A Merry Christmas season to all...hope everyone is having a grand old time buying presents without sending your family to the poorhouse, navigating the mall parking lots, desperately picking over a group of over-priced, crappy looking trees to find one that doesn't look like it'll catch fire in your living room...do I sound a little blue? Well, I am. I normally don't profess any emotional crap on this here blog, as that ain't it's purpose. But I gotta tell you, I'm feeling overworked, underappreciated and less than festive right now. I have more than my share of things to be thankful for, and I realize that, but sometimes the old workload just gets to be a bit much. But, no pity party here. I realize you all have your own workloads and burdens...I guess my reason for saying this is that I need a little Christmas, right this very minute! Sooo....hit me with your all time BEST yuletide season memory. It can be from when you were a kid, or from last year...
22 points for the reference (it';s one of my fav rock and roll x-mas songs- AND one loyal poster should recognize it from his childhood record collection!)
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billy squier's "christmas is the time to say I love you". Idiot's First reunion shows are always fond memories. Christmas of '84 for some reason seems to stand out- even if part of it took place at the Root house!! I recall a couple of xmas eves at gentleman jim's- weel, maybe I don't remember them specifically, but I know they are there.
There ya go , Fletch...reember, you had that on a 45 of THE STROKE, if I'm not mistaken!
Forgot about the Xmas at the Roots! LOL!!! Good times...sorta...
Come on people!!!!More Yuletide stories, dammit!!!!
Best Xmas memory so far (not counting getting spanked for Xmas in July)... when I helped decorate my first Christmas tree... 2005.
Merry Christmas, my friend!
Shall I utter the usual warm fuzzies...cuz i have them for real...making cookies for Santa with my Grandmother, writing notes to Santa...requesting ridiculous "proof" such as a Rudolph's hoof print and a bell from the sleigh (which were miraculously received)....cutting down a tree with my Dad in the snow, eating a my Christmas orange with sugar on top ala' grapefruit style every Xmas morning...(Florida makes it hard to feel holiday spirited in 80 degree heat-sigh)
But here's a kicker...and I NEVER have figured this out...nor has my mom. I was coloring in a GIANT Christmas coloring book in my bedroom on the floor of my room. I was in third grade and had received the coloring book as class secret Santa gift. Remember giant Christmas coloring books? Anyway, my artsy mother was horrified at the coloring book because she didn't "believe in coloring in the lines" and therefore did'nt like coloring books. So of course, I was thrilled to have received a rogue book. I had begun coloring a giant portrait of Santa. I had colored the black of one boot and I was quite pleased with my work. My mother called me to her and I went to her bathroom where she was applying makeup to go to a holiday party. I don't know what she told me...something about behaving for the sitter...all I know is when I returned to my coloring book, the Santa was completely colored. Finished and perfectly so....I screamed when I saw it. It sounds kind of ghostly now....but I always believed Santa's elves colored it when I was a kid. I still kind of believe that....I mean..Christmas magic? Hell yeah.
Great story LG...Have a Merry xmas down there in the tropics!
Last years night before christmas was one of the best ever.
Oh yeah...having my water break on Christmas Day morning was pretty awesome too.
Sorry your feeling unappreciated and blue. I guess its some bug going around our house or something. Rest assured all you do is noticed even when its not mentioned.
I think one of my fav christmas moments was seeing my brother morph into my father...ha...."Christmas time is coming....oh maaan"....
I have wondered whether or not to post this here. I have told this story to some people before and have gotten mixed reactions.
This is a true story.
Here goes...
When I was 5 and 6 years old, I would play The Quiet Game with our Christmas tree when I got home from school in the afternoon. I don't know why, but I did. I only won when I held my breathe.
And nobody else in the house knew I ever did it.
I was on a train traveling from Belfast to Dublin a week before Christmas three or four years ago. The train ride was two hours long but I was thoroughly entertained by this team of Irish rugby players who were mixing Red Bull and Vodka to create an extremely powerful buzz tonic. Eventually they all broke into The Pogues song "Fairy Tale of New York," one of the greatest Christmas songs ever written. "It was Christmas Eve babe, in the drunk tank......."
I got teary eyed listening to these brusers sing "a rare old mountain tune."
Later that evening I saw one of those rugby players in the Temple Bar area of Dublin running down the street with wearing nothing but his tie around his waist.
Ah, Christmas.
With my dad being a minister, is was always tough to have a Christmas family get together for more than an hour or two at a time. I remember that being hard when I was smaller. (I mean, what does Church have to do with Christmas, anyway?)
But there was one year I got a pair of baggy pants that were SO large, my dad and I both got into them and paraded around the house. Think "Hammer Pants to the 3rd power." I remember laughing harder than I ever had before. We have this little gem on home video and is always the show stopper when we play it.
