Christmas — Midseason Report; Happy New Year

Christmas — Midseason Report.  Well, since yesterday was the sixth day of Christmas, I guess I can give you a report on the season thus far.

Christmas gifts are easy to list. My brother an s-i-l in Japan sent the long underwear I had asked for — this year in colors — and a band to go around the midriff and keep my intestines, liver, and kidneys warm. My big brother gave me a fancy alarm clock, a subscription to "Sail" magazine, and a "Why Do Cats Do That?" wall calendar (not the usual Red Sox) to go in the kitchen — soon I'll have to go to the mall to get calendars for the bedrooms at half price: Japan, castles, and Red Sox, if I can find them.

Dinner at my aunt's was a pleasant affair. There were six of us: my aunt, her best friend, an eighty-something man and woman, and my brother and me. We had roast lamb for dinner and some fairly interesting and wide-ranging conversation. Stayed there for about five hours.

There was a dusting of snow on Christmas Day and maybe an inch on Sunday (sixth day). Now it's getting really cold. Days 2 through 6 were pretty calm. My brother was here the whole time, except for a couple of times going into Boston for a few hours. We had a beef rib roast on Wednesday (which my brother said was better than the lamb the day before) and the leftovers made a good dinner on Saturday. Friday, it was my version of shrimp scampi (with a leek and some green pepper) alongside tri-color rotini with alfredo sauce. I didn't take pice because I thought I'd already done it. Next time, I guess.

Happy New Year.  Still almost four hours to go, here, which is not to soon to wish all my readers a very happy and holy New Year. May all the good from 2012 continue and increase, and may all the bad things be left behind.

I don't make new year's resolutions, but I've made some small steps forward in my spiritual life over the past couple of weeks, and I'm hoping to continue with them. If you've made any resolutions, I hope you'll do well with them, but if you don't keep them all, don't get discouraged. Habits can be hard to change or establish. So you can keep trying, one step at a time.