So this Christmas thing is turning out to be quite a bit of work. You have to buy presents, wrap them, visit people, write a dozen cards, and be cheery while everyone else scrambles around malls, busses and streets - themselves under the same stresses that you are.

But you know what? On a very important and meaningful level, it is all worth it. And sometimes, the extra effort that you put into the season comes out for the better in the end. Witness:

Case Number One: The Christmas Dinner Party
Every year (for two years now), K throws a wild and crazy Christmas dinner party. Every year, we invite a small group of people over to eat our food as we drink their wine while basking in K's glorious seasonal decorating. People come from out of town just for the event. Together, K and I (and when I say "K and I" I really mean K with me goofing around - mostly) cook, clean, prepare, get gifts, wrap them, and so on. But the feeling
that was in the air as dinner was in it's last throes and the guests were unwrapping the presents was so filling and warm that it hardly seemed fair that we were able to enjoy it for such a small price.

Case Number Two: The Visit to my Parents Place
I have to take a smelly 7 hour bus ride home, and there will undoubtedly be at least three crying kids and mothers with big ornately wrapped presents taking up too much space. But I've only spent one Christmas away from my family and until I have a family of my own, I plan to make this yearly visit happily.

It gets harder and harder to buy presents for the people you talk to once a week, and see three or four times a year, and I always fret over what to get for these people who are closest to me. I think I did alright this year, by the way. There is always something special about waking up on Christmas morning with my wool socks on (which I expect another pair of this year…) and opening my stocking while my sister and parents are all still asleep. Somehow, I still manage to wake up around 5:00am, despite the fact that I am “a grown man” (pppthththththt!!!).

Case Number Three: Random Acts of Charity
I’m not big on charity – not that I oppose it – but last year, I made a trip to the food bank with my sister.
It was a small thing, but it was still something that helped. This year, I am volunteering at a present wrapping booth in the local mall. I will let you know all about the warm and fuzzy feelings this produces, but in case I forget to blog this adventure, let it be said that I had a great time.


So Christmas is a lot of running around and a lot of small chores, but it is also a lot of warmth and caring, and we can all use a little warmth this time of the year. And in the end, like everything else, you only get out of it what you put into it.

Have a merry Christmas.

Posted by D. at Thursday, December 15, 2005 | Permalink | Comments

Um, hi. How are things? I’m fine – thanks for asking – but I, uh, well, I feel like I’ve been shirking my responsibilities as a blogger. I have not posted an entry since freaking Halloween! That’s a whole forty-two days, three pay checks, six weekends, five laundry days, twenty-eight 6:45am alarm clocks, ten tie wearing days (much to the chief’s disdain), three Chinese take-out meals delivered to the door, and thirteen days of election time (seems longer somehow, doesn't it!).

So what have I been doing? Have I been re-tooling my blog strategy to find a new and exciting way to reach all three of you? Have I been having marathon brain-storming sessions with myself for your benefit? Nope. It’s just the same old me, so much so in fact that I have no viable explanation other than laziness, and lack of willingness to post a blog just because I felt like it.

But you know what I came to realise? Some of the best posts from the few blogs that I bother to read myself are the ones that come out of nowhere; that are non-topical, non-important, and even non-factual – almost like a blog about nothing, which, as “Seinfeld” pointed out, can often be the most real and honest.

But don’t you worry, because I’ve been stockpiling ideas. I’ve got as much stuff to say as you have patience.

See you again soon.

Posted by D. at Monday, December 12, 2005 | Permalink | Comments