Christmas/Holiday Season 2024

Last year was my year for Christmas Day in my Christmas Day/Christmas eve rotation with the ex. So on Christmas Day we did Busch Gardens' light show, and then hit the Waffle House for Christmas Dinner on the way home.

Waffle House is great - it's Dinner and (hopefully) a show! Last year's entertainment was the staff complaining about the manager who had left them early and short staffed.

 

We're still trying to figure out the schedule of who is where and when. My wife and I will be at our house, with (maybe) our son and his live-in girlfriend, whose family lives about 3 hours away, and (maybe) our daughter and her serious boyfriend, who live about 3 hours away in the other direction. May be just my wife and I, plus her mother, cooking a crap-ton of food and waiting to see when others will be joining us.

That's been a huge change and adjustment for us. Guess our dogs will be the ones getting spoiled and eating well on Christmas from now on ...

 

Obviously a play on the Godfather christening scene, but the West Wing was so freaking good the first 3-4 years.

My FIL died earlier this year and was interned in a National Cemetary, with a color guard and 21-gun salute. Pretty moving ceremony. I did not know the presenter of the flag to the survivors had to be of equal or higher rank as the deceased. They also present the shell casings to the family.

 

My cousin is hosting a gathering of about 25. My oldest is coming home for about 10 days and my youngest is with us after graduating with his degree last year.

Since 2016 I've backed off a couple of my cousins (in their 60s) who are bible thumper/MAGA people because their support irked me so much. After this election and with the MAGA taking a majority of the votes cast, I've resolved to simply respect their right to believe what they believe and wall any thoughts about that off and simply go back to loving them for who they are and our relationship and memories pre-2015.

 

Nothing personal, but in New York I hope all the drunken Santas and slutty Mrs. Clauses/Elvs die horrible deaths or end up in jail. It's a nightmare every year in some neighborhoods.

 

I love getting unusual Christmas cards. This one arrived today.

 

Thank you for your email. I will be out of the office until January 2, 2025. If you need immediate assistance, please contact ...

I love it when I can activate that message. See ya next year, work!

 

Same!

HO HO HO!

 

Yeah. Wrote mine today. See you January 6, fuckers.

But my favorite this year was for the WS game little tbf and I attended.

It read something like: "I'm out of the office until xxx attending Game 3 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium between the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers. In an emergency, call Coworker X."

 

After the events of the past three weeks, I'm happy to have some quiet time to myself. Booked Christmas dinner at the local Texas BBQ joint (where evidently they know me by name now), going to make a couple calls home, and maybe spend an extended session seeing if I can find the new Balatro content in Cyberpunk 2077.

 

LOL, good for you. ... Happy Holidays, TrooperB.