Christmastide 2021/2022 - Kalle Anke

Friday, December 24, 2021

The service we attended this afternoon was quiet short. It only lasted about 50 minutes and we were home not too long after 5:00. It was still somewhat light when we pulled into our driveway. Time for Kalle Anke! This year we watched Mickey's Christmas Carol. 

After that we watched The Small One. All very cozy. 

I had a Bloody Mary for the occasion. After cocktails we had a simple dinner of reheated lasagna which we made a couple days ago. It was a quiet, simple, and lovely Christmas Eve and I so happy to have spent it with my darling Dale. 

I ordered a few ghost stories online recently but they won't show up until after Christmas. However, Mickey's Christmas Carol counts as a one. 

Christmas Eve 2020 - Kalle Anke

Thursday, December 24, 2020

Kalle Anke this year was in the form of a Disney DVD I picked up years ago featuring a bunch of winter themed Disney shorts. My two favorites are Mickey's Good Deed from 1932 and Rescue Dog from 1947.  

The Depression era Mickey's Good Deed finds Mickey wanting to bring Christmas joy to a downtrodden family at great sacrifice to himself. Amazing to me that this short is 88 years old. 

Rescue Dog has Pluto interacting with a mischievous seal who keeps trying to steal his cask of grog. 

I got a kick out of the sign that Pluto displays early in the cartoon. It makes me think it would be nice to have such a sign at the entrance to our house as a testament to our residence being graced by Athena, our own lovingly dutiful dog who watches over Dale and me. 

Here is Athena on duty as we watch another Disney short during our Kalle Anke observance.

I read recently that in Sweden in 2019 Kalle Anke och hans vanner onskar God Jul (Donald Duck and His Friends Wish You a Merry Christmas) had 3.3 million viewers which is just under a third of the entire Swedish population. 

Christmas Eve 2020 - Merry Christmas from Us

Thursday, December 24, 2020

Merry Christmas to all!

(And from Athena too.)

Christmas Eve Day 2020 - Listening to Brett Eldridge

Thursday, December 24, 2020

This is becoming one of my more recent holiday favorites. 

Eldredge is a country singer with a gentle, pleasing  twang. His beautiful baritone and skillful phrasing works quite well with the big band/standards style of music which accompanies him. 

Christmas Eve Day 2020 - One Final Ghost Story

Thursday, December 24, 2020

I saved this one for Christmas Eve itself. Worked out well since this one ended up being the lighter of the three I read this holiday season.  The other two were great but a bit more on the intense side. In this one, a man who fears death finds a very special town in which to retire. 

Christmas Eve Day 2020 - Revisiting a Ghost Story

Thursday, December 24, 2020

I woke up thinking about  The Story of A Disappearance and Appearance by M. R. James, the ghost story I finished yesterday. The disappointment I felt in feeling the story wasn't resolved prompted me to do some research on it and I found the following article:

Fandom: The Story of a Disappearance and An Appearance

Included in the article is a link to the youTube video which it references:

The Story of a Disappearance and An Appearance by M.R. James (youTube)

I began to look at it all from the standpoint of how well the story was constructed and the sense of eeriness and chill it conveyed rather than just the resolution. I also realized that although the ending may not have been satisfactory to me it may well have been for the characters. 

Christmas Eve Day 2020 - Shoveling and, Sorry to Report, Some Hopelessness (and Not Due to the Snow)

Thursday, December 24, 2020

Began the day by shoveling. Dale shoveled yesterday before the storm was over and it's nice he thinned it out because there was a lot of snow. The airport is officially reporting just under 9 inches. 

Dale wrote on his blog: "And with this snow, I can again take pictures of the beginnings of Mt. Crumpet in our backyard.  In a normal year, this pile gets to be 6-8 feet high.  We’ll see what happens this year."

Also: "Most of us up here in the usually great white north figured we’d see a snowless Christmas this year, but that emphatically changed yesterday. I’m not even sure how much snow we got -- 8 or 9 maybe? --because it was a full fledged blizzard yesterday so it’s hard to know from looking at it.  Joe and I just finished up shoveling. It’s -4F with a -24F windchill so this snow is fluffier than early season snows and I like it so much better.  The wind kind of packs it hard though, so we did have to put our backs into it.  You can see all the leaves that got trapped under the snow. They kind of sully the freshness of the snow, but at least now most leaves that escaped being raked and bagged this fall are trapped under the snow until spring."