Ah, Christmas.
When I was small (6-9), I used to take my shower early, get into my pajamas and just sit in the rocking chair by myself and just stare at the Christmas Tree. I would do this for at least an hour each night. Just lost in thought, looking at the ornaments and the lights on the tree. Simple pleasure for a wierd kid. My parents thought it was the sweetest thing.
Ah, Christmas.
Hmm. I'm split between a couple, but I'll grant you this one. It smacks a bit of pretension, but what the hell.
I was in Paris on Christmas Eve, with some of my family flying in the next day. I called my grandparents' house in the states from the youth hostel and talked to a lot of the family. It was hard being away from all of them, but it was great to feel so much love. When I got off the phone I somehow (in spite of my complete lack of savoire faire) ended up in a conversation with a lovely Australian girl. We talked about all things great and small with that instant intimacy of circumstance - familiar enough to theatre folk, but precious nonetheless. The night clerk turned out the lights on us at 2am and we left for our respective rooms. Our goodbye was a chaste one; she gave me an awkward hug and, on impulse, the box of chocolates she had in her hand.
So now, years later, it's Christmas again and all I really want is some Lindt.
Ben Miller-Callihan
Nice stories JAL- I LOVE that Pogues tune as well!
Thanks for the kind words Steve-o- I think quite highly of you as well!
Come on people-where's those Christmas posts???? OPEN UP AND SHARE, dammit!!!!!!!!!
So here's mine:
The first year Joy and I were married, we still lived in the boro, in a tiny little one bedroom apt. which seemed relativly big cause we didn't have much furniture! We did, however, have an old green loveseat with less than sturdy legs. We had put our Christmas tree up right in front of the loveseat, and on Christmas eve we made cocca and snuggled up on the loveseat to stare at our first Xmas tree-a beautiful Hallmark moment, UNTIL ...one of the legs gave way and sent us almost flying to the floor! We laughed for 20 minutes about this and it still gives us a nice chuckle!
The first Christmas after my father passed in 84 was very special too. My borther Jerry had postponed moving to NYC until after the holiday so we could all be together and my other bro Tony came in on leave from the air force. He was also getting married three days after Christmas, so this made it doubly special. We all really rallied round and managed to have a festive time, despite the fact that Dad had only been gone for three months. It was a real nice, family time for us and one I'll alwyas cherish...
My favorite x-mas memories as a child: X-mas day in Chattynoog when all the fam came into town...my grandma fixing a kick ass meal, turkey, chicken n dumplings, sweet potato pie (YUM) and then everyone loading up and going to see a movie. Also, everyone ALWAYS bought me music for x-mas. That was always sometime I looked forward to: NEW TAPES, CD's, etc. One of my fav's so far was last year. FINALLY meeting someone very special (we just celebrated our 1 year anniversary) anyone who really knows me...will know what an accomplishment that is. :) I feel very lucky to be in love for the first time in my life. Putting up a tree together, waking up on xmas day and cooking breakfast, so on and soforth. SO yeah,,,this year and last are on the top of my list.
HONORABLE MENTION: x-mas of 2003 and 2004 were also great because I was able to work with you MR.X. as well as Mr. Luckey, Ms. Genet, Mr. Rose, and Ms. Cummins. I have to say that being cast in Sideman (my first paying gig) right before x-mas was another kick ass memory. I got REALLY drunk after Nat made the call. And GOD BLESS the Homecoming kids. SIGH
Lots of PEACE and LOVE to all this X-mas.
I've always enjoyed Christmas. My family is so loud that we all know to bring headache medicine with us at our big gathering.
But one of my big memories isn't really Christmas, but more of a winter memory. I was very young - less than six years old, I know. My parents and I used to live in a duplex about two miles from my grandmother's house in Lexington. It had snowed about 4-5 inches, I think, and my parents decided to load me up on the plastic orange sleigh and pull me to grandma's house. They bundled me up really good, put a big blanket around me, and we started our journey. It was dark. What I remember the most is how quiet it was. Snow was still falling in soft quiet flakes and the world just seemed to be at rest. The street lamps were casting a bright glow around us and I could hear the crunch of my parents feet in the snow ahead of me. When we finally arrived, grandma took us inside and made hot cocoa.
Of course, my Dad doesn't remember it as magically as I do. He says, "God! Can you believe we walked that far in the snow?? It was so cold. We must have walked over two miles! I can't believe we did that!"
Now for Christmas, I think this year will be one of the best...because I'm happy and the future looks bright. I have a beautiful smart healthy 2.5 year old. I have a wonderful sweet romantic man who loves me so much and think I hang the moon. And I have new beginnings.
Happy New Year Everyone...
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