Yes, Virginia, it is the holiday season. Now leave me alone...

Reading Danielle's last blog, I realized Thanksgiving is six days away.
UGH.
Now, to be fair, I do enjoy this time of the year for what it is.
I love cooking and baking and eating.
I love singing and dancing to Christmas carols.
I LOOOOOOOOOOOOVE decorating the trees.
Every year, I put a theme to the living room tree.
Usually it's a color scheme.
Last year it was Santas and Nutcrackers.
THIS year it is going to be birds.
I've purchased a ton of bird ornaments for it.
AGH!
It's my favorite.
I host a christmas party for my friends every year and that has me stoked as well.
I really used to hate this time of year.
Why?
Well, to help me sum it all up is this poem I wrote years ago that really embodies how I felt back then.....

Candy canes, Mistletoe.
White, soft, gentle snow.
Carols, A Christmas tree.
A red and green stocking for me.
All these and more are what people will say
when asked what reminds them of Christmas Day.
Not me though.
Oh, nonononononono....
Not stockings or mistletoe.
All these things may be great
But they aren't what reminds me of Christmas Day.
I envision spoiled children
and their poor tired parents,
The bitter cold
and the constant straining errands.
Loved ones trying to top last year's gift..
these things and more really get me miffed.
Give me the presents
but keep family away!
Or up in my bedroom is where I'll stay.
I can't stand the rush
of the idiot shoppers
who always make such a scene,
it's a really show stopper.
Or the department store santas
with their fake white beards.
Instead of looking Jolly,
they look really weird.
That's my version of Christmas...
It's sad, but it's true.
And with that
MERRY CHRISTMAS
and Happy New Year too.

Santa Baby, give everyone else a calendar, please...

SO.
The holidays are only weeks away.
Yeah.
2008 apparently had no desire to stick around, because this year just flew by.
So, unfortunately, Christmas will come bounding upon ere long...
Bleh.
I noticed something last night that caught my eye and struck me as absurd.
People have actually just taken down halloween decorations and immediately replaced them with Christmas decorations.
Why?
And they aren't simple christmas lights and maybe a reindeer or two.
NO.
These are the people who buy every inflatable santa claus-in-a-snoglobe-that-is-bigger-than-the-house (or trailer), and frosty the snowman-that-looks-like-he-might-be-mentally-challenged-and-might-eat-your-children-because-he-can....
Subtle is not in the vocabulary.
I had the pleasure of taking my 5-year-old cousin Madison to see.... *SHUDDER*... "High School Musical 3" yesterday.
Yeas, my soul died a little...
As we were driving home, we happened upon a couple of different houses with this situation.
Being the ever bright and wonderful creature she is, Madison looked out the window as I pointed these houses out, and yelled, "WHAT?! It's not even Christmas time yet, PEOPLE!"
AH, the wisdom of a child.