Instead of Carols, Play-by-Play

I have great plans for tonight, the contemplation of which is pleasing me. I will turn on the Bruins game at 8 (thank you again, NESN, for giving me re-runs in this time of serious hockey drought; as Puck Daddy says, it's day 73 of dumb), and I will wrap Christmas presents to the tune of the hockey game. Winter perfection!

I'm at a balancing point in terms of Christmas things: some are good and some are not, not yet. I learned driving home last night that a lot of people put up their Christmas lights over the long weekend, and I like that. Anything to brighten that awful early dark! But I kind of prefer the lights-only displays to the Santas and reindeer, and I'm really not ready for Christmas carols yet, not even the ones I like. It's too early. There's another month! I don't want to be too sick of them by the end. Similarly, I don't want to be watching my beloved old holiday cartoons yet. Too soon!

But wrapping is okay, and in fact prudent: since I'm mailing presents this year, I have to get it done early. Yup, I'm flying! For the last three years, since my dad died, my mother and brother and I have gone to my grandmother and aunt in NY, but this year the brother and I will be joining our mother in Florida instead. As with so many decisions in life, there are pros and cons to each way, and while I'm not sorry to be going, there are certainly things I'll miss about our recent custom.

Seeing my aunt and grandmother, for one! Though that's a little easier for me and my mother than my brother, since we've seen them this fall and he hasn't. I'll miss going to the cousins Christmas afternoon (though at the same time, I kind of won't miss the pure chaos of that many people in a small space), and I'll miss seeing other cousins on Boxing Day (may have to plan a trip to PA next year). Further down the list, I'll miss seeing the Nutcracker here with Mum, and going to her favorite restaurant with her, and even just watching her and my brother getting to see Carlos.

But I won't miss the cold, for one thing! Before my parents moved to Florida, I didn't think that "Christmas" and "beach" went well together, but I learned quickly that they do. Mum's place isn't huge, but it will feel bigger when compared to Grandma's house with a bed in the dining room and the dining table in the living room (a big reason for the change of plans). Direct flights mean that with luck, I won't spend any more time traveling than I did when we drove, plus not driving means knitting and reading time for me. Yeah, pros and cons, and a different kind of prep. You know me, lists and plans and targets: start wrapping this week, mail boxes next week, and then it'll be pile-and-pack time!

But back to tonight. This may not say Christmas to everyone, but it says winter to me, which is a short step. Go Bruins!

P.S. Want to know a secret? They're going to win...