Hot chocolate or eggnog?If it’s real eggnog - homemade with raw eggs, heavy cream, and tons of alcohol - then eggnog. Otherwise, cocoa. Made with Hershey’s cocoa and whole milk.
Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
He so wraps. In different paper than Mama, and often with Santa-themed paper, because that’s amusing for Mama.
Colored lights on your tree/house or white?
Colored. But not blinking. Sweet God, NO BLINKING.
And those strings of “icicle” lights are just so wrong.
Do you hang mistletoe?
I wouldn’t know mistletoe if it kissed me on the nose.
When do you put up decorations?
Anytime after Primo’s birthday which is in the second week of December. I'd like to put the tree up Christmas Eve but it often has to go up before. The decorations stay up till Ukrainian Christmas (January 7).
What does your favorite Christmas meal include?
I don’t know. Christmas cookies. Lots of 'em.
But I do know what I don’t like – tuna salad.
I don’t care if it’s the fucking Feast of a Gazillion Fishes, tuna salad on the holiday table is just plain wrong.
Favorite Christmas memory from childhood?
Christmas Eve service, with the pageant, at church.
And having my Aunt K and Uncle R over for Christmas dinner.
How and when did you learn the truth about Santa?
You mean, there’s no Santa Claus?
Next you’ll be telling me there’s no tooth fairy.
Or that I’M the tooth fairy.
Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
Not in our immediate family, but all the aunts and uncles and grandparent presents are opened during the giant family Christmas Eve thing. And we did when I was a kid – invariably the gifts were new pajamas.
How do you decorate your Christmas tree?
Cursing all the way.
No, that’s really not true. The boys and I do it, in the afternoon, with Christmas music and hot cocoa. The bottom third is very ornament-heavy, naturally, and I no longer put delicate stuff on since the cats knocked the tree over a few years ago. But I have ornaments from when I was a kid, and ornaments the boys have made, and pretty trinkets I have picked up here and there. It’s a total mishmash. And I love it. I love to lie on the sofa in the dark and look at the lights. The Christmas tree makes me happier than just about any other tradition.
Snow! Love it or leave it?
Love, love, LOVE IT.
Can you ice skate?
Yes. I own my own hockey skates.
Do you remember your favorite gift?
No. I remember my parents giving me lots of books.
And the year I got my blue bicycle.
I do remember that my older brother had stock in Wrigley’s Chewing Gum and they used to send him a box of whatever the newest flavor was every year for Christmas. I coveted that box of gum.
What's the most important thing about Christmas for you?
Surviving
What is your favorite Christmas tradition?
Baking cookies, the tree, Christmas Eve church service with lots of the classic carols, watching the (real, original) Grinch Christmas Eve
What tops your tree?
A homemade silver-foiled star with photos of my three boys on it
What is your favorite Christmas song?
Fairytale of New York (The Pogues' version)
8 comments:
okay, so you've inspired me to make--get this--a christmas mix cd.
So what is the story of the holiday where you encountered tuna salad on the dinner table? I agree with the wrongness of that culinary choice, and now I want to know who served it in good faith.
Hey, Santa uses different paper for us too.
One year he left his used rolls in the closet and SIX MONTHS LATER number two daughter saw it and remembered it was Santa paper.
She still can't get over that he left us some paper.
I LOVE that song. What other Christmas song contains the line "You scumbag, you faggot, you cheap, lousy maggot?" It just screams happy holidays. :D
I feel all warm inside now...I have the wreath on the door but I think maybe this week I'll have to put up the (tabletop artificial) tree.
Oh, and I want to know what songs KW is putting on her mix tape!!
Love the song, but hate when my husband gets a little boozy and starts bellowing it. Santa does the same thing with the wrapping paper here - otherwise the jig would have been up years ago!
Numbah One Son loves making Christmas mix CDs and handing them out to his pals in lieu of cards. Usually the songs are rock-ified versions of standards.
Last year my CD was full of--seriously--Christian Lounge music, a concept that (c'mon, let that sink in for a moment) still leaves me in knots of laughter.
-J.
P.S. My WVW is "bjdj" and you may make of that what you will.
Oh right, I almost forgot about different Santa paper. It wouldn't be good if the Santa presents were wrapped with the kids' hand made wrapping paper now, would it?
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