I unabashedly love Christmas.  Everything about it.  I love the lights, the music, the food, the family, the friends, the exchanging of gifts.  I even love the commercialized aspects of it: Santa Claus appearing in every television ad, Red and Green decorations in every corner of the neighborhood that can make a buck, the artificial warmth pumped into every building with a roof.  I love Christmas movies, special Christmas episodes of television shows, especially cartoons.  I love hot cocoa and chilled whiskey.  Everyone bundled up in overcoats with scarves, gloves, and hats.  I love it all.  It is my favorite time of year.

People say it gets longer every year, but for me it doesn’t seem that way.  Sure, the Christmas items are in the store right after Halloween, but the past few years I’ve been broke as Hell for Christmas and so the minimal amount of shopping I did took less than a handful of hours.  The subsequent exchanges took seconds, and before I could hold the moment close to me and squeeze it through my skin and into my heart, it was over.  I will make a conscious effort to be financially prepared next year to make my Christmas the biggest extravaganza full of love and prosperity for all I know for all time.  Until 2014.

Merry Christmas to all of you and my sincerest wishes for a very happy New Year!