You Can Never Have Too Many Christmas Trees

Began the last full week before Christmas with paperwork. I had to send a bill and copies of the Temporary Disability claims to the Union. I also needed to get some more Christmas cards out and Mom and Dad-Bill's wedding anniversary card (it was yesterday). As soon as I'd had breakfast and finished those, I grabbed the DVDs that needed to go back to the Haddon Township Library and headed out for this week's first volunteering session.

It was a damp, gloomy day in Newton River Park. The weather was chilly, probably in the lower 50s, warmer than it should be for this time of year but not too bad. Perhaps because it wasn't raining when I was out, I saw more people than I expected, including a couple of girl track team members from Haddon Township High School and several dog-walkers. I gingerly wound my way through two large flocks of Canadian geese mingling with several ducks (including one handsome fellow with dark emerald feathers).

The Library was surprisingly quiet for such a gray morning. There were few people around, and even less to do. The children's DVDs didn't really need to be organized, and I only cleared two foreign titles out of the adult bins. There were no kids books or CDs to put away. I shelved a few DVDs and headed out in less than an hour. (I thought of taking out some Christmas cartoons, but finally decided I'd probably be getting books and DVDs from various people for the holidays. Not to mention, I have plenty of Christmas-themed programming as it is.)

I walked the bike down the hill to Wendy's for lunch. I try not to eat a lot of fast food, but they were near-by and fairly cheap. It was past noon when I arrived, and the place was the busiest I've ever seen it. Executives mingled with teenagers in plaid Catholic school uniforms from Paul VI down the road. Kids chattered about school, sports, and the newest music they'd just downloaded. Adults made jokes about work and discussed their holiday plans. The dining area was festively decorated in swags of red and silver tinsel garland, with lots of cardboard and plastic figurines. It actually felt very cozy. Someone was even nice enough to leave behind a copy of today's Courier Post comics.

Made a few quick stops at Westmont Plaza next. I mainly needed eggs at Super Fresh (I'm almost out). Also grabbed grits, scallions, and a vinyl accordion file coupon organizer that was a decent price. I've been wanting to replace my paper coupon organizer that's been falling apart for years, but the good ones were always too expensive.

Dollar Tree was busy, too. Thankfully, I didn't need as much there. I just grabbed a bag for my nephew Collyn's birthday present and a new shower curtain. I did have to wait in a long line, but for once, they actually had both registers open.

Went right home after that. I put everything away, then grabbed my laundry bag and the yarn for my latest crocheting project (a small hostess gift for my sister Rose, who is having Christmas morning at her apartment this year). Dropped them in Miss Ellie's old cart and pushed it over to Dad and Jodie's.

Jodie was in the midst of a project in the den. She wanted to decorate Dad's huge, very real tree before he gets home on Wednesday afternoon. I ended up taking over the job for her after my laundry went in the drier.

Dad has quite a collection of ornaments! Some of them are obviously old; many of the larger balls that were losing paint and glitter looked like they dated to the 50s. (There was an especially pretty turquoise blue one that glowed a soft green when placed next to a light.)

Others were far more recent. Jessa had a Hallmark Chinese Barbie. Dad had Santa fishing and dressed as a captain sitting on a ship's wheel. The golfing Santa was probably Uncle Ken's; he loved to golf. I suspect the retro 60s Barbie in pink may have belonged to my late stepmother Kaye's.

Many of Dad's ornaments reflected his years as a cruise ship captain and the two decades he, Jessa, and Kaye lived in Florida. Some trees have clip-on cardinals; Dad's has clip-on and twist-on flamingos. There were delicate ornaments that looked like they were made of real starfish, with beads glued on. There were glass balls in the shape of shells, and a set of pink, green, and gold glass shells and sea horses.

It was nearly 5:30 when the laundry was finally out of the drier and I was able to head home. When I got in, I folded and put away my laundry, then ran Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas while eating dinner.

This is yet another Disney direct-to-DVD movie of the 90s, but it's better than most. Set during Belle's time at the Beast's castle, Belle is determined to bring holiday cheer to the residents of the castle. Trouble is, Christmas reminds the Beast of everything he's lost, and he refuses to allow anyone to celebrate it. Belle ignores his rages and goes ahead with her plans anyway. There's also Forte, the castle organ who was once a gloomy composer (Tim Curry). He's determined to keep the Beast listening to his depressing orchestral pieces...even if he has to break up his romance with Belle.

While not quite up to the original, this is much better than Cinderella II or Belle's Magical World. The entire original voice cast has returned, and there's a lovely song, "As Long As There's Christmas." Curry's Forte may be the best thing about this one. Gaston was a so-so villain in the original; he didn't do anything really horrible until the film's last 30 minutes or so. Forte is nasty the moment we meet him; he wants to keep the Beast miserable so he can remain in the spotlight, and constantly uses his only friend, Fife the piccolo (Paul Reubens).

Recommended for parents looking for Christmas movies for girls and fans of the Disney Princesses, Belle, or  the original Beauty and the Beast.

Oh, and it's rained on and off all day. It finally started raining hard a few hours ago and has continued to do so.