Taking What They're Givin'

Very satisfying Christmas. I had the pleasure of watching my four year old nephew tear open his GI Joe aircraft carrier (it's on my list for next year), die-cast A-10 Warthog with full ordinance (from me of course), space shuttle rescue kit (you wonder if they thought twice about shelving this after the 'Columbia' disaster last year), and numerous rockets of various shapes and sizes. Meanwhile my niece, around twenty six months, received a Volkswagen Barbie, two or three different Barbies to ride in it, an Olivia stuffed animal, and pots, pans, and other play kitchen accessories. Yeah, there's no difference between boys and girls.

I myself scored a Simpson's Christmas DVD, an under the counter radio/CD player for the kitchen, books on Reagan and Lincoln, gift certificates for Amazon, Best Buy, and Barnes and Noble, a five piece model set of generals from World War II (Patton, Monty, Ike, MacArthur, and Rommel), and best of all, from JB Doubtless, a bottle of The Macallan Cask Strength single malt. Yes, it was a memorable Christmas indeed. By the way JB, I hope you enjoyed your glass of Macallan yesterday. It was offered in the spirit of the season and you won't be seeing that bottle again any time soon.

But as much as I enjoyed the gifts from Santa and family, what really warmed my heart this Christmas was the generous collection of goodies I received from my fellow Northern Alliance members. Sorry JB, Saint Paul, and Atomizer but anything addressed to "the Fraters" is considered to be my property in a very real and legally binding sense.

The guys over at Power Line sent a nifty blue blazer. Mitch from
Shot In The Dark dropped off a loaf of what has to be the best banana bread this side of the Mississippi. The SCSU Scholars also were thinking about food with a tin of affirmative action bake sale cookies. The Warrior Monk of Spitbull renown, was kind enough to present me with the latest rendering in his now famous series of toast art pieces. Ed from Captain's Quarters contributed a framed copy of his bawdy version of 'The Night Before Christmas' done in limerick style. I'd give you a sample but this is a family friendly blog and we have certain standards that we attempt to maintain.

But easily the best gift I received came courtesy of one James Lileks. And it should come as no surprise that he elected to present me with a very, very special Hummel near and dear to his heart. It had to be difficult for James to part with this one.

I'm still waiting for my present from the NA Commissioner. I assume that it's been delayed due to some sort of delivery problem. But any day now I expect to get the call from the good folks at Downtown Jaguar with the news that I've been waiting for. Yes indeed. Any day now. (fade out to sound of fingers tapping...)