Merry Christmas!

 

 

 For the first time since 1994, I am spending Christmas with family.  (I was married then, and living in Japan.  Christmas is way different there.)

In years past, I latched onto my friend’s Christmas celebrations; this year, I am spending with my own family.  Not too big a deal if you do it every year; it’s been at least 34 years since I celebrated Christmas with this cousin, who, incredibly, lives ten miles away from me.  "Incredibly" because I have lived up here for 22 years and I had no idea.  He "found" me through my Classmates listing and put me in touch with his family, my uncle and aunt and his brother and sister – my cousins too – down in NorCal.

I went to church the other night with my cousin and his wife, and last night we had the Christmas feast (got a big bag of leftovers – the value of being a bachelor).  Today is my third get-together with them, my cousin and his wife; we are going to her parent’s house in Washington.

It’s the concentrated "Family Christmas".

So far, so good.

Brought home a bag of booty too.  Gift cards and food, a nice folding knife, some stuff I didn’t have before… and there are still two boxes for me under my cousin’s tree.

(ooooohhhh, I wonder what’s in ’em!)

It’s a VERY good thing I bought premium photo paper and twin ink packs back when I had cash for that kind of thing – I (ahem) take good pictures and they make fine presents.  This cheapo HP printer makes good photograghs.

It’s a beautiful sunny day out there – a sunglasses day for sure.  Last year, it snowed for Christmas.  I like dry and sunny better.

***

No Christmas tree at home – I have Never bought a Christmas tree.  Never.

In fact, the only time I’ve ever had a Christmas tree in my home was in 1984, the first year we were married and just after I got out of the Navy.  We had been living in Maine, and when I got out, we moved to Providence, RI so my wife could finish her BFA.  We took a Maine blue spruce with us, in a five gallon paint bucket.  That was our Christmas tree that year.  When she finished school and we left Providence to drive across the country and then go to Japan, we planted that blue spuce in the back yard of our apartment building there in Providence.

MY former wife flew to Providence several years back; the spruce is over ten feet tall and thriving.

I’ve never seen the point of cutting down a living tree just so I can see and smell it in my home.

***

So far, it’s been a good Christmas.

I don’t particluarly want to play the part of poor cousin… but that’s the hand I’ve been dealt.

I could print up some more pictures.  Just because it’s "easy" for me to take pictures doesn’t mean they are worthless.  (I’m not either)

I hope your Christmas had been good for you too.

 

*****