Christmastime Is Gentle on My Meme
I don't normally do this sort of thing but since the Byzantium's Shores site is tagging everyone who reads his site with this meme, it's only fair to assume that I've been tagged as well. Here goes:
1. Favorite traditional Christmas song: This changes all the time. It used to be “O Come, All Ye Faithful,” then “Silent Night,” then “Away in a Manager” and “We Three Kings of Orient Are.” Current favorite is “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” but that could change. I remember singing all these songs with my mother and my siblings when I was still a teenager so it's tempting to say all of them.
2. Favorite contemporary or modern Christmas song: I devoted not just one but two posts to this category last year around this time. My current favorite: “Christmas Wrapping” by the Waitresses. But another part of me also loves Mariah Carey's Phil Spectorish take on “All I Want for Christmas is You” as well as Vince Vance and the Valiants' '50s-ish take on the same title. If I wanted to be really mischievous, I'd add Nancy White's “It's So Chic to be Pregnant at Christmas,” but I'd rather not give my bride-to-be ideas.
3. Least favorite Christmas song: This varies every year. This year, however, it appears to be Wham!'s “Last Christmas,” a song I used to like the first few times I heard it on the radio until they started playing it almost every single day. I've heard it played more times this past month than I did all throughout the '80s and '90s.
4. Christmas song that makes you cry: “Happy Christmas (War Is Over)” used to make me cry back in the early 1980s. So does “Christmas Wrapping” if I consider the fate of the lead singer for a long enough time. After my father died a few years ago, I found it almost impossible to listen to any variation on “All I Want for Christmas” without tearing up. But I've gotten to the point where I can actually listen to the song with dry eyes now.
5. Real or artificial tree: My bride-to-be is pushing me to get an artificial tree next year and given my druthers, that's probably what I'd get this year. However, this year I will have no Christmas tree of my own. So my answer is “none of the above.”
6. Favorite Christmas edible treat: Do tamales count as a Christmas treat? Actually, my Hispanic relatives like to make them for New Year's Eve but I suppose they could count as a Christmas treat.
7. White lights or multi-colored: Oh, multi-colored, most definitely.
8. How many Christmas parties will you go to this year?: Not that many. I plan to celebrate Christmas at least three different times this year: once with mi mejor amiga, once with my mother and my siblings, and once with mi novia's family. So that's kinda like a Christmas party, right?
9. Favorite act of friendliness to perform during this season: My last act of charity was giving a loan to a family member without any expectation of ever getting paid back. As much as I'd like to do, I doubt I'll be going out of my way to perform any similar act this year. I feel I'm doing well just to conduct myself in a civil manner without giving in to the stress of the holiday season.
10. Favorite sounds of Christmas: Christmas carols. Christmas bells. The crunch of people walking through newly fallen snow on a day in which I don't have to go to work. The laughter of kids on Christmas morning.
11. Favorite things to wear: I have no favorite things to wear.
12. Favorite Christmas movie/ TV special: How the Grinch Stole Christmas is always a favorite. So is the original version of Miracle on 34th Street.
13. Favorite Christmas episode of a TV series: For some odd reason, I'm partial to the Blackadder Christmas Special. Perhaps because it's such an obvious antidote to the more saccharine holiday specials one so often sees this year.
14. Eggnog or hot chocolate: Neither of these are all that good for me, but if I had to choose, it would be eggnog. Of course, ponche (Mexican fruit punch) wouldn't be a bad alternative. Nor would apple cider be unwelcome.
15. Favorite Christmas book: Dickens A Christmas Carol, natch. And a certain Connie Willis book, as well.
16. Christmas books on my “to read” list: Terry Pratchett's Hogfather is on my “to re-read” list, thanks to a recommendation on the Shanna Swendson site. And I probably should re-read A Christmas Carol while I'm at it.
17. Peppermint or cinnamon: Canela (cinnamon) most definitely.
18. What's on top of my tree: I don't have a tree. But my mother's tree used to have one of those pointed ball-in-the-middle-of-a-spike ornaments at its top but now it has a star. My bride-to-be would probably prefer an angel.
19. Traditional Christmas meal growing up: Either turkey or ham. If not tamales.
20. Online shopping or traditional “go to the store” shopping: Traditional, natch. I occasionally order things online but not for Christmas.
21. Something received as a Christmas gift as a child that you still have: Memories?
22. How many Christmas cards you have mailed so far: At least fifteen.
23. Favorite source for Christmas idea: ???? I'm not sure what this means. The Bible?
24. Coordinate/themed or hodge-podge tree decorations: I wish I had the fashion sense to pull off the former but it's usually the latter by default for me.
25. What's at the top of my Christmas list: Not much as far as material goods are concerned. Indeed, all the fuss over Black Friday has made me less than eager to make any sort of wish list. And most of what I truly want are things that one can't buy in a store: for example, the good health and good fortune of my friends and family. I'm not just saying that to sound like a goody-goody. It's true.
