The Winds of Christmas

Work was kinda fun today. There were three different tables in the bakery and deli section of the store giving out free samples. One had cake and cookies from the bakery a vegetable tray from Produce, and one of those fancy new Culinary Circle gourmet crab cakes and brie from the deli. The smaller table had cubed cheeses, deli mustard, and pepperoni. There was also a seafood display. I ended up making a nice little lunch out of it all.

My relief was late, but the Eagles game was on by the time I left and the crowds were fairly light. I headed straight home, at least as well as I could. The wind was intense today, whipping across the Black Horse Pike and stinging my cheeks and making my eyes water. It was a really nice ride, though. It was very cold, probably in the lower 30s, but the air had the clean, crisp scent of winter.

The Eagles game was over by the time I finally made it to Uncle Ken's, but there was still food out, and I had a nice chat with Dolores and Uncle Ken for about an hour afterwards. Dad's out on a work trip and won't be back for over a week. He was apparently docked in Cape May today (not something I envy - it has to be cold on the water), and Jodie and Jessa had driven there to see him.

I called Mom for our weekly chat when I got home. She was tired, but quite happy. The Eagles played very well and beat a distracted Giants 20-14. Apparently, she's spent the last week taking care of sick family members, including my pregnant sister Anny, not to mention herself, but was finally feeling better.

Since I had some unexpected time on my hands, I watched the original 1947 Miracle On 34th Street while talking to Mom and reading some of the Christmas gift books I took out of the Oaklyn Library. I like to watch Miracle early in the Christmas season, since the opening sequence deals with the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade and much of it takes place well before the actual Christmas holiday. In some ways, Miracle reminds me of the Disney live action/animated film Enchanted. Both deal with gentle people in cynical New York who believe themselves to be otherwordly...and how they change the way a city, and a parent and their child, look at faith, trust, and one's ability to believe in the things that can't be seen.