Happy Holidays

Today is the 5th day of the 52nd week, the 26th day of the 12th month, the 361st day of 2024, and:

• Boxing Day - please consider this my annual grumble that this needs to be a holiday in the US
• Kwanzaa - celebrating Umoja or Unity 
• Mummer's Day
• National Candy Cane Day
• National Thank You Note Day
• National Whiner's Day - please see the grumbles on Boxing and St Stephen's Day as not only did I have to work, but it was my day to be in the office, knowing I am going to be the sole occupant not only in my office but on the entire floor of this office building.  I think that qualifies as a celebration of Whiner's Day!
• St. Stephen's Day - same grumble about today needing to be a holiday in the US 
• the 2nd day of the 12 days of Christmas - and no one I know got two turtle doves
• and Voyager  1 is ~23h 03m 58s of light travel time from Earth

Quote of the day:
"You don’t get part of a human life without feeling all of it. You don’t get to love without knowing that you are going to lose the one you love or they will lose you."
Jane Hirshfield, “Don’t Despair of This Falling World”

Predictably, folks are getting their panties in a twist about folks not saying "Merry Christmas"  because somehow acknowledging that other folks are celebrating holidays too is disrespecting their holiday.  

I never understood that as I am more than happy to extend the holiday vibe from just the 24th/25th to include extra days.  Let's face it - it's just too much work to limit to just one day, neh?

We let a couple annual traditions go this year.  My daughter's family did not have their usual photo shoot and send out cards, and, for the first time since the kids were born, there was no Christmas Eve picture of them in front of their tree.  Grandmom eschewed the matching PJS for the entire family, so this picture from last year will be the final shot like this - I'll miss showing up at their house in PJs!  My son-in-law decided to forgo a large Christmas dinner in favor of actually spending more time visiting, providing us with coffee cake in the morning and a veggie with dip tray around lunchtime.  He had home-made stock that he had been made and came up with a delicious cream of chicken with vegetables and rice to serve for supper.  Sadly, none of us made it to church on Christmas Eve this year, which is something that needs to be rectified

This was the first Christmas in the new apartment for both Triscuit and I.  I don't know what she is doing with her favorite toys as they have all disappeared - I assume she is squirreling them away under my bed.  The little mouse that was her present in the morning vanished within an hour, so I hope she liked it.  I have to admit I'm Scrooge enough to look at all the decorations this morning and think rather wearily of the work it will take to clear them all away instead of enjoying them [part of my Whiner's Day celebrations.  *nods nods*  that's my story and I'm sticking to it!].   I'm starting to relax a bit around the place and not being so obsessively neat, which I hope means I am settling in and soon it will feel like home.  For the first time in I don't know how many years I actually sent [well delivered to their door] Christmas cards as my neighbors in my hallway included me in their lists, which reinforces the concept that I have joined a community, not just rented a new apartment.  

As 2025 looms, with all the madness that is ahead [SRLSY, annexing Canada, invading Mexico, a hostile takeover of the Panama Canal, and a forced sale of Greenland?] once more I try to hold onto the spirit of Christmas

May you be able to keep Christmas with you as well!