So is it Christmas?

I’m sitting here and pondering a song that makes me think of my favorite time of the year…yep, Christmas. I am thinking of the first line…”So it is Christmas” and I can’t even think of the artist. I know it is either John Lennon or Paul McCartney. I just finished asking the Road Trip crew who is that famous artist…and no one knows! My faithful Director – Mariano Archdeacon – is now on the phone trying to help my deficient ability to recall names of artists. Survey says…it is John Lennon and the title of the song is Happy Christmas, The War is Over. I guess I think of that song during Christmas time because my father was huge Beatles fan and would blast this song all over the house to drown out the “cheesy” Christmas music my mother was trying to play.

I guess the purpose of this story is the fact we were at the Southern Christmas Show in the Charlotte Merchandise Mart on Monday. I can’t believe it’s that time of the year already…or is it? I mean, Thanksgiving isn’t until next week. I can’t even think past this weekend’s Clemson/USC game in Columbia…GO TIGERS! By the way…I am the only, lonely Clemson fan on this Road Trip crew. Chuck Howard is a faithful Gamecock…even though his Alma Mater is from somewhere in New York. And, Rick Grinstead – Engineer Extraordinaire – is also a Gamecock…and is a graduate. If he was only exposed to the true force – ORANGE – maybe we can show him the light. Enough of that tangent…Monday was all about sugar plums, ornaments, Santa, and all the holiday décor you could possibly imagine.

The Merchandise Mart was a winding maze of everything you could possibly ever want to decorate your home for Christmas. And along the edges of the walkways in that winding maze, you will find all the husbands who had their arms twisted to come along and help their spouses. Yep, they were flat on their hides waiting for their wives to re-emerge from the plethora of holiday cheer…hoping that the Christmas budget wasn’t shot in one stop! Some were even drooling because their heads have been planted against the wall for so long; they have fallen into REM sleep.

The best part of this whole image of holiday joy is the fact that the Christmas Holidays don’t even kick off until the day after Thanksgiving. Those men better start building up their tolerance, especially if they are already down for the count after one day of shopping. I am speaking from experience. The first few days of shopping…I grin and bear it. Because I know that it is only the beginning until all the family members’ lists are complete and the all the Angel’s from the Angel Tree have gifts. Thank God for the conception and invention of the internet and e-commerce. I personally like LL Bean, free shipping baby! I just know that the more shopping that I take part in as a collaborative part of our family, the more college football bowls I get to watch. Once again…GO TIGERS!

So I guess it is Christmas…no matter how you look at it! I guess it was good to have this stop early in our month, to get my shopping tolerance ready. I just know for the next few nights, after getting home from the Road Trip – pulling cable & running with a camera – I will be crawling through the attic looking for all the Christmas boxes! I love how every year when I go into the attic, a new box emerges…another box of decorations that depleted our holiday budget! I am just looking forward to A Christmas Story marathon (you know…Ralphie and his imagination) and the yearly rental of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.

Bobby

Originally posted: http://www.beloblog.com/WCNC_Blogs/blogger/archives/2005/11/so_is_it_christ.html