Well, apparently I missed Christmas.
No, no, I didn't actually MISS Christmas - although, as a Jew, had Christmas passed me by it wouldn't have been quite the tragedy for me that it would have been for most of you (and your offspring). I just mean that I didn't post here on or around Christmas, and I didn't visit blogs, either, so I've neglected to wish you all the appropriate sorts of things that one ordinarily wishes one's friends at this time of year. And I do wish those things for you, even if belatedly.
I hope you had a wonderful Christmas, however you spent it. If that is a special day for you -- a religious, spiritual, and/or festive day of celebration -- then I hope it was filled with love and family and meaning for you. And if it was a low-key day for you, for whatever reason, I hope you spent it enjoyably as well.
I have this whole week off from work, so I've been hanging out, being lazy, catching up with friends and family, and not spending much time online. If I don't "see" you before January 1st, I hope your New Year gets off to a spectacular start!
The pants are undone again.
I managed to avoid all the cookies, all the jellybeans, and all the chocolate today at work. I did have a piece of my friend's Birthday Banana Bread, though, which was outRAGEous.
I couldn't focus on finishing a single task at work yesterday or today but I am so freaking relieved that it is officially the weekend that I hardly know what to do with myself. The bad news? I left so much work un-done that I am going to have to go back there at some point this weekend and spend a ridiculous amount of focused time doing work that I should and could have been doing all day yesterday and today.
It's that time of year for me, I think. The December doldrums are upon me and I can't focus. I can't stop refreshing web pages and e-mail inboxes even when important deadlines are looming. I can't stop thinking about my dad and how much I miss him and how much I wish I had him back. And I can't help feeling so incredibly alone and lonely, wishing that I had someone special in my life who actually cared whether I make it home tonight. (And you guys don't count, but I appreciate the thought.) (And neither does Olivia, although I suppose she does care whether I make it home, but only because it's the difference between whether she gets fed or not, and whether she gets her chin and ears scratched or not.)
(Yes, that's a very old baby picture. She's much bigger and I have a laptop now.)
(I can't stop putting things in parentheses. I'd better end this post sooner rather than later.)
(Just one last thing.)
Happy Chanukah!
A message from God to His children:
It has come to my attention that many of you are upset that folks are taking My name out of the season. Maybe you’ve forgotten that I wasn’t actually born during this time of the year and that it was some of your predecessors who decided to celebrate My birthday on what was actually a time of pagan festival. Although I do appreciate being remembered anytime.
How I personally feel about this celebration can probably be most easily understood by those of you who have been blessed with children of your own. I don’t care what you call the day. If you want to celebrate My birth just GET ALONG AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER. Now, having said that, let Me go on.
If it bothers you that the town in which you live doesn’t allow a scene depicting My birth, then just get rid of a couple of Santas and snowmen and put in a small Nativity scene on your own front lawn. If all My followers did that there wouldn’t be any need for such a scene on the town square because there would be many of them all around town.
Stop worrying about the fact that people are calling the tree a holiday tree, instead of a Christmas tree. It was I who made all trees. You can & may remember Me anytime you see any tree. Decorate a grape vine if you wish: I actually spoke of that one in a teaching explaining who I am in relation to you & what each of our tasks were. If you have forgotten that one, look up John 15: 1 – 8.
If you want to give Me a present in remembrance of My birth here is my wish list. Choose something from it.
1. Instead of writing protest letters objecting to the way My birthday is being celebrated, write letters of love and hope to soldiers away from home. They are terribly afraid and lonely this time of year. I know, they tell Me all the time.
2. Visit someone in a nursing home. You don’t have to know them personally. They just need to know that someone cares about them.
3. Instead of writing George complaining about the wording on the cards his staff send out, why don’t you write and tell him that you’ll be praying for him and his family this year. Then follow up. It will be nice hearing from you again.
4. Instead of giving your children a lot of gifts you can’t afford and they don’t need, spend time with them. Tell them the story of My birth, and why I came to live with you down here. Hold them in your arms and remind them that I love them.
5. Pick someone that has hurt you in the past and forgive him or her.
6. Did you know that someone in your town will attempt to take their own life this season because they feel so alone and hopeless? Since you don’t know who that person is, try giving everyone you meet a warm smile it could make the difference. Also, you might consider supporting the local Hot-Line: they talk with people like that every day.
7. Instead of nitpicking about what the retailer in your town calls the holiday, be patient with the people who work there. Give them a warm smile and a kind word. Even if they aren’t allowed to wish you a “Merry Christmas” that doesn’t keep you from wishing them one. Then stop shopping there on Sunday. If the store didn’t make so much money on that day, they’d close and let their employees spend the day at home with their families.
8. If you really want to make a difference, support a missionary, especially one who takes My love & good news to those who have never heard My name. You may already know someone like that.
9. Here’s a good one. There are individuals & whole families in your town who not only will have no “Christmas” tree, but neither will they have any presents to give or receive. If you don’t know them, buy some food & a few gifts & give them to the Marines, the Salvation Army or some other charity that believes in Me & they will make the delivery for you.
10. Finally if you want to make a statement about your belief in and loyalty to Me, then behave like a Christian. Don’t do things in secret that you wouldn’t do in My presence. Let people know by your actions that you are one of mine.
P.S. Don’t forget; I am God and can take care of Myself. Just love Me & do what I have told you to do. I’ll take care of all the rest. Check out the list above & get to work; time is short. I’ll help you, but the ball is now in your court. And do have a most blessed Christmas with all those whom you love – and remember…I LOVE YOU.
Blatantly, but respectfully, ripped off from Think Christian.
My pants are too tight today so I don't want to get up from my desk.
But someone brought in cookies and, to get some, I need to get up from my desk.
But if I get some cookies, my pants will never not be tight.
Update: The cookies are really good. You should try them (especially the snickerdoodles) (although the Toll House bars are also tasty).
Update #2: My pants are now unbuttoned.
This is a sad, sad day.
R.I.P. Peter Boyle.
I've been informally taking a little personal survey for almost 2 years on whether people wave or otherwise acknowledge when I allow them to go ahead of me in traffic. My conclusion: Of those who do pull in ahead of me after I have signaled them my willingness for them to do so, fully 90% of drivers make no acknowledgment whatsoever. Ten percent acknowledge it with a wave, a smile, a flash of headlights, or some combination of these.
For the record, when I am attempting to let someone go ahead, I will brake, wave welcomingly, and/or flash my lights at them to make my message clear.
Is this lack of acknowledgment just part of the Massachusetts-rude-driver thing (for which we are reviled) or are others of you experiencing this phenomenon elsewhere? To what do you attribute this behavior?