Yesterday I realized how my current emotional state parallels the current weather. The temperature plummeted yesterday. By late evening I felt frozen and hopeless. I don't know that I've ever entered the Christmas holiday feeling the way I did. Mind you, I've felt many strong emotions during the holiday itself: anger, joy, exuberance, melancholy, but never hopeless. It wasn't the change in temperature. This feeling has been building over the past year and now I have time to be with myself and think about it and process it and all I can say is that this year has been just awful. I know there are others who have had it easier than I have and I know there are others who have had it worse but it's been awful. I don't know that I even know where else to begin to put the feelings I have into words. Maybe I'm not quite as hopeless as I think because I'm aware that I'll eventually come out of this and will hopefully be better for it. 

Holiday Season 2020 - Another Christmas Ghost Story

Wednesday, December 23, 2020

The Story of A Disappearance and Appearance by M. R. James is another ghost story I finished today. The teaser on the back of the book says: "After receiving word that his Uncle Henry has gone missing, W.R. travels to his town to join in the search, but soon suspects his uncle is already dead. After an unusual encounter with a traveling salesman, W.R. has a nightmare about a terrifying puppet show - and a ghostly clergyman. 

The story is well set up and the dream described is quite creepy however, the story's resolution leaves a lot to be desired. I have to say that before reading this I didn't know too much about Punch and Judy shows. I didn't a little research on them and have to question how they were ever thought of as appropriate for children. 

By the way, this is, I think, the only ghost story by M.R. James that actually takes place over the Christmas holiday. 

Holiday Season 2020 - A Ghost Story, A Gingerbread Man, and A Blizzard

Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Drizzle and rain around 10 am. Felt stuck inside. It turned to a very blustery snow shortly after noon. Finished a ghost story I'd started a few days ago titled The Open Door by Mrs. Oliphant. The story involves a retired British officer who leases an isolated mansion in Scotland. On the estate are ruins of an older house where strange events begin to occur. The book is part of the Ghost Stories for Christmas series designed and illustrated by Seth. I rather enjoyed it. 

As I was eating the gingerbread shortbread cookie I picked up at Kowalski's a couple days ago I got a notice on my phone about a blizzard warning that extends through tomorrow morning to 6:00 a.m. It looks like we could get 7-12 inches of snow and travel is being discouraged. Looks like we're snowbound. How cozy. That cookie was awesome by the way. 

The above photo captures the whiteness of the storm but not the heavy winds and blowing snow. While sitting in the chair pictured at left I listened to the the whistling, and at times moaning, wind. Sarah Vaughn's version of Snowbound is running through my head. 

Holiday Season 2020 - Heightened Expectations and Emotions

Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Woke up this morning to find Dale quite anxious about getting to the grocery store early. The weather is supposed to start getting really bad around noon and the store is going to be busy anyway due to Christmas. After we finished breakfast he decided to take what he said would be a much shorter than usual morning walk so we could get to Kowalski's. I decided to take advantage of the time to get a list together and get my head on straight in anticipation of accompanying him through his shopping neurosis. I'd only gotten 4 items written on the list when he burst back inside saying we needed to go to the store ASAP. 

Was I annoyed? Yes. Not because I felt he was wrong about getting to the store early but because I was being denied a few minutes to prepare myself mentally for what I was anticipating to be a stressful shopping with him. I was also annoyed with myself for how much shorter my fuse keeps getting throughout this pandemic. Part of the holidays is navigating our heightened emotions and expectations along with everyone else's. I decided to just let this one go. 

The store was indeed busy but still manageable due to it being before 9:00 am. While we were trying to get in the check-out line Dale got annoyed with the woman ahead of us who wouldn't move up to the next open social distancing floor marker. Dale asked her if she was actually in line. She said she was but didn't want to block anyone who may want to get through. As she turned away Dale rolled his eyes. I reminded him of what I reminded myself of earlier. Part of the holidays is navigating our heightened emotions and expectations along with everyone else's. 

Holiday Season 2020 - Christmas Cigar

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

This is probably the closest I'll get to Christmas with a cigar. The lounges are closed due to Covid and it got up to 39 degrees today so this was the day to do it. It's supposed to get COLD tomorrow. No time like the present, huh?