26. Roles you played in Christmas plays/pageants: I never was one for the Christmas play/pageant thing. My middle brother still gets kidded for his role in one back in grade school so it's probably just as well.
27. Wrapping paper or gift bags: Usually both, depending upon the length of time I have to devote to wrapping presents. Ideally, wrapping paper. With ribbons and bows.
28. When do you put up the tree: In my mother's house, we used to put it up after Thanksgiving. But lately it seems like we're lucky if it's up before Christmas Eve.
29. When do you take the tree down: You take Christmas trees down? Seriously, we usually take it down after New Year's Eve.
30. Do you have a nativity scene: I should, but I don't. My mother does, though.
31. Hardest person to buy for: My future in-laws. And my brother-in-law. Of course, most of my siblings say that I'm very hard to buy for.
32. Easiest person to buy for: Mi novia. She's very vocal about what she likes.
33. Worst Christmas gift you ever received: I don't remember receiving such a gift. My mind has mercifully erased such a gift from my memory, if in fact I ever received such a gift at all.
34. When do you start shopping for Christmas: Sunset at Christmas Eve, doesn't everybody? Seriously, I usually start the first week of December. Christmas shopping in November just seems creepy to me.
35. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present: No. I once gave one of my siblings a cassette tape that was already in my collection as a birthday gift but I've never recycled Christmas presents.
36. Travel at Christmas or stay home: For many years, my family traveled to Detroit each Christmas. I often miss these times even though winter travel on a bus, train or even airplane isn't all that great. However, now I usually stay home.
37. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer: No, but I can come close. And at least I always remember Rudolph.
38. Open presents Christmas eve or morning: Ideally, Christmas morning unless we're visiting someone else's house. Then it's Christmas eve.
39. Most annoying thing about this time of year: The way holiday weather and holday traffic combine to make driving to work an even bigger pain than usual. Plus the way jerky people fail to stop being jerky people during a season which theoretically should have no jerky people.
40. What I love most about Christmas: I love a different thing each year. Christmas snow -- if I don't have to shovel it or drive in it; Christmas lights; Christmas decorations; Christmas songs (if they're songs I'm not yet burnt out on), and so on. Being with my friends and family, as corny as it seems, is the one thing I love most.
If you've read this far and you haven't been tagged yet by this meme, then you're tagged now. And that goes for all of you who read this blog -- all three of you....
Feliz Navidad!
I don't normally do this sort of thing but since the Byzantium's Shores site is tagging everyone who reads his site with this meme, it's only fair to assume that I've been tagged as well. Here goes:
1. Favorite traditional Christmas song: This changes all the time. It used to be “O Come, All Ye Faithful,” then “Silent Night,” then “Away in a Manager” and “We Three Kings of Orient Are.” Current favorite is “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” but that could change. I remember singing all these songs with my mother and my siblings when I was still a teenager so it's tempting to say all of them.
2. Favorite contemporary or modern Christmas song: I devoted not just one but two posts to this category last year around this time. My current favorite: “Christmas Wrapping” by the Waitresses. But another part of me also loves Mariah Carey's Phil Spectorish take on “All I Want for Christmas is You” as well as Vince Vance and the Valiants' '50s-ish take on the same title. If I wanted to be really mischievous, I'd add Nancy White's “It's So Chic to be Pregnant at Christmas,” but I'd rather not give my bride-to-be ideas.
3. Least favorite Christmas song: This varies every year. This year, however, it appears to be Wham!'s “Last Christmas,” a song I used to like the first few times I heard it on the radio until they started playing it almost every single day. I've heard it played more times this past month than I did all throughout the '80s and '90s.
4. Christmas song that makes you cry: “Happy Christmas (War Is Over)” used to make me cry back in the early 1980s. So does “Christmas Wrapping” if I consider the fate of the lead singer for a long enough time. After my father died a few years ago, I found it almost impossible to listen to any variation on “All I Want for Christmas” without tearing up. But I've gotten to the point where I can actually listen to the song with dry eyes now.
5. Real or artificial tree: My bride-to-be is pushing me to get an artificial tree next year and given my druthers, that's probably what I'd get this year. However, this year I will have no Christmas tree of my own. So my answer is “none of the above.”
6. Favorite Christmas edible treat: Do tamales count as a Christmas treat? Actually, my Hispanic relatives like to make them for New Year's Eve but I suppose they could count as a Christmas treat.
7. White lights or multi-colored: Oh, multi-colored, most definitely.
8. How many Christmas parties will you go to this year?: Not that many. I plan to celebrate Christmas at least three different times this year: once with mi mejor amiga, once with my mother and my siblings, and once with mi novia's family. So that's kinda like a Christmas party, right?
