Holiday Musings

The lack of any new posts is due to the fact that I've been in Michigan since December 21st. It's the same everytime I go home - I fall asleep before the plane takes off and wake up when the rubber side hits down, relative (usually parents, but this time it was my older sister and my nephew) picks us up from the airport, we go to eat at IHOP. Everytime. I enjoy it, too. I like knowing there is someone waiting for me at the airport and I like knowing I'll get something to eat when I get there. Is this expected? No, but I know my parents like to pick us up and they know we like IHOP. Hell, my dad drove me to school all through highschool and would pick us up from practice or after basketball/volleyball/softball games as often as he could. He liked it. Fifteen years later and he still enjoys it.

I also got together with a few of the ol' college softball gals. Even though we're getting older, some are getting married, and others are having kids, the memories are still the same and the conversation picks up from where we left off the last time. We still bust each others balls, give each other shit, and think we can drink like we could 10 years ago.. and I know 10 years from now we'll still be giving each other shit, retelling the same ol' stories, and knowing we can't drink like we could 10 years ago.. *sigh* ..but that won't stop us from trying.

I had to get my hair cut, which I only get done at home. It's not that I "had" to as I just had it cut/colored in October, but it's just something I do when I come home. Call it weird, but I don't trust anyone else. Could someone do a better job? Probably, but it's not the same. I like the small town atmosphere, and I like not having to tip someone to wash my hair, someone to dry it, someone to comb it, someone to cut it, and someone to color it. It should cost under $70, which it does. I like the atmosphere, I like that I'm known there, I like that the converation picks up from the last time I was there, and I like that I can say "put it on my mom's tab". Small towns have its perks.

Christmas has been the same since we were kids. I'm not sure when our Christmas Eve dinner tradition started, but after the evening family mass, we have apple fritters and little sausage links (Morningstar links for me) for dinner. Christmas morning, my sisters and I don our Santa hats and pass out the gifts. When everything is unwrapped, we gather around for a family picture. We usually gather around my sleeping father, but occasionally he is awake. The "gathering" part includes us putting on any clothes that we got and holding up as many gifts as we can. The clothes have to be put on over our pajamas, too. This is something we started doing over 20 years ago.

I know one of these years I'll have to rent a car to drive home. I know one of these years IHOP will be closed. I know one of these years fewer and fewer of the softball gals will be able to get together. I know one of these years my sister, nephew, and brother-in-law will spend Christmas with his family only.

I know one of these years I won't be able to make it home for Christmas.

Until that happens, I'll continue to enjoy my holiday traditions.