The sky was looking very November-ish.

Listened to Stacey Kent's Christmas EP. 

Holiday Season 2020 - Lights On the Tree

Sunday, December 20, 2020

Got the lights on the tree today. 

Holiday Season 2020 - First Day of Christmas Vacation: In the Good Old Summertime

Saturday, December 19, 2020

This is gonna be a much less busy holiday season than usual. That's not necessarily a bad thing although I am missing getting together with folks. With the slower pace and extra time I may try to get watch more Christmas movies and specials this year. I never seem to get through all the ones I'd like to. 

Tonight we made a quiche for dinner and watched In the Good Old Summertime with Judy Garland and Van Johnson. I love it an haven't seen it for a few years although sadly I fell asleep about halfway through. The same thing happened with Christmas in Connecticut last weekend.  Oh well, no big deal. I've got time on my hands so rewatching won't be a problem. 

Despite falling asleep I woke up at a couple of my favorite spots. The first being when Judy sings Merry Christmas in Mr. Oberkugen's shop. It's a song you actually don't hear too often during the holidays although Bette Midler has a lovely version of it on her Christmas album. I also woke up at the end just in time for little Liza's cameo. 

Bloody Mary for cocktail hour (see above top). Made sure I had lots of stuff for the garnish: gherkins, pickled pear onions, cheese and olives (not pictured). 

My serving of pumpkin pie for dessert which begs the question:

I'd say I'm at a 3. 

Holiday Season 2020 - First Day of Christmas Vacation: Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol

Saturday, December 19, 2020

Watched Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol today right after The Year Without a Santa Claus. This is one I discovered during my adult year. The artwork reminds me of early 60s Warner Brother's animation but also the old Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. Haven't seen this one in about 10 years either. It's a well done albeit truncated treatment of the Dickens classic. Music is by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill. Highly watchable. 

Holiday Season 2020 - First Day of Christmas Vacation: The Year Without a Santa Claus

Saturday, December 19, 2020

First day of Christmas vacation today. Dale and I had a nice long talk this morning about this crazy year finally coming to an end. We also talked about how 2020 will be a before-and-after reference point for just about everyone on the planet for a while. I really began to feel the emotion behind all of it a couple days ago in a way that you only allow yourself to when the potential end is in sight. 

I watched The Year Without a Santa Claus this morning. The special dates from 1974 although I don't remember seeing it as a kid however everyone else I know seems to. I don't know where I was when it was first broadcast. 

I've seen it a couple of times as an adult, the first time being about 10 years ago. It's actually quite good and it was fun to see it again. Shirley Booth is the voice of Mrs. Santa Claus. I remember her from reruns of the old Hazel TV show which I always liked. Her distinctive voice was perfect casting for Santa's wife. Mickey Rooney provided the voice of Santa Claus, also a great choice for the role. 

What many peer remember most about the show are the characters of the Heat Miser and the Snow Miser. The only reason I'm 100% positive I never saw this program as a kid is that the characters are so memorable there's no way I could've forgotten them. Their musical numbers are trippy to say the least. 

Anyway, it was a load of fun watching it this morning. It's highly watchable and although I never saw it as a youngster it's so similar in look and style to other children's Christmas specials of the era it brought me right back to being a kid again. 

Also watched 'Twas the Night Before Christmas this morning. Although one of my favorites as a kid it really doesn't hold up to well. The title is taken from the famous poem by Clement C. Moore. Although the opening credits claim that it is narrated and sung by Joel Grey it's really told by George Gobel who plays Father Mouse. 

Santa takes issue with a letter that appears in the town's newspaper claiming that Santa doesn't exist. It's signed by "all of us." Turns out it's Father Mouse's eggheaded son, Albert, who wrote the letter. Santa decides to skip over the town on his midnight run which is rather passive aggressive if you ask me. If Santa knows who's naughty and nice you'd think he'd know who actually did it. 

Anyway, the rest of the show is about the town sorting out how they're going to solve the predicament they're in. 

Holiday Season 2020 - Feather Tree

Sunday, November 29, 2020

After we dropped Mom's tree off I had Dale stop by A Rare Bird so I could pick up the feather tree I noticed whilst out and about with Noel yesterday.