Every year, PNC Financial Services figures out how much all the presents in the Twelve Days of Christmas would cost. This year, it’s $46,729.86. That’s a record high. It’s up 2.7% from last year, which was the previous record holder. If you’re wondering, ten lords a leaping led the way at $14,539.20. That’s almost a…
Lately I’ve been sous cheffing. I’m only second in command because there are only two of us. I’d be much lower down than sous if there were more of us. Today I made meatballs, pretty much on my own. My partner was busy with the sauce. They are made from pork, beef, bread, and some…
The other day, I wrote a post about the song “Do You Hear What I Hear?”. My dad pointed out to me yesterday that I missed a great opportunity for some philosophizing. He’s right. The question, “Do you hear what I hear?” is a philosophical puzzle. So are the two other questions in the song,…
We’ve all seen them, “You’ve heard of Elf on the Shelf,” followed by a picture of two things that rhyme, one on top of the other. When they first started appearing, some were mildly clever. I didn’t find them particularly entertaining, but now I find them downright annoying. They’ve gone too far. I saw one…
“Do You Hear What I Hear?” is one of my favorite Christmas carols. Sadly, it’s not one of the more common holiday songs. Of my fifty-ish holiday albums, the only one it seems to be on is a Bing Crosby compilation. You’re not likely to hear it while walking through the grocery store. I listen…
I spent all afternoon and evening today at the vet. I got home from work and my cat didn’t greet me at the door like he normally does. Then, I noticed that his food from the morning was still in his dish. That’s really unusual. I went looking for him and found him right where…
Today, December 5th, is Krampusnacht, World Soil Day, National Repeal Day, World Trick Shot Day, National Sacher Torte Day, Internation Volunteer Day for Economic and Social Development, International Ninja Day, and Bathtub Party Day. It’s a weird mix. Krampusnacht translates to Krampus Night. It’s the night when Krampus shows up to punish bad girls and…
Holiday songs are not typically sad. There are some blues Christmas songs that would qualify, I guess. But usually, holiday songs are happy, joyful, and merry or contemplative, somber, and reverent. But there’s one holiday song that could be in the conversation for saddest songs ever, After the Holidays. Just look at these lyrics: Please…
Yesterday morning around 11 o’clock, someone knocked on my door. I figured it was the neighbor’s kid. She and my kid like to hang out on the weekends. So, I didn’t look out the window before opening the door. It turns out, it wasn’t a kid at all. It was a woman, I’m not sure…
The Winter solstice is about three weeks away. That is the darkest day of the year. According to the internet, in Connecticut, sunrise will be at 7:12 a.m. and sunset will be at 4:24 p.m. That’s nine hours and twelve minutes of daylight. Which means fourteen hours and 48 minutes of darkness. I’m looking forward…
