kidsmoke Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 Hi all! How is everyone doing with the holidays? Can we talk about how we are all approaching it, and have maybe some happy decorated-tree pictures, or you could tell us whatever Christmas/Holiday story you've got going? Are there Wilco-related gifts involved? What music is getting you through right now? Holiday music, or something else? What about holiday baking? Are you slapping out dozens of cookies and quickbreads, or did you burn out on that last Spring? Lastly, whaddya want for Christmas? As you can see I have a lot of questions. Answer whichever you choose. Happy Holidays, VC. Be well. Stay hopeful. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chisoxjtrain Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 Attached is my tree, with Deadpool sliding down a branch. I'm listening to a lot of Gorillaz right now. They did a live concert last week in support of their latest album which was fantastic. When it comes to the holiday music, I have a playlist which of bunch of random holiday songs, . If you haven't already, check out the album "Socks" by JD McPherson. Really good, original holiday album. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
brownie Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 My holiday music is the new Calexico album, Seasonal Shift. It has perked up my spirits tremendously. Overall, it’s a weird and lonely Christmas. I took advantage of a warm day last weekend to visit my best friend and exchange Christmas presents from 10 feet away from each other on her patio. (I am a teacher who stills sees students on the occasional days when our school is not closed due to Covid, so no one I care about is willing to get near me.). What do I want for Christmas? I want my life back. My tree is possibly slightly embarrassing, but as it is just me here and I need something manageable, this works for me. It has a woodland critters theme, although I’m not sure how many you can make out in the photo. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kidsmoke Posted December 18, 2020 Author Share Posted December 18, 2020 John, your Deadpool tree is a near-perfect 2020 Christmas tree. It suggests one have a Merry Christmas, while never insisting upon it and trampling everyone's rights. Excellent! Thanks for the Gorillaz recommendation, too. Brownie, your tree has that essential Christmas magic to it, and I love your theme! Don't let the loneliness get to you...I'm there too!...but remind yourself this is temporary. We will all outlast trump, and this pandemic, if we are careful. And then we'll all go to Solid Sound and hug each other! It's going to be good again. Thanks for the Calexico "Seasonal Shift" recommendation. Haven't heard it yet, but now I'll make a point of it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Boss_Tweedy Posted December 20, 2020 Share Posted December 20, 2020 The holidays aren't as warm and fuzzy for me as they once were. Most of the people in my family who made it special are dead. That includes my dad, whose birthday is Dec. 23 (which serves as a strong reminder of his absence). The pandemic certainly doesn't help. So I'm working a good bit and reading, listening to podcasts and watching movies during my down time. Given all of those factors I've still been in a mostly upbeat mood and listening to Christmas music a good bit. As the big day approaches, however, the whole holiday season thing is getting a little more depressing. No big gift wishes for me. I have more than I need, so I ordered a couple of books to help out an independent book store that was struggling and a couple of CDs. Oh, and I'm expecting my first gooey butter cake to arrive from Russell's in St. Louis some time this week! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to my fellow VC'ers. Take every chance you have to tell the people you love that you love them. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kidsmoke Posted December 21, 2020 Author Share Posted December 21, 2020 I finally got my Christmas tree decorated! It was so hard to get motivated this year, since really nobody but me & hubby are going to see it. But I realized I need the tree, the traditions, for myself. It's been a rough enough year so I need magical, twinkly Christmas decor! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Chez Posted December 21, 2020 Share Posted December 21, 2020 It's been a strange holiday season. My oldest son lives in San Diego and cancelled his month long trip back home due to Covid -- haven't seen him in a year (which has been hard). My mother-in-law passed away two weeks ago at the ripe old age of 95. She was a great lady -- the quintessential "crusty New Englander." I attended her mass/funeral by Zoom which was weird, but I'm grateful I could be there virtually. We are also in the process of moving/down-sizing (which is more stressful that I had anticipated) so we have sold/donated/given away a lot of furniture and the place looks pretty barren! But it's the season for counting your blessings and I have much to be grateful and thankful for. Life is a gift and it's good. And to quote Patterson Hood, "It's great to be alive." Happy Holidays to everyone on VC. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mr. Heartbreak Posted December 22, 2020 Share Posted December 22, 2020 I just posted my annual Facebook post about how my wife and I don't really send out cards anymore (she's a Buddhist and I'm a non-religious/spiritual dude). Then I went out to the mailbox today and, lo and behold, we got a card in the mail from kidsmoke! So thanks, Donna. Oh, and happy holidays and new year to all you other VCers! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kidsmoke Posted December 23, 2020 Author Share Posted December 23, 2020 On 12/21/2020 at 6:31 AM, Chez said: It's been a strange holiday season. My oldest son lives in San Diego and cancelled his month long trip back home due to Covid -- haven't seen him in a year (which has been hard). My mother-in-law passed away two weeks ago at the ripe old age of 95. She was a great lady -- the quintessential "crusty New Englander." I attended her mass/funeral by Zoom which was weird, but I'm grateful I could be there virtually. We are also in the process of moving/down-sizing (which is more stressful that I had anticipated) so we have sold/donated/given away a lot of furniture and the place looks pretty barren! But it's the season for counting your blessings and I have much to be grateful and thankful for. Life is a gift and it's good. And to quote Patterson Hood, "It's great to be alive." Happy Holidays to everyone on VC. It's been so hard on all of us, being separated from each other, and especially close family. I hope you can see your son again soon! I'm lucky in that my 3 kids still live here in the city, so at least we have that. So sorry about your mother in law. All the downsizing you're doing now is going to pay off in so many ways. I'm plowing through a lot of the same (altho not moving) and I'm calling it "reclaiming my space"! But yeah, it's an exhausting job because it's emotional, too. All the stuff we collect over the course of life has memories attached. 22 hours ago, Mr. Heartbreak said: I just posted my annual Facebook post about how my wife and I don't really send out cards anymore (she's a Buddhist and I'm a non-religious/spiritual dude). Then I went out to the mailbox today and, lo and behold, we got a card in the mail from kidsmoke! So thanks, Donna. Oh, and happy holidays and new year to all you other VCers! HA! It's all in the timing! (As if I, or anyone else for that matter, had control of the postal service right now ) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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