bought it on Christmas Eve, saying that it seemed like a perfect Christmas movie to him (my dad and I have a similar sense of humor. We even have the same favorite movie, Animal House, which we also have in common with my youngest brother). So we watch it together around Christmas. We haven't gotten to it yet this year, but hopefully we still will. After all, I'm home for another four days.


Oh, and going back to "The Last Present" that I mentioned last time... My mom won this year! It was amazing. My dad hid two presents, but, thinking that he was the last to give anything, broke them both out from hiding. And then my mom revealed that she'd been hiding one for my dad in the closet. Brilliant! My dad claimed that, since he gave two at once, he COULD have won. Then my mom tried to say it wasn't a competition, but we all know it is. Yay Mom!

I finished off the bottle of Midori while we were opening presents. Everyone else was drinking non-alcoholic cinnamon eggnog. That's right. I was drinking, and my family wasn't. I think they were confused. Especially since at dinner I had toasted with skim milk against their glasses of red wine. Ah well.

The cinnamon rolls were made (although I fell asleep before helping much). I helped deliver them to the new neighbors. The people who live next-door are Jewish, speak with an East Coast dialect, and want to have the whole family over for drinks (including my underage brothers). Yeah, this is definitely a new neighborhood. Merry Everything!

At church I sang the alto parts to the carols. My dad asked why I did that instead of just reading the music (my father knows that I inherited his ability to sight-read). I shrugged and told him that the alto parts just feel more "right" to me. And I sang them anyway.

My family and I played some rousing games of "Apples to Apples" (one of my gifts this year). I easily won the first couple of rounds, but lost subsequent ones as my family got the hang of it. I enjoy the game because it allows me to utilize my skill in communicating through abstract thought. That, and I know which cards are trumps. There are some cards that will win almost any round. "Amputees", "Rosa Parks", "Anne Frank", "Cults", and "Vietnam, 1968", for example. And the card that I think trumps every other card: "Helen Keller". Honestly, what would she NOT be the best choice for. She wins any category either literally, figuratively, antithetically, or as an ironic statement. Cuddly? Helen Keller. Timeless? Helen Keller. Rare? Helen Keller. Normal? Helen Keller. Loud? Helen Keller. Quiet? Helen Keller. Popular? Helen Keller (although "Ernest Hemingway" won that last night... And "Cults" would've won if it had been played. Or "The KKK". Or "Captain Kirk". Or "Morticians", "Sharks", "Rust", "Milk", "Cabbage"...). You get the idea. One of my favorite plays from yesterday was when I won "Funky" with "Going to Grandma's". Or when I won "Patriotic" with "Will Smith" (I've seen Independence Day and Men in Black. Strangely, someone else played "Alien Abductions" that round, using similar logic). I also liked my brother's play of "Worms" for "Touchy-Feely".

Anyway, if you aren't familiar with "Apples to Apples", you should find someone who owns it and get them to play. I swear, it isn't nearly as lame as it may sound. And I don't remember the last time that my family had that much fun playing a game together.

I also sat down and watched Shaun of the Dead with my dad and youngest brother (I mentioned before that our senses of humor are usually in line). My dad said it was one of the strangest movies he's ever seen, and he didn't seem to love the silliness of it as much as my brother and I do. My dad's the kind of person who asks the logical questions ("Why would he stand by the window?" "Why wouldn't he shoot them?" "Why did he answer his phone?") instead of accepting that it's a movie (a trait he passed down to me that seeps out on occasion... not one of my finer qualities), and asks movie-ruining questions to the people who have seen it before ("Is he going to shoot her now?" "Are they going to kill him before he turns into a zombie?") instead of just watching. Therefore, Shaun of the Dead was the wrong movie for him. Maybe we'll give Psycho Beach Party a try next. But then, my brothers got National Treasure and Superbad for Christmas, and I think they'll want to watch those... Ah well. I always think of Christmastime as movie season.

We were thinking of going to the theater to see a movie, but it seems everyone is rooting to see something different. The votes were cast for National Treasure 2, Walk Hard, Juno, Enchanted, and Sweeney Todd. (Ready for a surprise? My vote was Juno. That means that three of my family members voted for musical movies, and I didn't. Weird). I'd be willing to see any of them, really. Except for NT2, as I haven't seen NT1 yet... but maybe we'll remedy that.

You know, as much as I complained about being here instead of in Michigan, it's nice to have had a couple of holidays with just my immediate family. Usually we're with my mom's whole family, sometimes with my dad's, and on a few occasions had both families at our place. Frankly, it's a lot less pressure without them around. I haven't had to worry about looking particularly put together. It doesn't matter if the house is spotless. And, perhaps the biggest relief, I don't have to worry about what I can say in front of whom. Normally I have to not avoid words like "stupid" in front of the children (who have been instructed to treat it like a curse word). I can't discuss politics in front of the adults (as every married couple in my family seems to be comprised of a republican and a democrat). I'm not supposed to mention that I have friends who are gay, atheist, or cohabitating in front of the Latin-Mass-preferring, pre-Vatican-II Catholics. But with just my immediate family, the censorship is gone, most taboo words are fair play, and subject bans have been lifted. Excellent. Also, it has given me the freedom to wander around my house in pajamas at all hours of the day. And really, is there a better gift than that?

So maybe this extremely long stay in a place that isn't quite home isn't so bad after all. Don't get me wrong, my soul is still aching a little, but it's nothing that time won't heal.


And now for a final thought that my choir-member friends from back home might appreciate... (despite being a little late)

On this day, I wish you good cheer
To the friends I love, far and near
May this holiday be a joyous day
And may God bless you all
And may He bring you a happy new year.

~A~


P.S. The title is taken from lyrics to "Hard Candy Christmas" from the musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.

P.P.S. I have the sudden urge to sing "This Little Babe" from "A Ceremony of Carols". Oh, how I miss my Someko (a choir I was a member of back in high school).

P.P.P.S. Happy St. Stephen's Day! Happy Boxing Day! And a very happy everything!

ETA - I forgot my favorite Apples-to-Apples move! For the word "Realistic", my brother played "Romeo & Juliet". GENIUS!