Manic Monday The Holidays Are Looming – Warning: Personal Photos Enclosed

Panic has entered my household as the busy holiday season looms upon us in the next quarter of 2016. Visions of wobbly ladders and unsteady boxes packed haphazardly in the ceiling dance in my head. The upcoming holidays bring: planning, checklists, credit cards bills, emergency trips to the mall, and hours of decoration. The amount of food that will be consumed is an extraordinary feat not meant for the weak of heart. So if you can’t help unload truckloads of decorations from an attic, browse for the perfect gift for hours without sustenance, and don’t know the difference between a Carole Towne and Department 56 Christmas village, then you can’t hang with my sister during 3 months of every year.

If I haven’t painted a clear picture for you in my previous blog posts, all things that require forethought and creative planning escape the nether corners in the neatly packed gray matter I call my brain. The A.D.D. committee that has taken up residence in that vast neurological wasteland have only two functions 1) Determine what will make Sherrie’s life easier; and 2) What words can Sherrie pen about the items referred to in #1.

Outlined below are the upcoming holidays that simultaneously cause my eyeballs to sweat and make my spine tingle with a jingle:

Halloween Children and adults play dress up in their favorite costume to collect treats. I will admit that I love to hide behind the alter-ego of a smartly planned costume. It allows me the opportunity to emulate characters I had wished were part of my life as a child. Those included Marie Antoinette (pre-guillotine), Mata Hari (before her conviction in WWI for spying), and Elvis (I actually owned the white suit from his last tour in 1977). This year I have ordered the pattern, satin material, and bee-hive wig to dress as Effie Trinkett from The Hunger Games. The running theme here seems to be strong female costumes. Even the effeminate duds worn by Elvis match the bill. I’ve also been known to steal Mounds candy bars from unsuspecting children begging for candy on my doorstep.

Thanksgiving Finally, after 11 months I have the opportunity to be thankful for the blessings in my life. Among those very private thoughts, I offer the obvious here; food, hordes of food. My partner in crime, my sister, and I begin planning the menu in early October every year. She is the list bearer, so we pour over her laminated recipe cards that contain aged photos of such goodies as green bean casserole, sweet potato dream, and pumpkin chiffon pie. It’s similar to the planning of a new novel. We plot and structure the execution of our perfect character arcs. In the end though, revision is always necessary “OMG, we only have 10 boxes of butter.” It is the glorious gathering of friends and family around our extravagantly dressed Thanksgiving table that keeps me a-twitter each year.

Christmas This is the granddaddy of all holiday decoration seasons. The attic stairs are pulled out of the garage ceiling and some brave soul in the family (this is never me) begins to pass down box after dusty box to a chain gang of people. After all 30+ containers form a wall 0’Christmas down one hallway, the decorating marathon begins the day after Thanksgiving. Hopped up on coffee and Kahlua with a belly full of toasted pumpkin bread, the tradition of village creation begins. It requires a full day to build and light the platform upon which my sister’s Carole Towne village will be reborn. On Saturday, with only slight hangovers, we assemble new placements for the Town Hall, Fire Department, Baseball Stadium, Bed and Breakfast, Sweet Shop, Casino, and too many others to name. Each tiny snow scene is unwrapped. Puppies frolic, children ice skate, and a priest gambles (this was my addition). It is quite a sight to behold when complete, but it is the loving act of creation with my sister that I cherish at this time of year.

After writing this post, I realize once again, that the holidays are my favorite time of year. I get to spend time with family and friends, but I am still a little afraid of my sister’s unwavering holiday endurance and Mad Hatter spirit.

Looks like another post-holiday decompression sister cruise will be necessary. Thank heavens.