9. Favorite act of friendliness to perform during this season: My last act of charity was giving a loan to a family member without any expectation of ever getting paid back. As much as I'd like to do, I doubt I'll be going out of my way to perform any similar act this year. I feel I'm doing well just to conduct myself in a civil manner without giving in to the stress of the holiday season.
10. Favorite sounds of Christmas: Christmas carols. Christmas bells. The crunch of people walking through newly fallen snow on a day in which I don't have to go to work. The laughter of kids on Christmas morning.
11. Favorite things to wear: I have no favorite things to wear.
12. Favorite Christmas movie/ TV special: How the Grinch Stole Christmas is always a favorite. So is the original version of Miracle on 34th Street.
13. Favorite Christmas episode of a TV series: For some odd reason, I'm partial to the Blackadder Christmas Special. Perhaps because it's such an obvious antidote to the more saccharine holiday specials one so often sees this year.
14. Eggnog or hot chocolate: Neither of these are all that good for me, but if I had to choose, it would be eggnog. Of course, ponche (Mexican fruit punch) wouldn't be a bad alternative. Nor would apple cider be unwelcome.
15. Favorite Christmas book: Dickens A Christmas Carol, natch. And a certain Connie Willis book, as well.
16. Christmas books on my “to read” list: Terry Pratchett's Hogfather is on my “to re-read” list, thanks to a recommendation on the Shanna Swendson site. And I probably should re-read A Christmas Carol while I'm at it.
17. Peppermint or cinnamon: Canela (cinnamon) most definitely.
18. What's on top of my tree: I don't have a tree. But my mother's tree used to have one of those pointed ball-in-the-middle-of-a-spike ornaments at its top but now it has a star. My bride-to-be would probably prefer an angel.
19. Traditional Christmas meal growing up: Either turkey or ham. If not tamales.
20. Online shopping or traditional “go to the store” shopping: Traditional, natch. I occasionally order things online but not for Christmas.
21. Something received as a Christmas gift as a child that you still have: Memories?
22. How many Christmas cards you have mailed so far: At least fifteen.
23. Favorite source for Christmas idea: ???? I'm not sure what this means. The Bible?
24. Coordinate/themed or hodge-podge tree decorations: I wish I had the fashion sense to pull off the former but it's usually the latter by default for me.
25. What's at the top of my Christmas list: Not much as far as material goods are concerned. Indeed, all the fuss over Black Friday has made me less than eager to make any sort of wish list. And most of what I truly want are things that one can't buy in a store: for example, the good health and good fortune of my friends and family. I'm not just saying that to sound like a goody-goody. It's true.
26. Roles you played in Christmas plays/pageants: I never was one for the Christmas play/pageant thing. My middle brother still gets kidded for his role in one back in grade school so it's probably just as well.
27. Wrapping paper or gift bags: Usually both, depending upon the length of time I have to devote to wrapping presents. Ideally, wrapping paper. With ribbons and bows.
28. When do you put up the tree: In my mother's house, we used to put it up after Thanksgiving. But lately it seems like we're lucky if it's up before Christmas Eve.
29. When do you take the tree down: You take Christmas trees down? Seriously, we usually take it down after New Year's Eve.
30. Do you have a nativity scene: I should, but I don't. My mother does, though.
31. Hardest person to buy for: My future in-laws. And my brother-in-law. Of course, most of my siblings say that I'm very hard to buy for.
32. Easiest person to buy for: Mi novia. She's very vocal about what she likes.
33. Worst Christmas gift you ever received: I don't remember receiving such a gift. My mind has mercifully erased such a gift from my memory, if in fact I ever received such a gift at all.
34. When do you start shopping for Christmas: Sunset at Christmas Eve, doesn't everybody? Seriously, I usually start the first week of December. Christmas shopping in November just seems creepy to me.
35. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present: No. I once gave one of my siblings a cassette tape that was already in my collection as a birthday gift but I've never recycled Christmas presents.
36. Travel at Christmas or stay home: For many years, my family traveled to Detroit each Christmas. I often miss these times even though winter travel on a bus, train or even airplane isn't all that great. However, now I usually stay home.
37. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer: No, but I can come close. And at least I always remember Rudolph.
38. Open presents Christmas eve or morning: Ideally, Christmas morning unless we're visiting someone else's house. Then it's Christmas eve.
39. Most annoying thing about this time of year: The way holiday weather and holday traffic combine to make driving to work an even bigger pain than usual. Plus the way jerky people fail to stop being jerky people during a season which theoretically should have no jerky people.
40. What I love most about Christmas: I love a different thing each year. Christmas snow -- if I don't have to shovel it or drive in it; Christmas lights; Christmas decorations; Christmas songs (if they're songs I'm not yet burnt out on), and so on. Being with my friends and family, as corny as it seems, is the one thing I love most.
If you've read this far and you haven't been tagged yet by this meme, then you're tagged now. And that goes for all of you who read this blog -- all three of you....
Feliz Navidad!
posted by Tonio Kruger at 5:22 PM
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