It's Time For a Few Days Off - A Christmas Wrap-Up and Thank You

Today will be my last post until Wednesday the 27th. I'm working today, then taking Sunday, Monday and Tuesday off for my Christmas holiday and DH's birthday. I plan on doing very little - cooking my 5+ pound roast "beast", cooking a set of spareribs, and enjoying the fact that I can easily allow myself to sleep until 4:00, maybe even 5:00 am without problems. It's a luxury, and one I don't want to fall into for long because that kind of luxury leads to too many pounds put on and too much hard work to get them back off. 

It's time for a winter holiday, and we, here in Minnesota, in 
the far North of the US, have NO SNOW! At least, not in 
the metro area. It's a good thing the ski areas make artificial 
snow or they wouldn't have any customers. 

DH has his eggnog and at least three different types of Christmas cookies, he has chocolates and gummies, he has his computer games to yell at, and football to watch. We'll probably also have some ice hockey to watch as well. All in all, I'm rather looking forward to our three days off, and I hope he won't mention work for most of them. Then, on Wednesday, we start our End of the Year Four-Day Sale where everything in the store is on sale. Those days can be hectic, and there are no more days off until Sunday the 31st when we will go to our youngest niece's home for a family celebration for a few hours. 

I'm giving you this in Extra Large sizing because it can 
be a tough one to really see properly without that 
larger viewpoint. Last year's Christmas time we were 
deluged with snow and ended up with one of the top-ten 
snowiest seasons on record. This year we seem to be 
at the other side of the pendulum, with NO snow 
on the ground at my house, at least. NONE! 

All in all, I'm almost exhausted reading all of that, but it's a Green Christmas - very rare in Minnesota. The National Weather Service released the graphic above - detailing our snowy history for the past 70 years. We've had a Green Christmas approximately 20% of those years (defined as one inch or less of snow on the ground). Rarer still are years with NO snow on the ground - only three of the past 70 years. Right now, my front and back yards are bare - totally bare! What an immense change from the never-ending snows of 2022. 

The majority of my friends live elsewhere, and many 
of them I've never met, although we've been friends 
for years. I treasure each and every one of you, and 
wish you a safe, happy and wonderful Holiday season. 

The holiday cards continue coming in and my mantle is looking quite festive. Thanks go out to my friend Lokbiiviing from Finland. I got your card yesterday, and it's delightful. Thank you SO much for your thoughtfulness. Every time I glance over at my festive fireplace mantle, I'm thrilled and I feel so very fortunate in my friends both near and far. I'm an only child, and live a fairly solitary life with DH, so having friends is VERY important to me. You've shared your seasonal joy with me, and that, in turn, causes my joy factor to increase exponentially. 

Merry Christmas to one and all. I hope you have 
a wonderful time with friends and family, and 
please, if you color in my card, send me a photo 
attached to an email or a message on one either 
Live Journal or Dreamwidth. I LOVE seeing the 
way everyone is coloring in my gnomes - they're 
all different, and they're all wonderful. 

So, have a very Merry Christmas if you celebrate that holiday (I celebrate everything I can - why not? LOL). Enjoy your friends, family and surroundings, be grateful for your online friends as well because many times they are a lifeline, and try to make life a bit easier for at least one person this holiday season. I'll be back on Wednesday the 27th. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל.