MERRY CHRISTMAS 2018
As many of you know by now, today is exactly seven years since I saw my precious little mother, (except in my dreams, of course, for which I’m sooo grateful.)
Karen Salkin wishing everyone a very Happy Holiday, as she also is in the pic at the top of this page, rocking her Christmas sneakers!
I still can’t bring myself to celebrate Christmas in the fabulous extravagant way that Mr. X and I always did before that terrible day, but several events this past year have reminded me of the brevity of life, so I’ve made a concerted effort to be a bit merrier than we have been for these last seven years.
To that end, in addition to turning the spotlight on our official Charlie Brown music-playing tree a friend gave us a few years ago, and the tiny lights bestowed on us by another the following year, and the adorable snow globe yet one more pal sent us after that, I decided to make the house cheerier. I’m actually displaying some fabulous ornaments, and I’ve adorned that special little tree with a few of the tiniest ones, which I’ve always loved but haven’t seen since 2009. (That was our last holiday in LA with decorations—the next two years were in NY, and then never again.) I even bought a few new beautiful baubles at my favorite holiday-decorated place in LA—Fair Oaks Pharmacy and Soda Fountain in Pasadena. I’m so happy every time I lay eyes on any of my cheery treasures.
Just part of the display at Fair Oaks Pharmacy! Photo by Karen Salkin.
And then, it happened—the day after Thanksgiving, while Mr. X was watching football, I made a decision to be more festive this year than we have been for the past six. And by myself, I climbed up to my precious Christmas closet and took down—the Christmas dishes!!! Oh how I love those beauties!!! I’m a Spode Christmas Tree freak, and all of my plates, platters, and tchotchkes have been languishing in their boxes for all these years. Just taking them out of the boxes gave me butterflies again. And using them for this whole month has been a joy. (See—I am a simple girl after all!)
Mr. X’s moving decorations out front. Photo by Karen Salkin.
Mr. X, the lighting king, got in on the festivities, as well. Every night, he highlights the front of the house with the cutest lit-up Christmas characters, like gingerbread men, wrapped gift boxes, and colorful ornaments. And he lights the giant oak tree in the back with a twinkling light show, too. We’re actually one of only about eight houses on our entire several mile-long block who do anything festive like that. (Bah humbug to the rest of our neighbors.)
Maybe next year, we’ll even get back to putting up a tree and doing the whole schmear. You never know.
And, as always since that horrible year, our friends Fred and Jim invite us to their incredible Christmas dinner. Finer hosts you cannot find anywhere. And, not to make anyone jealous, but since they own two of my all-time favorite restaurants, Back On Broadway and Back on the Beach, both in Santa Monica, you just know that we will be dining on the most delish dishes anywhere!
Now, as a gift to myself (and my poor beleaguered proofreaders,) I’m taking the rest of this week off to celebrate the holidays properly. (It’s about time, right? In the entire nine plus years of INAM, I think I’ve taken only one other week off!)
No matter how you celebrate this holiday, (if you do at all,) I wish you all a Very Merry Christmas. And, in the immortal words of Tiny Tim, “God bless us, every one.” (And I’ll meet you back here next Monday.)
