Snow

There is something almost magical about snow. If you awaken to a blanket of glistening white, the world seems pure and new. All the grime and muck of reality is hidden, out of sight and out of mind. Anything is possible because no paths have been laid out before you. You can act like a child, sticking your tongue out to catch a snowflake and flopping onto the ground to make an angel. You forget that your feet are numb and your nose is running because the moment is too precious to waste. It is only later when you're sipping cocoa and admiring winter through a window do you realize how rosy your cheeks really are. [Then again, I've always been a sucker for a beautiful snowfall.]

Jingle all the way to Christmas

I can't believe that Christmas is less than 10 days away! Where has the time gone? Sheesh! I bet some of my confusion has to do with the green grass and flying insects outside my window. I associate Christmas with snow, ice, and warm outerwear, but all of that is moot in this part of the country.

On the plus side, I was done with my holiday shopping by the start of December, so I've been spending the month leisurely writing out cards and mailing out gifts. I also enjoy watching everyone else frantically run around. Apparently the "it gift" this year is a neon-colored motorized hamster that moves through plastic tubes and runs in a plastic wheel. It seems to me that parents should just buy their kids the actual pet, which is way more entertaining to watch, than a battery-powered version. And parents can't argue that the fake hamsters are safer than the actual mammals because the Zhu Zhu pets are being recalled for unsafe levels of heavy metals!

The holidays sure are amusing!