had ourselves a merry little Christmas

Ben and I did everything we could think of to guarantee ourselves a happy day yesterday, and, you know, it worked out okay.  Ben's work life is so hellish and awful right now that the last thing I want to do is make his home life unhappy, as well.  So we put up the tree and decorated the house and wrapped presents to be placed under the tree.  Our house looked like a happy holiday home, anyway.

Yesterday morning, we lit the tree and the wonderful old Santa Claus we found at an antique shop years ago.  Ben put on the Christmas CDs we listened to every year as we opened our presents.  And we opened our presents.  Just the two of us.  Well, and Rufus and Katie, of course.  They were the absolute highlight of that event.  I had shopped carefully for gifts for each of them, which I desperately hoped they would like.  And they did!  Rufus was the first to sniff out the fact that there were doggie presents under the tree, and he pulled out Katie's to unwrap for himself.  We quickly gave him his own present, and Katie hers.  They made short work of ripping off the wrapping paper, then they actually played with their toys!  I was thrilled.  Ben and I just sat and watched them and laughed.  The money I spent on the dogs' gifts was well-spent.  It made us happy. 

We had decided to have lasagna for our Christmas dinner, which was what I made through the years that the kids were growing up.  Amazingly, everyone liked that.  It's a lot of work, though, and especially for two people.  So this year, for the first time, we tried the Stouffer's frozen lasagna.  And, you know, it was pretty good.  And the clean-up was great.  Perhaps the start of a new tradition.

There was a dearth of Christmas movies on t.v. (like none) so I put on the copy of White Christmas that I got for Christmas last year and searched out an old jigsaw puzzle from the big box in the basement. I have had this puzzle literally as long as I can remember.  It belonged to my parents, of course, when I was a child.  Its snowy winter scene seemed perfect for a quiet Christmas afternoon.  Ben put in a few pieces, but puzzles have always been my pleasure, and working this one from my childhood while watching that old movie seemed just right, calming somehow.

Julie called us and Ben called his parents, and, mercifully, the day was short, as they are this time of year.  With a little effort on both our parts, Ben and I got through another Christmas.  May next year be a happier one. 

a temporary antidote for what ails me

One thing that's always sure to give me a brief respite from the Christmas blues is to watch the movie White Christmas. Now that is an odd thing because I really detest Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye, and to think of either one of them as a romantic lead is beyond ludicrous.  And yet, I love that movie.  I have loved it since I was a kid.  I can remember singing the songs from it with my brother Thomas as we did the dishes.  He must have liked it, too, because he would even sing Sisters with me.

As much as I dislike the male leads, I love Rosemary Clooney and Vera Ellen.  I think Rosemary Clooney is lovely in a fresh, natural way, and her voice has always been one of my favorites.  When she sings Love, You Didn't Do Right By Me,  she is stunning.  But this year, I have been noticing Vera Ellen especially.  What a spectacular dancer she was!  She had such a tiny waist, and her legs went on forever.  I just can't take my eyes off her in the production numbers.  This was the first year I noticed George Chakiris as one of the dancers in Mandy because I have always been so busy watching Vera Ellen dance.  And the clothes she wore!  I just loved her outfits when I was a kid.  She seemed like a Barbie doll without the gross, over-inflated boobs.

The music is just fantastic, but I love the story, too, and I always tear up when General Waverly walks into the darkened dining room, the lights come up, and he sees his troops assembled there.  Then they all begin to softly sing We'll Follow the Old Man.  What a finale!  Unfortunately, no one in my family shares my passion for this movie so I generally watch it for a bit on my own while I am knitting.  AMC has been showing it this year, but I generally have to click away during their ridiculously long commercial breaks.  Hm-m-m.  Wonder if it's too late to add it to my Christmas list?